24 June 2026
Madrid
Eduardo J. Ruiz Vieytez, a researcher at the Institute for Human Rights, has presented an innovative tool to enable local governments to improve local governance of religious diversity and help to further strengthen pluralism and democratic inclusion at local level across Europe. The presentation of this tool, developed as part of the DIVERPOMU project (more information here), took place as part of the European Forum on Local Governance of Religious Diversity, a forum at which experiences and lessons learnt regarding democratic, inclusive and pluralistic governance from different countries were also shared.
The Forum, held on 17 and 18 June in Madrid, also featured the participation of Gorka Urrutia Asua (principal investigator of the RE&TO project), as well as representatives from the Basque Government, the City Council of Vitoria-Gasteiz and the City Council of Bilbao (cities participating in the Municipalities for Tolerance Programme). Over the past few days, representatives from government bodies across all European countries have been discussing these issues, sharing examples of best practice such as the Religious Diversity Committee in the municipality of Bilbao, with which the Deusto Human Rights Institute also collaborates.
The forum forms part of the RE&TO Project (further information at: https://religionsandtolerance.eu/), which is funded by the European Commission and involves several researchers from the Deusto Human Rights Institute.
