LLinE Lifelong Learning in Europe

Editorial by Kristiina Kumpulainen: Identities in transition. Europe and the significance of lifelong learning

What does the concept of European identity mean to you? Do you picture a unified Europe where nations and individuals follow the same cultural, educational, economic and political values and practices? Or do you see a collection of nations and individuals with unique cultures, languages and customs that create a whole, the whole being kept together by collective and democratic decision-making?

The concept of identity has aroused wide cultural, educational and political discussions in the European Union from its early beginning. Cultural, educational and political efforts towards a unified Europe have not only caused increasing insecurity regarding the concept of national identity but also blurred the definition for collective, national and personal identity in Europe. What does it mean to be a European? How about the construction of national and personal identities in today’s Europe and the global world?

Many people regard further unification of Europe as a threat to the survival of national cultures, languages, traditions and identities. There is a fear that all the developments towards a common Europe will ultimately result in a loss of richness and variety in national cultures and identities. Although these fears should be taken seriously, one can also see many possibilities for lifelong learning within the cultural landscapes of the European Union.

Europe’s efforts to balance the parallel existence of unified and diverse cultures, values and identities provide a powerful platform to explore and promote cultural awareness, intercultural communication, tolerance and social justice. It is exactly here where educational institutions that support lifelong learning can have an important role to play.

One of the key promoters of cultural and identity awareness is education. Education that views cultural diversity in Europe as a powerful learning resource can help us construct knowledge and understanding of others as well as provide us access to understanding ourselves in relation to others. Via education we can learn our uniqueness, strengths and weaknesses, and how we all contribute to the richness that makes Europe and its identity. Moreover, when we pay attention to our particulars we can see the complexity of the wholeness of who we are as the European Union. That is why we who work in the field of lifelong learning should take a special interest in exploring the multiple identities that are being constructed in and across European countries today, and how they can act as a resource for lifelong learning of tolerance and understanding.

As the European Union develops and influences local and global policy, we must ask ourselves what kind of participant can Europe be on the global stage? How can Europe contribute to the global understanding of appreciating and valuing diverse languages, cultures and perspectives? The motto of the European Union Unity in Diversity signals a public and political positioning of a regional identity that sees diverse nations as sources of strength for unity. What can be asked here is whether this is only public rhetoric, or can Europe, with its policies and practices, create an inclusive society where people, their cultures and languages are viewed as necessary and valued? The significant role of education extends here from individuals and nations to the whole learning region of the European Community. As educators working within the field of life long learning we certainly have a lot to do.

Professor Kristiina Kumpulainen, editor-in-chief of LLinE
Director of CICERO Learning
University of Helsinki