Side events | Piramida

Side events are parallel offers taking place in the morning on 16 November at Piramida. The events are organised by THE CIVICS and/or NECE Partners.

Participants can register in advance to join one of the discoveries. Registration is open only to confirmed participants of the festival.

ORANGE CUBE

Following two online modules as part of the NECE Campus, this in-person NECE Lab focuses on the role of intergenerational dialogue in nurturing civic values. The project examines the diminishing role of elders in civic education and the disconnect between traditional and modern transmission methods due to factors like technological advancements and globalisation. It addresses the evolving roles of traditional civic education holders, the impact of societal changes, and the need for a reflective and questioning mindset among citizens. By reimagining civic education through the lens of intergenerational dialogue and Ecological Belonging, the goal is to develop a framework that strengthens community bonds and fosters a sense of interconnectedness between individuals, communities, and the planet. In this culminating 4-hour in-person Lab, we will hold a policy-driven design session to explore possible concepts for building intergenerational cooperation in the civic education space. We will explore what this might look like in practice, determine possible policy recommendations, and further recommendations for certain target groups (civic educators, philanthropies, EU institutions, and community groups).

This Lab is organized in cooperation with The Wellbeing Project.

YELLOW CUBE

Today, financial and economic education has made it to the top of the agenda across Europe. That is a fantastic achievement and long overdue. Civic education, however, has long been established as a crucial part of education. Each area on its own is important and helps to create responsible and knowledgeable citizens. This in-person NECE Lab focuses on exploring how to strengthen the link of formal and non-formal education in the context of financial and economic literacy, and will present the results of the Financial and Economic Literacy NECE Lab organised in Belgrade. We invite civic education practitioners with experience of working in economic and financial education and those curious about the topic to join us in discussions.

This event is organised as a NECE Lab by THE CIVICS Innovation Hub in partnership with Znanje na djelu and ERSTE Financial Life Park (FLIP).

MOVIES ROOM

Screening of the films on the topic of BORDERS organised by Vienna Contemporary Art Space (VCAS) followed by a discussion with the audience.

‘Borders’ is an artist’s experimental video and short film showreel dedicated to exploring the nature of borders and their impact on society, culture, and the human experience. Borders have long been a focal point of human interaction, shaping the course of history and influencing the distribution of culture. From shifting geopolitical borders to the more abstract boundaries that delineate groups of people, works in this showreel investigate how these lines of demarcation often act as both barriers and bridges, separating and connecting individuals and communities. While many people feel a connection to the land and its history, nature itself is wholly indifferent to the shifting territorial boundaries drawn across its surface: borders and their associated politics, policies, and power structures are purely in the realm of human activity.

The works presented in part 1 of the showreel explore these cultural and geopolitical boundaries, the land upon which they are drawn, and the profound impact they can have on the opportunities and experiences of individuals and communities. Part 2 looks at the borders and boundaries of the human body and its consciousness.  Works will consider themes such as external forces interacting with the body (illness, pollution), and the effect of technology, especially AI, on how we think about consciousness and humankind.

GREEN CUBE

A deeper vision on community building and democratic engagement
Coinciding with the NECE Festival 2023 a joint effort was started in a set of 6 pilot countries from Eastern to Western Europe: Montenegro, Slovakia, Czech Republic, UK, Spain and Portugal. This effort was aimed at complementing the broader pan-European civic education work led by The Civics and NECE, with more detailed work at the country level, combining top-down and bottom-up approaches, enabling in-depth collaboration, identifying synergies, disseminating scalable practices, and strengthening civic competencies, particularly in children and youth.

Since November 2023, we have been working collaboratively on a shared vision for the future of Europe and during this year we have been working to identify transformative experiences showcasing that vision. One of the objectives of this small network born by the Madrid NECE Festival, was to reconvene again at the 2024 Festival in order to exchange outcomes with the festival’s participants, learning from other experiences and opening up to new alliances and collaborations.