Established within the Department of Intercultural Communication and Multilingualism Research (IKM) with the Language Learning Centre (SLZ) at the Faculty of Arts, and founded by Dr Paul Meyermann, MitSprache evolved from its predecessor project, ‘Engagiert für Flüchtlinge’ (Dedicated for Refugees), into an initiative that combines student learning with social engagement: for greater participation, more dialogue and constructive coexistence in a diverse yet increasingly polarised society.
At the heart of the project lies interaction: students and new immigrants engage in an in-depth exchange about educational and learning experiences, pathways into vocational training and higher education, and issues relating to discrimination and participation. This brings different perspectives to light and facilitates dialogue between them. Language thus becomes a unifying element – as a basis for orientation, a prerequisite for participation, and a means of sharing and making sense of experiences. In this way, a space is created in which differences do not divide us, but instead become a starting point for dialogue, and social cohesion can be experienced in a tangible way.
The project is run by the Department for Academic Affairs at the Faculty of Arts, in cooperation with the Caritasverband für die Stadt Bonn e.V., and has been open to students from all faculties since 2021 thanks to the support of numerous sponsors. The combination of seminars and practical phases provides knowledge of ‘German as a second language’ as well as on migration, displacement and discrimination, whilst at the same time strengthening the ability to recognise different perspectives, cope with tensions and maintain dialogue – even when public debates are drifting apart.
Special thanks are due to the Department for Academic Affairs at the Faculty of Arts, as well as the Vice-Dean’s Office for Research and Teaching, for their ongoing support of the project, which has also made it possible to launch the new funding period running until 2029, thereby ensuring the continued operation of MitSprache.
Alongside long-standing partners such as the Caritasverband für die Stadt Bonn e.V., the association Ausbildung statt Abschiebung (AsA e.V.), the Equal Opportunity and Diversity Unit, and the International Office, many new stakeholders are making a significant contribution to ensuring that MitSprache can take place in this form. These include the Refugee Law Clinic Bonn e.V., which contributes its expertise in low-threshold legal advice; Eden Abrehet, who supports the project with empowering workshops and an anti-racist perspective; and the SchlaU-Werkstatt für Migrationspädagogik GmbH, which brings fresh inputs to the project with its many years of experience in migration education.
This autumn, we will be celebrating the tenth anniversary together. At the same time, MitSprache is embarking on a new funding period.