for me intercultural dialouge is a first step, is exchange of knowledge and arguments and
is followed by a second step of finding communities with similar ideas to cultivate these,
a third step of realizing these ideas in projects.
interkultureller dialog ist ein erster schritt, dem viele weitere folgen. zunächst ermöglicht ein solcher dialog den austausch von wissen, ideen und argumenten, gefolgt von einem zweiten schritt, diesen austausch zu fokussieren und zu kultivieren (communities), einem dritten schritt, gemeinsame ideen in gemeinsamen projekten umzusetzen.

Huge wish to understand person - is the first step to understanding his culture. . .
Огромное желание понять человека и симпатия к нему - первый шаг к пониманию его культуры...

It is easy to think of dialogue as dictionaries define it: a conversation between two or more
persons. However, imagining dialogue in societies and among a bigger number of people becomes
more challenging. According to The Council of Europe White Paper on International Dialogue
(2008), dialogue has to reckon with factors such as cohesion among the member states, different
organizations, religious communities, refugees associations, local and regional authorities,
artistic and literary understandings, and much more. In a multilingual context such as
the EU, dialoguing becomes more difficult due to different languages and cultural backgrounds.
When one thinks about interaction and cooperation, dialogue is no doubt one of the first factors
to bear in mind. A means to plan common projects, reflect on differences, and avoid misunderstandings,
discrimination, and intolerance. However in order to surpass cultural crystallizations
(Witteborn, 2011) and different cultural conceptions, multicultural communication assumes primary
importance. How does dialogue become possible in Europe if countries like mine (Italy) are
still far away from achievements such as participation, efficient learning of foreign languages,
space to dialogue, and promotion of intercultural cities? Hence, dialoguing becomes difficult
and as a consequence people unable to have cultural exchanges (reasons of time, family, money)
tend to remain in closed groups and to build barriers of discrimination, stereotyping, tension
etc. Therefore, in my opinion The Council of Europe White Paper on International Dialogue
is a very well-planned project but unfortunately does not reflect the actual situation of the
EU. If in the future more countries will be able to adopt this plan of interaction, dialogue
will no doubt have beneficial effects on Europe and countries could take a step forward towards
greater awareness of their role in the union and reduction of continuous rivalry.
E\\\' semplice pensare al dialogo nel modo in cui esso viene definito dai dizionari: scambio verbale e non tra due o più persone. Tuttavia, immaginare il dialogo in grandi sistemi come le società europee diventa materia più complessa. Il libro bianco sul dialogo interculturale pubblicato nel 2008 dal Consiglio Europeo sostiene che il dialogo deve tenere conto di fattori quali fratellanza tra gli stati membri, diverse organizzazioni, diverse comunità religiose, autorità regionali e locali, sussidi per profughi e rifugiati di guerra, comprensione culturale... L\\\'esistenza di diverse lingue all\\\'interno di una realtà complessa come quella dell\\\'Unione Europea rende indubbiamente impegnativa l\\\'impresa di stabile un dialogo. Andare oltre le cristallizzazioni culturali tuttavia è importante al fine di evitare fraintendimenti, discriminazione ed intolleranza. Ma come è possibile oggi stabilire dialogo in Europa se paesi come il mio (l\\\'Italia) non investono a sufficienza sull\\\'insegnamento delle lingue straniere? Se il personale accademico non risulta sempre qualificato? Se non viene incoraggiata l\\\'iniziativa di costruire città multietniche? L\\\'Italia è oggi un paese fortemente sospettoso e scarsamente aperto alla cooperazione. Gente senza la possibilità di viaggiare e la cui capacità critica viene poco stimolata dal nostro sistema educativo tende sempre più a chiudersi in se stessa e cercare di stabilire confini al fine di allontanare il \\