Communication for Integration

rumor agents” is a key feature of C4i. C4i draws upon the experience of Barcelona’s Anti-rumour Strategy, which has been implemented in the city since 2010. The importance of rumours there became apparent when members of the public were asked a series of questions, under the framework of drawing up Barcelona’s Intercultural Plan, to gather information on the main "problems" associated with migration. One of these went as follows: “What factors make it difficult for Barcelona's residents from diverse cultural backgrounds to live together?” Some 48.1% of over 1,000 respondents said that the main factors that made it difficult for people to live alongside one other in a diverse society were: “lack of knowledge of the other, as well as current rumours, stereotypes and prejudices about the other unknown person.”

The C4i project is presently implemented in 11 European cities: Amadora/Portugal, Barcelona/Spain, Bilbao/Spain, Botkyrka/Sweden, Erlangen /Germany, Limerick/Ireland, Loures/Portugal, Lublin/Poland, Nuremberg/Germany, Patras/Greece and Sabadell/Spain. The cities work in cooperation with local authorities, NGOs, foreign communities, academia, media and citizens, with a view to identifying and addressing common misconceptions about immigration – via campaigning and viral communication techniques – and promoting living together in diversity and social cohesion. In addition, the impact survey, carried out before and after the anti-rumour campaigns in each and every partner city, will measure their effectiveness in dispelling the rumours among the population.