Immigrants: There is bread for everyone
The project “Immigrants: There is bread for everyone” was conceived as a means to counter negative attitudes amongst sections of the population and also to increase awareness amongst sections of the media about their duty to act responsibly in reporting the issue of migration. The assertion that ‘there is bread for everyone’ was intended to allay anxieties that the presence of migrants reduced the resources available to host citizens.
The objective of this campaign was to foster a more positive attitude towards immigrants and their integration amongst Bulgarian citizens. Specifically, it worked to:
-attract media and NGOs as key lobbying actors in the process of building a positive attitude towards the integration of immigrants
- generate public interest and positive attitudes in the host society by creating media interest in immigrant integration policy
- raise public awareness about migration by presenting powerful information to the media and the public about immigrants in Bulgaria
Year(s): 2009
Target group(s): Third-country nationals residing continuously in the territory of Bulgaria
Website: http://www.airm-bg.org/EIF_projecteng.htm
Methodology
“Immigrants: There is bread for everyone” was designed and run as a campaign for a period of 5 months.
Type of product
Event;
Information campaign
Brief description of the product / outcome / method
The information campaign focused on 5 key elements:
- Analysis of existing media attitudes and stereotypes as a key factor, shaping public opinion on migration matters
- Producing and distributing flyers with facts and information about immigrants
- Developing information materials for journalists; regular and active communication with media representatives by regularly sending media messages
- Organising an expert forum on the integration process of immigrants in Bulgaria
- Organising a special national event to attract public and media interest towards problems of immigrants and their integration
The project produced a 52-page report analysing media coverage of the activities, including a media kit used to support its work. In addition, a set of postcards bearing the logo of the campaign was printed and distributed, setting out traditional bread recipes from the Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Turkish communities along with special messages containing interesting facts about the respective migrant community as well as excerpts from the national migration legislation.
Impact on target groups / Transferability potential
Overall, the project contributed to an increase in media reports and comments about immigration issues during the period of its work, steadily rising from four featured items in August 2009 (start of the campaign) to 42 by November 2009. Also, an increase in the percentage of positive media comments was detected. One example was the TV channel bTV show “Welcome to Bulgaria”, which provides immigrants with an opportunity to share their culture and personal stories.
Promoter of the initiative
Name of organization / individual: IntelDay Solutions; Association for Integration of Refugees and Migrants (AIRM)
Country: Bulgaria
Website: https://intelday.com/ ; http://www.airm-bg.org/
Contacts: office@intelday.com ; airm@airm-bg.org