Welcome to issue 7 – and to the moment after the EPDF
The 6th European Policy Dialogue Forum (EPDF) has wrapped up. Months of preparation, countless calls and drafts culminated in two and a half intense days in Geneva. And now? The real work begins: turning dialogue into action and insights into something that can resonate beyond meeting rooms.
Before moving forward, it’s worth pausing. The EPDF felt like a long, necessary breath. We stepped out of a world spinning ever faster, leaving little space to think or listen. And listen we did.
Hosted by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), and overlooking the Swiss mountains, participants from over thirty nationalities and more than ten religious traditions came together. Believers and non-believers, policy-makers and activists, religious leaders, entrepreneurs, and citizens with extraordinary stories. One in four was under 30. A small planetary sample of humanity grappling with a shared question: How can we live together with dignity, respect, and shared principles in a world where everything seems to happen at once?
Climate disruption, geopolitical instability, economic fragmentation, social inequality –“polycrisis” may be the term, but living it is anything but abstract. Faced with this layered reality, we tried something different: rediscovering the sacredness of our shared fragility –the thread that binds us to one another and to the planet we inhabit.
From there, we explored “polysolutions”: responses that emerge only when perspectives meet, when dialogue becomes practice, and when faith traditions, civic networks, and curious minds align around the common good. This is the spirit of trust-based networks, values-driven local governance, and civic and faith-inspired cooperation – an approach as old as Europe itself. From Greek polymaths to figures like Leonardo da Vinci, Goethe, and Hildegard of Bingen, history reminds us that creativity is connection and curiosity an act of courage.
Inspired by this lineage, we hope the EPDF can be a spark and a reminder to stay curious, to deepen understanding, and to practise the art of connection, in the spirit of our motto: Inspire, Connect, Engage.
To close, we invite you to listen to a piece of music that embodies this spirit. The Orchestra of Piazza Vittorio, born in Rome’s most multicultural neighbourhood, shows how mixing languages, rhythms, and stories can create unexpected beauty.
So take a moment. Listen. Breathe. This, too, is where dialogue begins. Buon ascolto and enjoy this song.
Teresa Albano Senior Programme Manager, Europe Region Programmes
“I’m especially thankful for the chance to work with the Social and Solidarity Economy group, where we explored practical recommendations to strengthen local development and foster inclusion for all generations of society. It was a meaningful and inspiring experience. I learned a lot from the panel and input speakers, and I am hoping to take some of their suggestions further in my own work to address the challenges our communities are facing.”
Sofia Lanza
“Too often, organisations engaging with young people create performative initiatives that deliver limited impact. Throughout the conference, I strongly advocated for meaningful social action projects that empower young people to drive real, lasting change. Social action projects can help young people develop vital skills such as teamwork and leadership skills, to problem-solving and strategic thinking. I also emphasised that young people know what they want and need from these spaces. They bring fresh ideas, innovation, and insight, and if they don’t have the answer immediately, they always figure it out. In many grassroots spaces I’ve been involved in recently, I’ve seen first-hand that when young people are given the space to think, collaborate, and innovate, they can achieve almost anything. The conference itself was exceptional, centred on community cohesion at a time when it couldn’t be more urgent.”
Arjan Singh Rai
“One of the most moving parts of the Forum was the engagement of young people, this time a sizeable number more than ever. They were not simply invited to the table - they challenged, they helped create the table, sightsee ways to redesign it, and expand it so more voices could fit.”
Amjad Saleem
“This year, I had the honour of participating as a Human Library “book,” sharing my story and representing faith-based advocacy and my work in the field of participation and mediation. Moments like these remind me why dialogue matters. Being part of an interactive space where personal journeys across faiths, cultures, and geographies are exchanged was truly meaningful.”
The EPDF is more than an event. It’s a platform for conversations – not about others, but with others. And because this dialogue doesn’t belong only to the people who were in the room in Geneva, we are opening it up here, through this blog, to anyone who wants to listen and learn.
