The MAX project 20 Key Persuasive Messages!
In the framework of the Research activities, the MAX partners have identified 20 key persuasive messages to improve public opinion, image, narrative, and attitude towards migrants. Storytelling, creation of positive messages for the media and dialogic encounters between locals and newcomers are the key figures of the project.
The selection of the best practices to identify the 20 key messages took place on the basis of the objectives identified and described by the project:
- to contribute to a change of mentality in the European society towards migrants
- to identify a possible path to maximize the communication about the concrete value-added deriving from third-country nationals to the EU
- to implement a key tool to share best practices among European countries where, frequently, third-country nationals are perceived “diverse” or “different”.
The collection of these key messages is the result of the first year of MAX project meetings, presentations and wider discussions among the Partners organizations in the member states involved in the project.
We have synthesised these messages around five main themes to help focus the arguments:
- Recognise the contribution of migrants
- Hear migrants’ voices
- Ensure migrants the right to participate in equal terms
- Make Europe welcoming to migrants
- We need a new debate about migration policy
Each of these five themes is based on building block components, each of which is illustrated by specific examples from the partner organisations and thematic reports integrated with IDEA experts’ practices. The five themes are therefore common to all the countries and are illustrated by the building blocks.
The methodology used for the collection of the stories was designed to capture examples of good practices across the many migrant experiences in Europe. We found several outstanding illustrations of areas in which migrants were supporting European values, creating jobs, supporting social inclusion and generally contributing to the very fabric of European integration. In short, it was not very difficult to find illustrations of positive migrant impact across the partner countries once we took the time to look for them.
We hope these messages could inspire others to seek out similar stories by taking up the challenges of the main themes, exploring illustrative examples of migrant contributions and linking these to the lived experiences of migrants in Europe.
Discover them in the following weeks!