Seminar 2
Communities of difference: active citizenship in BME communities
Venue: Bristol Institute for Public Affairs (BIPA)
Tuesday 19th May 2009
Convenors: Dr Rebecca Taylor (TSRC) and Dr Ranji Devadason (University of Bristol)
Some organisations in the voluntary and community sector including those serving minority ethnic groups and faith communities may be particularly affected by changes in policy and funding. That concern was the focus of Seminar 2. In recent years, in the light of the government’s emphasis upon community cohesion, there has been a shift away from funding social enterprises which serve the needs of specific ethnic groups towards integrated provision of services for members of all communities. How do these policy trends affect the activities of organisations long established for ethnic membership and their users? What is the impact upon community solidarity and support? In this seminar, invited experts shared research evidence to offer insights into such neglected questions.
There were three research presentations (view abstracts):
- 'Partnership and biculturalism in Aotearoa New Zealand', Wendy Larner, University of Bristol Link to presentation (opens in a new window)
- 'The Changing role of refugee-community organisations in the UK', Nando Sigona, University of Oxford
- 'Slavery Fatigue? Communities, Cohesion and the Remembering of Slavery and Abolition in Bristol', Madge Dresser, University of the West of England.
After lunch a panel of invited practitioners commented on the research presentations and offered their perspectives on the current environment for third sector groups supporting BME communities. Panel members were:
Daljeet Singh, BECON
Asif Khan, Bristol City Council
Bahanu Kassayie, Praxis
Kishore Kanani and Kristine Washington, Hackney CVS.
This was followed by a lively discussion facilitated by Duncan Scott (Third Sector Research centre).
View Seminar Report (document opens in new window)
For more information about the seminar series please visit ESRC Society Today
