Differences Challenge Assumptions (DCA) Project – Kickoff Meeting in Cairo

From 23–25 April 2025, the partners of the Differences Challenge Assumptions (DCA) Project gathered in Cairo, Egypt, to officially launch this ambitious initiative funded under the Erasmus+ Capacity Building framework. The Kickoff Meeting brought together organizations from across Europe and the MENA region, laying the groundwork for a project that seeks to reshape how diversity is perceived, discussed, and lived in our societies.

Why DCA Matters

Discrimination, prejudice, and biased narratives continue to fuel exclusion, inequality, and division around the world. Young people often find themselves at the center of these dynamics — as targets, bystanders, or, sometimes, participants in harmful discourse. The DCA Project addresses this challenge head-on by equipping youth workers, civil society organizations, and young people with the tools, skills, and evidence-based resources to challenge stereotypes and shift public narratives.

Over the next three years, the project will:

• Train youth workers in innovative methods to confront bias and discrimination.
• Build a network of at least 21 intersectionality experts who will work within their communities to promote inclusion.
• Engage over 4,900 young people across 7 countries through workshops, campaigns, and local activities that promote sensitivity to diversity.
• Produce research and comparative reports on how diversity is portrayed in media, education, and public policies.
• Develop a practical toolkit of creative, non-formal education methods that youth workers can use to transform harmful narratives into positive ones.

The Kickoff in Cairo – Setting the Tone

The Cairo meeting was more than just a technical start. It was about building trust, solidarity, and a shared vision. Partners introduced their organizations, identified synergies, and reflected on their collective strengths. Sessions covered not only project management and finances, but also deeper discussions on how to ensure that the project truly embodies the values it stands for: equity, inclusion, transparency, and collaboration.

Each work package was explored in detail, clarifying roles and responsibilities: from research and evidence-building to training and local interventions, from monitoring and evaluation to communication and dissemination. These discussions helped ensure that every partner left Cairo with clarity, ownership, and commitment to the project’s objectives.

A Global Impact Beyond Borders

What makes DCA especially powerful is its intercontinental nature. By bringing together organizations from Europe and its neighboring MENA region, the project recognizes that narratives of discrimination are not confined by borders. Racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia, and other forms of exclusion take different shapes in different societies, but they share common roots: biased paradigms, systemic inequality, and harmful stereotypes.

Through cross-border collaboration, the DCA consortium will:

• Encourage mutual learning between European and Mediterranean partners.
• Highlight local stories of resilience while connecting them to global struggles.
• Create tools and resources that are relevant across diverse contexts.
• Promote youth-led advocacy that challenges harmful narratives in both local communities and international platforms.

Building a Lasting Legacy

The DCA Project is not just about workshops or research reports — it is about changing mindsets and shaping more inclusive futures. By focusing on young people, the project invests in the generation most capable of breaking cycles of prejudice and constructing societies based on empathy, equality, and respect.

As the consortium left Cairo, one thing was clear: this is only the beginning. The impact of DCA will extend far beyond the project’s timeline, creating ripple effects in schools, communities, media, and policymaking spaces. With a strong foundation set during the Kickoff Meeting, the project is ready to transform challenges into opportunities — and differences into strengths.

The consortium is comprised of: Teatro Metaphora (Portugal), the partnership includes A.R.T. Fusion (Romania), SNRDIMU (Poland), Have A Dream (Egypt), Jordan Youth Innovation Forum – JYIF (Jordan), EuroMed EVE (Tunisia), and the Moroccan Family Forum – MFF (Morocco).