European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI)

The Annual Summer School on National Minorities is already in full swing!

This year’s topic: Non-Kin-State Minorities!

Many thanks to our engaged participants, excellent speakers, and our co-host, Coppieters Foundation.

After three intense days filled with lectures and group work at the Dansk Centralbibliotek for Sydslesvig, the group will travel to the island Föhr tomorrow to learn more about the North Frisians in Germany.

Find the full programme here:

https://www.ecmi.de/teaching/summer-school

The 16th Annual Summer School on National Minorities kicked off in Flensburg on August 23, 2026. Co-organised with the Coppieters Foundation and hosted by the Danish library this year’s intensive program focuses on “Europe’s Non-Kin-State Minorities: Profiles and Realities”.

Wer wird Friesischlehrkraft? Wie? Und warum? Henriette Boysen hat mit 9 (der derzeit insgesamt 19) Friesischlehrkräften in Nordfriesland Interviews geführt, um dies herauszufinden. Mehr dazu hier im Preprint: https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/2hzfe_v2

Science never takes a summer break! ☀️📚

In June, Ruth Kircher attended the Multidisciplinary Approaches in Language Policy and Planning conference in Ottawa, where she gave two presentations: one about the intersection of official and family language policies in Nordfriesland & Fryslân; the other about family language policies amongst parents raising their children with different language constellations in Nordfriesland & North America. The latter was part of a special panel organised by Professor Nikolay Slavkov from the University of Ottawa.

In July, Aziz Berdiqulov participated in the Third Turkic World Summer School “The Future of the Turkic World” in Istanbul, organised by the Heydar Aliyev Centre for Eurasian Studies.
Aziz presented findings from his ongoing doctoral project on Russian media discourses about Latinisation in Kazakhstan, which is part of the “Flipping the Script” book exploring the political and ideological implications of script reforms.

Starting in January 2027, the ECMI will serve as a key partner in a pioneering EU Twinning project: the creation of the “National Minority Policy Index” (NMPI). This three-year initiative aims to provide a novel way of assessing minority policies across European countries.

A New Benchmark for Minority Rights: EU Twinning Project NMPI to Launch in 2027 Starting in January 2027, the ECMI will serve as a key partner in a pioneering EU Twinning project: the creation of the “National Minority Policy Index” (NMPI). This three-year initiative aims to provide a novel way of assessing minority policies across European countries. Starting in January 20...

We were pleased to meet our long-time Advisory Council member, Professor David Smith, yesterday at the Danish Library, where he will be conducting extensive archival research throughout the week.
David is Professor at the University of Glasgow. His research focuses on Non-Territorial Autonomy (NTA), minority rights and international norms, nationalism and state-building, “kin-state” policies, ontological security and transborder ethnicity, and historical perspectives on self-determination. As part of a book project with our colleague Craig Willis, David will be delving into the history of pan-European minority organization. We will keep you posted!

The German state of Schleswig-Holstein will now allow that state employees take their oath of office in one of the recognized minority languages (Danish, Frisian, Romanes), if they wish. This is a great gesture of recognition and inclusion of the minorities which call Schleswig-Holstein their home, in the spirit of the FCNM and the European Charter for Regional- and Minority Languages.

Schleswig-Holstein stärkt Minderheitensprachen – ein Zeichen der Anerkennung Beamtinnen und Beamte können ihren Diensteid künftig auf Friesisch, Niederdeutsch, Dänisch oder Romanes ablegen. Ein Schritt für mehr Sichtbarkeit und Gleichberechtigung.

Exciting News: ECMI to Lead Key Research in Newly Funded BARI Network!

We are proud to announce that the BARI network has successfully secured funding through the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Staff Exchange. This international initiative will run for the next four years, focusing on the resilience of cross-border cooperation (CBC) in the face of internal and external shocks.

The ECMI will play a pivotal role in this project by leading Work Package 6 (WP6). Our team will address the social and cultural dimensions of CBC resilience, specifically investigating how ethnic and linguistic minorities in border regions act as unique agents of resilience and "secondary foreign policy".

While minorities can sometimes face challenges in border regions, BARI seeks to highlight the unique opportunities they offer for robust cross-border governance.

Fostering Global Collaboration through Staff Exchanges As part of this MSCA Action, the ECMI will participate in several short-term international secondments to bridge the gap between academic research and practitioner expertise.

📍 ECMI staff will be heading to:

The Arctic University in Tromsø (Norway)
Institute for Comparative Federalism - Eurac Research (Italy)
CESCI (Hungary)
The Association of European Border Regions (AEBR)
EGTC Euroregion Pyrenees Mediterranean

📍 We are also excited to welcome visiting researchers to Flensburg from:
The University of Opole
The University of Santiago de Compostela
CESCI Budapest

Through these exchanges, we aim to co-create actionable knowledge, including academic papers and practical toolkits, to support more resilient border regions across Europe.

We look forward to collaborating with our esteemed partners, including Maastricht University, MOT Paris, and many others, to advance the study of minority rights and cross-border integration.

📢 Call for Contributions: National Minorities in Moldova & the Path to EU Accession

Are you a researcher focusing on minority politics, legal frameworks, or geopolitical shifts in Eastern Europe?

We are inviting scholars to submit abstracts for our upcoming workshop: "National minorities in Moldova in the context of EU accession".

📍 Where: ECMI Headquarters, Flensburg, Germany

📅 When: 13 November 2026

As Moldova moves closer to EU membership, understanding the legal, institutional, and geopolitical dimensions of its minority politics is more critical than ever. This workshop aims to bridge academic debate and policymaking on topics such as:

⚡ The implementation of the legal framework for minority protection

⚡ Gagauz autonomy and its relationship with Chișinău

⚡ The implications of Transnistria’s frozen conflict for EU integration

⚡ The impact of the war in Ukraine and outmigration on minority communities

⚡ Language policy and political representation

Submission Details:

Interested participants should submit an abstract (300 words) and a short biographical note (100 words) to Dr. Andreea Cârstocea ([email protected]).

⏳ Deadline for submissions: 15 September 2026

Perks:

Selected participants will have their accommodation (two nights) and meals covered for the duration of the workshop! (Please note that participants are expected to arrange their own travel to Flensburg).
Join us in Flensburg to contribute to this vital discussion on the future of Moldova and its diverse communities.

📢 Call for Contributions: National Minorities in Moldova & the Path to EU Accession Are you a researcher focusing on minority politics, legal frameworks, or geopolitical shifts in Eastern Europe? We are inviting scholars to submit abstracts for our upcoming workshop: "National minorities in Moldova in the context of EU accession". 📍 Where: ECMI Headquarters, Flensburg, Germany ....