Source description last updated: 2 February 2022

In brief: The European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) is a think tank based in Flensburg (Germany) that works to improve the situation of Europe’s minorities.

Coverage on ecoi.net:

Working Papers, Reports, Issue Briefs, Monographs

Covered weekly on ecoi.net, for countries of priorities A-C

Mission/Mandate/Objectives:

“Aiming to facilitate respect for diversity in all aspects of society, ECMI is committed to work for the improvement of the situation of Europe’s minorities through heightened awareness of minority rights and minority issues among all relevant actors. […] ECMI’s specific purpose is to provide actors with new knowledge and tool-kits that empower and equip them to mitigate differences and exchange views through constructive dialogue about how to build a peaceful and diverse Europe. […] It conducts practice and policy-oriented research, provides information and documentation, and offers advisory services concerning minority-majority relations in Europe.

The ECMI was founded in 1996 by the governments of Denmark, Germany and Schleswig-Holstein. It is an independent and inter-disciplinary institution which draws upon an international core staff, supplemented by a number of non-resident Senior Research Associates from all over Europe and beyond.

The Centre also maintains active relations with other academic institutions and NGOs involved in conflict resolution and inter-ethnic relations and engages in collaborative projects in these fields.” (ECMI website: ECMI Mission, undated)

Funding:

In 2020, ECMI was supported by its founding entities; moreover it received funding from “participation in network projects such as BeSEC [Boosting European Security Law and Policy] as well as cooperation with the University of Leicester”. In addition, ECMI received project-based funding from external sources including the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, the University of Leicester and the Coppetiers Foundation. (ECMI: Annual Report 2020, p. 26)

Scope of reporting:

Geographic focus: Europe (with a focus in the Balkans) and the CIS region

Thematic focus: issues relevant to ethnic and religious minorities in the areas of culture & diversity, conflict & security, justice & governance, politics & civil society, and equality and inclusion

Methodology:

ECMI Working Papers and Issue Briefs are “written either by the staff of ECMI or by outside authors commissioned by the Centre” (see, for example, ECMI: Minority Communities in Contemporary Tajikistan. An Overview, 10 December 2018, p. 2 and ECMI: Moldova: Four Priorities for Mainstreaming Minority Rights, 20 February 2018, 20 February 2018, p. 2). The Working Papers are written in a narrative style and contain references to published sources which are listed in the end (see, for example, ECMI: Minority Communities in Contemporary Tajikistan. An Overview, 10 December 2018). Recently, the Working Papers were renamed ‘Research Papers’, in order to “better reflect [the series’] quality and focus on research” (ECMI: Inclusion in Crisis: The Case of Irish Travellers, December 2020).

Issue Briefs are also based on published sources but may, for instance, additionally draw on information collected by ECMI through its regional programmes (see, for example, ECMI: Moldova: Four Priorities for Mainstreaming Minority Rights, 20 February 2018 and ECMI: Ukraine: Four Pathways to Sustainable Ethno-Cultural Governance, October 2017).

Languages of publication:

English and relevant local languages

 

All links accessed 2 February 2022.

Methodological note:

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