On 13 and 14 June 2002, the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN) will hold a seminar called “Cultural Variety and Identity in Europe” in Sankelmark, Germany. The seminar is focused on those minorities throughout Europe which do not have homelands outside of the countries where they live.

Nine minorities will be represented at the conference: the Kashubians, Tatars, Rhaetians, Ladins, Cornish, Frisians, Sorbs, Sami and Rusyns.

A roundtable on the theme of regional identity in Europe is planned, along with a lecture, “The European Charter of Regional or Minority Languages According to Experts.” A workshop entitled “Strategies of How to Save Autochthonous Lesser-Used Languages from the Standpoint of those Concerned” will also be conducted.

Aside from the meetings, organizers are also planning a cultural program, as well as an excursion to North Frisia where participants will meet with representatives of local non-governmental organizations and educational facilities.

The working languages of the conference will be German and English. The conference is organized by FUEN, in cooperation with the Schleswig-Holstein provincial government and the European Academy Sankelmark.

The FUEN homepage can be found here and the conference’s homepage can be found here.

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