Dissemination
CIAC represented at the General Meeting of the COST Action CHANGECODE 2026 in Durrës, Albania
The Research Centre for Arts and Communication (CIAC) at the University of Algarve was represented at the General Meeting 2026 of COST Action CA22149 – CHANGECODE, taking place on 12 and 13 March 2026 in Durrës, Albania, at the Faculty of Political and Legal Sciences of Aleksandër Moisiu University of Durrës.
CIAC’s participation was ensured by the researchers Sílvia Baptista Leiria Viegas and Isabel Cristina Gonçalves de Carvalho, who are members of this European network dedicated to the interdisciplinary study of deliberative democracy from a trans-historical perspective.
The meeting brought together researchers from several European countries with the aim of sharing research results, discussing ongoing activities, and planning future scientific collaborations within the CHANGECODE network.
The programme included a Management Committee meeting, during which the progress of the Action was assessed and strategic priorities for the next period were defined. A workshop on historical practices of deliberation also took place, addressing experiences of dialogue, reconciliation, and conflict resolution throughout history. The session included the participation of Gjin Marku, President of the Committee of Nationwide Reconciliation in Albania, who presented perspectives on community mediation practices in the Albanian context.
One of the central moments of the meeting was a session dedicated to building international partnerships, with the aim of preparing research projects with European funding, thereby strengthening scientific cooperation among members of the CHANGECODE network.
During the afternoon of the first day, parallel sessions of the working groups took place, focusing on research activities, publications, and future events of the Action.
On the second day, the programme included two thematic workshops dedicated to contemporary challenges of deliberative democracy. The first addressed local deliberation processes, inclusion, and representation, bringing together specialists in participatory governance and civic engagement. The second workshop focused on media, polarization, and deliberation in contexts of democratic backsliding, analysing how media dynamics and political polarization influence public debate.
The meeting concluded with a synthesis of the workshop results and a discussion of the next steps of the CHANGECODE network.
CIAC’s participation in this meeting reinforces its involvement in international scientific networks and collaborative research projects, contributing to the development of interdisciplinary approaches to contemporary challenges of democracy and public participation.
You can follow the General Meeting online through the link: Meet – nkb-mwks-tht
You can consult the complete agenda through the link: Agenda_General-Meeting-Albania-Durres-March-2026_version6.pdf
Esta publicação também está disponível em: Portuguese (Portugal)