Empowering Inclusivity and Mutual Understanding
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COTAF – Connected Towns for a Shared Future has officially started!
Co-funded by the European CERV Programme – Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values, the project brings together several European cities (Bologna, Liepaja, Lesvos, Istria, Budapest, Prague, Donostia/San Sebastián, Athens) to respond to growing polarisation, intolerance, and the challenges of social inclusion.
What happened in the first two months
December 2025 – Official launch and Kick-off meeting
On 19 December 2025, the partners met online for the Kick-off Meeting, coordinated by Fondazione Yunus Italia ETS. This meeting marked the formal start of the project’s first two months.
During the session, partners:
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got to know each other and shared their local contexts
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reviewed the overall vision, objectives, Work Packages, roles and timelines for the 24-month journey
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presented the project to a wider audience of stakeholders and institutions in a short public session, introducing COTAF and the opportunities for local engagement
January 2026 – From concept to concrete plan
In the weeks following the kick-off, the consortium focused on turning the project concept into a detailed operational workplan and shared procedures. This included:
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defining the project’s governance and coordination mechanisms
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setting up the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) framework for the Human Library events
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designing the communication strategy, including the future digitalisation of Human Libraries and the development of an online platform to host stories, training materials and project results
At the same time, partners started planning the Train-the-Trainers pathway, a shared training programme for facilitators that will ensure a common approach to the Human Library methodology in all participating cities.
Where we are now
COTAF is currently in the set-up and training phase. The partnership has agreed on the structure of the project and is preparing the first cycle of online training sessions for facilitators.
These trainings will:
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build a community of trained facilitators able to guide complex conversations and handle sensitive topics
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connect local Human Library experiences with broader European policies
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lay the groundwork for meaningful, inclusive events in each partner city
Upcoming events
All events will be held online, in English, from 10:00 to 12:30 CET.
See the Events Section to get more details about!
From spring 2026 onwards, these preparation and training activities will lead to a series of in-person Human Libraries across the partner cities, dedicated to gender equality, migrant inclusion and European values.
All updates, calls for participation and event details will be regularly published in this section of the website.
“When we turn people’s lives into a living library, our towns stop being borders on a map and become chapters of a shared European story—more equal, more connected, and written by all of us.”
