Community Organising For All: developing inclusive approaches for Community Organising

<< Background >>We applied for this project to address two persistent gaps in Adult Education and Community Organising when working with migrants and refugees. First, we observed that many educators and organisers unintentionally adopt paternalistic attitudes, working “for” rather than “with” the communities they serve, which can undermine empowerment. Second, we identified a lack of practical skills and inclusive tools to engage people with diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds, particularly those with low proficiency in the national language. These shortcomings limit participation, reinforce stereotypes, and reduce the effectiveness of integration efforts. Our project seeks to challenge these attitudes, overcome skill gaps, and introduce participatory, creative, and culturally sensitive methods that foster equality, ownership, and active citizenship. By doing so, we aim to strengthen educators’ ability to work in partnership with migrants, empowering them to self-organise, engage in democratic life, and contribute to a more inclusive society.<< Objectives >>Through this project, we wanted to equip Adult educators and Community organisers with the attitudes, skills, and tools needed to work effectively and inclusively with migrants and refugees. Our primary objectives were: 1) to respectfully challenge and transform paternalistic approaches, promoting relationships based on equality and collaboration; and 2) to provide innovative, practical methods that facilitate participation across linguistic and cultural differences. By integrating Community Organising, Theatre of the Oppressed, Participatory Pedagogy, and Participatory Video, we aimed to create a set of complementary approaches that educators can adapt to different contexts. These methods were designed to strengthen social inclusion, foster democratic participation, and promote community development. Ultimately, our goal was to enable migrants and refugees to become active citizens, capable of self-organising and advocating for their needs, while enhancing the capacity of Adult Education to contribute to a fairer, more inclusive society.<< Implementation >>We implemented a series of interconnected activities to develop, test, and share innovative methods for Adult Education with migrants and refugees. The partnership began with a kick-off meeting to align objectives, responsibilities, and a shared timeline. We organised monthly coordination meetings, sending agendas in advance for partner input, and stored all reports in a shared online drive. Each partner contributed to the creation of five Project Results: a framework for effective Community Organising (an article and a Podcast with 5 episodes); an educational website about Participatory Pedagogy and multilingualism in teaching local language to migrants; a multi-media toolkit about Newspaper-Theatre; a collection of Legislative-Theatre processes; a Participatory Video guide. These outputs were developed collaboratively through workshops, peer exchanges, and pilot testing in different national contexts. Training sessions were conducted for Adult educators and Community organisers to apply the methods, and feedback was collected to refine the materials. Throughout the project, we maintained continuous communication, monitored progress, and ensured active involvement of all partners both in-person and online.<< Results >>The project produced five concrete and innovative outputs. PR1 is a podcast plus and article about the importance of Community Organising for Adult Education; PR2 is an educational website about Participatory Pedagogy and multilingualism in teaching local language to migrants; PR3 is a multi-media toolkit about Newspaper-Theatre; PR4 a collection of Legislative-Theatre processes; PR5 a Participatory Video guide. These outputs are complementary yet adaptable to different contexts. Beyond these deliverables, the project strengthened the competencies of Adult educators and Community organisers, fostered stronger intercultural collaboration, and promoted more equitable, participatory relationships with migrant communities. It also built a network of practitioners committed to using creative, inclusive, and democratic methods to advance social inclusion and community development.