Start date: 3 July2023.Deadline for applications: 30 april 2023.

• For whom:  Master's & PhD students, early-career researchers, teachers, policy makers, managers and other professionals with an interest in the topic. BA students’ applications are considered if a reference letter is provided.
• Program dates:  3 - 7 July 2023.
• Deadline for applications:  30 april 2023.
• Location:  Leeuwarden, the Netherlands. 
• Participation fee:  €150 students from University of Groningen & the Reinwardt Academy, €300 staff and students of affiliated organisations, €400 general

Heritage is a title attributed through an interplay of forces and diversity of interests and emotions. It is not intrinsic, it is developed, rooted in a desire for collectivity and continuity. People make heritage by labelling it as such – looking to the future with reference to the past. This  does not take place without struggle, and the results are not neutral.

Cultural heritage – tangible and intangible – is often used to define who does and does not belong to particular groups and communities. The mediation of and participation in a culture’s living traditions is often important withint the construction of personal and collective identities; but by its very nature, it does not facilitate inclusivity. Confronted with this uneasy relation between cultural heritage, identity and inclusivity, we step back to reflect.

What does a more inclusive mediation of cultural heritage look like? How do minorities use their cultural heritage to stay connected with an identity that does not belong to the majority culture around them? How does cultural heritage both divide and connect groups and cultures? How can we research and interact with these dynamics?

In this summer school we will ask these questions while looking at diverse cultural heritage practices, ranging from cuisines to heritage languages; from tangible objects and buildings to intangible traditions and practices. Scholars and professionals from diverse fields, such as critical heritage and tourism studies, cultural studies, sociolinguistics, and media studies will give lectures and workshops during an intense, five day long programme.

The school will include an international symposium on the findings of Re:voice, a European research project on three indigenous cultures: Cornish, Frisian, and Livonian. Members of this project will discuss how intangible cultural heritage is mediated in live cultural events in these cultures, and what the role of minority languages is in such events.

This summer course is the third edition of the Leeuwarden Summer School on Cultural and Linguistic Diversity. This annual summer school explores how cultural and linguistic diversity is at the base of social, economic and educational inequalities. We believe that managing diversity through specific policies in different societal domains is a key to a sustainable society, where the well-being of each citizen is valued. Mismanagement of diversity, on the other hand, results in the waste of a large pool of skills, knowledge and human potential, entailing endless social costs for our communities. Staying on top of these challenges requires advanced and interdisciplinary knowledge from the side of researchers, policy-makers and practitioners and we aim to contribute to this with a series of summer schools. Each year, the summer school will focus on a different theme related to cultural and linguistic diversity.

The summer school is organised by staff and students of the following programmes at the University of Groningen:

• BA Minorities and Multilingualism

• MA Multilingualism

• Campus Fryslân

This year, the summer school is organised in collaboration with the Heritage Lab.

The summer school is designed for those interested in diversity management and social justice. It is a graduate school, and participants can expect high quality academic debates, rooted in empirical research. The school is thus designed for:

• Master's students and PhD students
• Early-career researchers
• Teachers, policy makers, managers and other professionals with an interest in the topic.

It is expected that the participants have a sufficient command of the English language in order for them to participate actively in the discussions and to present their own work in English.

BA students’ applications are considered if a reference letter is provided.

For the latest programme information please visit the University of Groningen's Summer School website.

At the end of the summer school, the participant is able to:

• Assess current debates about the connections betweent heritage, identity and inclusivity.
• Analyse how heritage mediation is both an expression of, and facilitates, identity formation
• Appraise a wide array of theories on heritage mediation, and how this relates to issues of inclusivity
• Argue for the relevance and feasibility of research projects around the connections betweent heritage, identity and inclusivity in a way that demonstrates informed critical thinking

• Preparatory reading: 42 hours
• Contact hours: 42 hours
• Assignment (optional): 56 hours

Upon successful completion of the programme, the summer school offers a Certificate of Attendance. During the Summer School, participants are offered the opportunity to give a twenty-minute presentation on their own research, both finished and work in progress, related to heritage, identity and inclusivity (optional). They will receive feedback on their presentation from speakers and peers. The presentation will be acknowledged on the Certificate of Attendance.

For participants who want to earn academic credit , an additional assignment (including a reading list) will be provided. After successfully completing the assignment, they will receive an assessment form signed by the academic coordinators that mentions the workload of 140 hours (28 hours corresponds to 1 ECTS). Students can apply for recognition of these credits to the relevant authorities in their home institutions, therefore the final decision on awarding credits is at the discretion of their home institutions.

Do you have additional questions? Please visit the programme page from the University of Groningen. You are also welcome to mail the organizers at: summerschooldiversity@rug.nl.