The Delegation of the European Commission to Lebanon is seeking proposals for the organisation of cultural activities.  The initiative is financed by the European Neighbourhood Policy which supports programs for dialogue between the European Union and its neighbours. It has two main objectives:

- to stimulate dialogue and exchange between cultures

- to promote mutual understanding and the rapprochement between people through cultural exchanges

“Arts, education and other cultural activities provide opportunities for dialogue between people that may otherwise not be so disposed.”

On these grounds, the Delegation of the European Commission provides the funding of cultural activities in all Lebanese regions. These can be organised in cooperation with cultural institutions from EU Member States or EU neighboring countries.

 “Projects can be submitted by local associations or their partners from the EU and EU neighbouring countries to the Delegation in Lebanon.

These should be focused on interaction between the participants and accessible for a wide range of social groups. Actions should be no longer than 12 months and activities should cover:

 "   Organisation of cultural festivals (music, dance, singing, theatre, sculpture, painting, media, etc.), exhibitions, competitions or workshops aimed at promoting intercultural exchange and dialogue in particular between youths from different communities and nationalities, including projects via new media (Internet, videos, recordings, animations, etc.)

    Actions aimed at boosting contacts and networking between Lebanese amateur/professional artists and organisers of international arts fairs, biennales or cultural activities and/or enhancing knowledge about Lebanese cultural actors in other countries and promoting cooperation with foreign stakeholders."

Grants amount to €15.000 and €30.000.

Deadline for submission of proposals: 31 August

Additional information:

- Full guidelines for applicants:

http://www.dellbn.ec.europa.eu/en/whatsnew/09/cp-cultur-09.htm

( An information session on this will be held on Friday 17 July at 11h00 at the Delegation of the European Commission's premises.)

- Looking for partners? Euromed search engine for partners is a great resource: http://www.euromedp.org/default.asp?module=partners

- Lebanon is a land of great diversity, civilization and coexistence. It is nowadays a key area for intercultural and interreligious dialogue. Here you can read more about it:

Moving Beyond: Interreligious Dialogue in Lebano:

http://crinfo.beyondintractability.org/case_studies/interfaith_dialogue.jsp?nid=5302

IFA Selected Bibliography: European-Islamic Cultural Dialogue:

http://www.ifa.de/en/info/ifa-library/literatur/themen/european-islamic-cultural-dialogue/european-islamic-cultural-dialogue/

UNESCO office n Beirut + info resources about Lebanon:

 http://www.unesco.org/en/beirut/+ http://portal.unesco.org/geography/en/ev.php-URL_ID=3571&;URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html