Bridge builders wanted for German-Czech border region

Those who want to spend a year building bridges in the German-Czech border region can apply to take part in a funding program until 7 April. The "A Year at the Border" project of the German-Czech Future Fund is already entering its third round, the organizers announced in Prague on Monday. They are looking for "active people" who are willing to approach and bring together new players from civil society, associations, communities and churches on both sides of the border. There is a financial reward for the work, which is expected to take around 20 hours per week. Knowledge of Czech is an advantage, but not a prerequisite.

The Future Fund supports many other projects. The Board of Directors recently approved funding of almost 1.3 million euros for 233 new projects. For example, pupils from the Bavarian town of Waldkraiburg (district of Mühldorf am Inn) and the Czech town of Cervena Voda will be exploring the topic of the expulsion of Germans from what was then Czechoslovakia after the Second World War. They want to compare new and old photos of the homes of displaced persons. Pupils from the Lyonel Feininger Grammar School in Halle and a grammar school in Prague will use computers to go on a virtual journey into the time of the National Socialist reign of terror in the so-called "Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia".

Sports encounters will also be supported, for example with a training camp for young footballers. The German-Czech Future Fund was founded in 1997 to contribute to cross-border understanding. It is financed by the governments of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Czech Republic.