IOM Slovenia kicked-off a series of capacity-building trainings of the Includ-EU project for local stakeholders with a communication training on 23 November 2021. The online training on effective communication on migration and the inclusion of migrants in local communities was attended by representatives of local stakeholders who contribute to a welcoming environment for the integration of migrants. The training was implemented by Dr. Sonja Merljak Zdovc, editor of Časoris.

In the introductory part, the Head of the IOM office in Slovenia, Iva Perhavec, presented the Includ-EU project and outlined global migration trends, migration in the European Union and in Slovenia, and migration-related terminology. Credible data and appropriate terminology are crucial for effective communication on migration issues.

The communication training was implemented by Dr. Sonja Merljak Zdovc, editor-in-chief of the online newspaper for children Časoris, who was nominated for the European Journalism Award on Diversity (EJAD). She provided insight into the media landscape, tips and tricks for collaboration with journalists, and guidelines for planning and implementing communication campaigns, such as the IOM Public Communication Campaign Toolkit. As examples of communication campaigns, participants learned about the Časoris’ series of Stories of children from around the world, for which they received two international awards, and IOM's global campaign I am a migrant, which presents the stories of migrants and provides insight into their life experiences, triumphs and tribulations.

In the concluding part, the participants learnt how to respond to hate speech, promote positive stories in the media landscape and discussed the importance of establishing cooperation and mutual relations with journalists to strengthen an inclusive local environment.

The graphic harvest of the training was done by Lara Kastelic from Nariši mi zgodbo.