My friend Yue-Sai Kan, a businesswoman and an author well known in China and in Western countries,101 once said to me, “You Europeans aren’t curious enough.” This statement got me thinking. What is it that so often immobilizes us Europeans, or makes us think that we know everything better? Why do we feel superior to people from other cultures? Is this just a lack of curiosity? Or is it the arrogance that is part of traditional Western culture that makes us act this way, that leaves us easily satisfied and closes the door to new insights?
Many times my curiosity about other people has tested the patience of my companions. Not everyone shares my enthusiasm for things foreign. Encounters and experiences with other cultures can be exhausting, but they are always enriching. They expand our horizons and teach us to look at life through new eyes. Having encountered a variety of perspectives is a great opportunity, one that can be discovered only by traveling in other countries and on other continents. We must grab at these opportunities with our bare hands—they are part of our lives. But we have to be open and aware to take advantage of them.102
In the past decades, German society has fundamentally changed demographically. The integration of immigrants is no longer merely an issue about minorities. The sustainability of our aging society is largely dependent on whether we are able to successfully integrate people from different origins, with diverse cultural backgrounds, and with different social statuses.
Today approximately 20 percent of people living in Germany have an immigrant background. The varying birthrates among different population groups will drive this number up. We thus need to see change as an opportunity and accept different points of view. In the coming years, Germany will be extremely dependent on immigration. Unfortunately, going through a financial crisis makes the growth of new attitudes more difficult. The challenge to our society is to support the peaceful coexistence of people from different backgrounds, despite any existing social tensions. To me personally, this is an important issue that I continually pursue in my many conversations and discussions.
The Bertelsmann Foundation has developed its own focus on integration and offers a number of projects, studies, and measures to support a successful integration policy.103 The future of our democracy depends on the real-life implementation of values that connect our society, like tolerance, a sense of community, and civic engagement. To implement them, appropriate models must be developed. Together with our partners, we have created educational programs that support the corresponding personal attitudes. Germany’s many years of treating immigration as a taboo topic have sadly paved the way for an attitude of hostility toward foreigners. We must fight this with all our might.
This problem is now part of our politics. Integration has become a key element in determining the future of our society. But there is still much to do, and many changes to be made. A doctor from Bulgaria should not have to work here as a nurse, and an engineer from Kenya must not have to drive a taxi to make ends meet. A survey by the Bertelsmann Foundation on democracy and integration in Germany104 demonstrated that a great majority of immigrants are supporters of democracy: 70 percent of all immigrants surveyed thought democracy is the best form of government. A true commitment to Germany is also reflected in the fact that 83 percent of those who are immigrants feel connected to this country.
German society has to meet this commitment. A successful integration of immigrants is a major contributor to social cohesion. This includes having equal access to education. But studies show that in Germany, unlike in most other countries, educational success is hugely dependent on one’s origin.
About a year ago I happened upon the following scene. It was the end of August, and the new school year had just begun. A father and his young daughter were approaching a school that I was scheduled to visit that morning. The little girl was dressed especially nicely—she had bows in her hair and was wearing a pretty summer dress. Full of pride, she carried a Schultüte, a large cone full of sweets, a tradition in Germany for the first day of school. You could see the intense anticipation on the faces of both father and daughter. They were both from Sri Lanka, I later found out.
I was speaking with a teacher, who turned to the two with great surprise. The first day of school was not until the next day—the father had not correctly read the registration form. I will never forget the disappointment on their faces. What an unlucky beginning!
This experience is an example of the bureaucratic and human hurdles that still stand in the way of full participation in our society. Before we can successfully integrate everyone through education, we must counsel parents and take small and large steps, like giving systematic language support, cultivating openness, and offering advisory support for those in the children’s surroundings.
Part of our foundation’s core identity is that we all feel called upon to recognize social problems and to look beyond our own four walls—that is, to look around the world—to find the best solutions.
With the Reinhard Mohn Prize, the Bertelsmann Foundation gives backing to innovative concepts and exemplary solutions for societal challenges.105 In 2008 we were particularly looking at models for successful integration through education and tried to see where and how children from immigrant families can have equal education opportunities. Our commission spoke with more than one hundred education experts in ten classic immigrant countries, from Canada to England, Sweden, and Switzerland.
We were especially impressed by the regional school board of Toronto, which had developed a persuasive strategy to encourage school participation of all children and young people, no matter what their background.106 More than 550 schools are part of the Toronto District school boards. They all share the core principles of equal opportunity and participation. This gives everyone, from principals to students, the responsibility to stand up for fairness and integration. Toronto is the only school board in Canada that has created a leadership position for this responsibility. Diversity is supported and valued in all schools, and the school board assists the teachers to receive the necessary qualifications. The school culture in Toronto is a big proponent of candor toward a child’s environment—for example, by giving parents access to counselors who can help with integration. Schools that are situated in especially troubled neighborhoods receive support through additional initiatives. Besides methodical and continuous language study, the schools investigate the different origins of the students, both within the curriculum and in daily life. This way every student is made to feel welcome with his own life story and his family’s background.
This brief overview makes it clear how far we still have to go if we want to succeed at integration. Step by step, we should look at the following goals:
Diversity in society should no longer be viewed as a problem, but rather as an opportunity.
Our school system needs a new model for the equal participation of all children and young people, no matter what their background.
Our learning culture must develop models for granting individual aid.
Continuous teacher education is a must.
We must strengthen the regional support system: Who is more familiar with local challenges than the local community?
Schools need the assistance of committed outside partners to implement their integration strategies.
If all these steps are put into place, successful social integration will no longer be a dream. Every child in our country should have a chance to make something of their life. It is the duty of our society to support and encourage these children. The right way to do this is still up for discussion. There is no question for me, however, that children must be at the center of the debate—because children are our future!