In the coming issues, we will share reflections, voices, and resources generously offered by participants at the Forum. Our hope is that this space becomes a small echo of the polyphony we work so hard to nurture within the KAICIID Europe Region Programme – many perspectives, many experiences, one shared commitment to living together with dignity.
Social and Solidarity Economy
The social economy is made up of a diversity of enterprises and organisations, like cooperatives, mutuals, associations, foundations, social enterprises among other forms specific to each country.
Operating in all sectors of the economy, they put into practice a set of values intrinsic to their functioning, with respect for people and the planet, and for principles such as equality, equity, interdependence, self-management, transparency and accountability, promoting dignified work and living conditions. Social economy enterprises and organisations are characterised by inclusive and democratic governance and reinvest most of their profits or surpluses to pursue sustainable development objectives.
To learn more about SEE, the International Labour Organization (ILO) offers a free online coursehere.
Resources from the EPDF
These resources are provided by some of the fantastic individuals and organisations who attended the 6th EPDF. We are truly grateful for their inspiration and contributions.
Association for Historical Dialogue and Research (AHDR), Cyprus
AHDR leads the way in developing innovative and practical supplementary educational materials for educators and students. Materials and information gathered from archives and research – such as sources related to formerly mixed villages, missing persons, findings from research studies, translations of textbook segments, old photographs and oral history accounts – are used to create a range of innovative and easily accessible booklets that foster multiperspectivity, historical understanding and critical thinking among educators and students. AHDR’s educational booklets explore diverse aspects of the past of Cyprus while applying the leading techniques and approaches in history education. Explore their work here.
Globethics, Switzerland
Globethics President Dr. Dietrich Werner contributed a powerful message on ethical funding and shared responsibility during the EPDF in the Plenary Session Ethical Funding for Shared Futures in a Fragmented. His input emphasised that ethical funding is not merely a financial mechanism but a moral commitment – one that can translate social cohesion, climate justice, and human dignity into measurable action. Click here to read Dr. Werner’s key insights and find a link to his full background paper at the bottom of the page.
World Council of Churches, Switzerland
Reflecting on ethical funding for shared futures in a fragmented world, Frederique Seidel from the World Council of Churches explained that their new resource "Hope for Children through Climate Justice" is inspired by a quote attributed to Dietrich Bonhoeffer: "If you see someone driving into a group of innocent bystanders, I cannot, as a person of faith, simply wait for the catastrophe, then comfort the wounded and bury the dead. I must try to wrestle the steering wheel out of the hands of the driver.” The handbook "Hope for Children" equips people of faith to defend children's and future generations' right to life and a healthy environment. Read the WCC’s feature story about the EPDF and find more of their resources at the end of the article.
For further reflection…
Our Acting Secretary General, Ambassador António de Almeida Ribeiro, reflects on the 75th anniversary of the European Convention on Human Rights, celebrating its role in protecting human dignity and freedoms across Europe and emphasizing the importance of dialogue in keeping those rights alive and meaningful in people’s lives.Read his reflections here.
Our Upcoming Events
18 December 2025, Rome, High-level roundtable “Religion and Diplomacy”: co-organised with the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue and the European Muslim Leaders Majlis (EuLeMa).
8 January 2026, Lisbon, Global Migration Film Festival: To mark the 2025 International Migrants Day, in cooperation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe (UNRIC) and KAICIID will organize a panel discussion followed by the screening of the movie “Limbo”.
The National Human Rights Structures Navigator offers a comprehensive overview and insight into national human rights landscapes across 27 EU member states and three candidate countries. The Navigator provides a succinct overview of the location, legal basis, functions, mandates and structured cooperation with partners at national and EU/ international level.
In June 2025, the University of Oxford hosted a global summit on climate change and human rights in partnership with UN. You can now watch the Right Here Right Now Global Climate Summitonline.
Communications Assistant at CONCORD- European Confederation of NGOs Working on Sustainable Development and International Cooperation, Brussels, Belgium
Thank you for reading!
We would love to hear from you. If you missed previous editions of our blog, please click here.
Warm wishes from
Teresa, Jana, Tim, and Aleksandra
R. Castilho 52 Lisbon, 1250-071, Portugal
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