Make our issues heard
ICCS also takes action in a wider European context. It advocates for Church and School related issues, thus putting it on the agenda and shaping the debate around it in church and political settings. The other way around, ICCS also monitors Europe-wide discussions and developments and reflects them in national contexts and other forums related to church and school issues.
Raise the Voice of Education in European Churches
ICCS is well connected within the Europe-wide structures of Churches. It has close contacts to the Community of Protestant Churches in Europe (CPCE) and the Conference of European Churches (CEC). Within these structures ICCS promotes the idea that education is a core issue of churches and that it should be one of its priorities. ICCS is an official organisation in partnership of the CEC. As such ICCS has participated in several of the CEC’s working groups, especially those dealing with issues of Education for Democratic Citizenship and the role of religious education in intercultural dialogue. Via the CEC’s advocacy work, ICCS also participates in political debates about Education on European level.
Raise the Voice of Church in Political Institutions
ICCS sees itself as a facilitator of dialogue between the field of Church and School and the political sphere. Since 1986, ICCS has been registered as Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) at the Council of Europe (CoE) and has gained consultative status. Every two years, ICCS organizes the Klingenthal Colloquium, a forum of exchange between the players of the political field on the one hand and the players of the Church and School context on the other. Furthermore, ICCS contributes to the Council of Europe’s politics and programmes in the field of education, often in cooperation with the Conference of European Churches (CEC). Due to the CoE’s main rationale to promote democracy and human rights, the role of education is discussed in this context and ICCS seeks to explore the contribution of Church and Religious Education to these pillars of our modern societies.
New CEC leadership elected
The Conference of European Churches (CEC) has elected new leaders during its General Assembly 2023 in Tallinn, Estonia: H.E. Archbishop Nikitas of Thyateira and Great Britain of the Ecumenical Patriarchate has been elected as president, and Rt Rev. Dr Dagmar Winter,...
Positive developments for education at Council of Europe spring meetings
The Conference of INGOs (CINGO) held its annual spring session in hybrid format on 24-26 April 2023. An exchange of views with Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić and the adoption of the INGO Conference Recommendation to the Council of Europe Heads of State...
December newsletter is out now!
ICCS, together with its partner, the IV, has just published the latest issue of its newsletter. In this rich issue you can read more about the IV General Assembly, the study trip of several school leaders to the Netherlands and the résumé of the Thematic Group, whose...
Self-Awareness as key – webinar on interreligious dialogue
Since spring 2021, a Committee on Interreligious and Interconvictional Dialogue has taken up its work at the Conference of International Non-Governmental Organisations at the Council of Europe. [1] "Self-awareness as the key to intercultural and interreligious...
CEC Education office closes
By the end of January 2023, it will be final: the Strasburg office of the Conference of European Churches (CEC) will close its doors. This is a decisive cut for education as the Strasburg office has traditionally been the one responsible for this field. The two staff...
Time to say goodbye
“Working together in this Thematic Group has been very important to us all. It allowed for dialogue with colleagues from all parts of Europe, from Orthodox, Lutheran, Methodist, Anglican and ecumenical backgrounds. In our world today characterised by so much...
June Newsletter out now!
ICCS together with its partner the IV has just published the most recent issue of its newsletter. In this rich edition, you can learn more about peace education in times of the Ukraine war and register for the study trip in September to get to know the work of...
New platform for blended learning
The Wergeland Centre in Norway and the Council of Europe have established a new online learning platform for educators. This is to provide teachers and other educators with resources for their teaching for democracy and human rights. This platform is under development...
Religion and dialogue group exchange with Members of European Parliament
On 18th January 2022, the Committee of INGOs at the Council of Europe, which works on questions of religious education and dialogue and in which ICCS participates, had the chance to exchange with Members of the European Parliament. The ‘Group for intercultural...
NGOs assess educational programmes against intolerance and discrimination
Since April 2021, within the framework of the Conference of NGOs at the Council of Europe, an “Interreligious and interconvictional Dialogue" (IRICD) Committee has been set up. While in the European Union there is Article 17, which provides a basis for a dialogue of...