The management team of the research area on societal integration consisting of Monika Götzö (School of Social Work), Christiane Hohenstein (School of Applied Linguistics) and Agnes von Wyl (School of Applied Psychology) once again accepted numerous projects in the second call. Out of those, the Executive Board selected 17 projects to be funded, for which 1.15 million Swiss francs have been made available through strategic resources. In total, 31 projects from all Schools are now underway are taking place with the involvement of the research area on societal integration. External experts were brought in for the interim evaluation to assess aspects such as the extent to which these projects are in fact making an innovative contribution as well as the continuation and implementation of the first call projects.

Work, media coverage and living environment

The kick-off for the second call at the end of May revealed the vast diversity of topics. The spectrum ranges from volunteer management as a cornerstone of societal integration, decent work and economic growth to the role that media coverage on religious communities plays in facilitating integration. Projects in the second call also look at access to disability insurance and the respective social insurance, as well as noise pollution in integrated living environments.

At the end of September, the researchers met at a colloquium where they focused on the linguistic aspects of diversity. A project was presented that addresses the importance of language in the process of integration. Another colloquium in December dealt with future developments in university research and EU research. By organising this event, the research area on societal integration promoted networking beyond the project-level and encouraged participants to deepen their research expertise, including in context-specific funding and tendering procedures.