One major challenge is how people in exposed areas and districts can and are given the opportunity to experience social participation and coherence.

There are experiences in the region of different forms of municipal meeting places aimed at enabling the experience of social participation for people living in areas that are generally viewed in terms of exclusion. Some research suggests that people in these areas experience a strong internal identity within the district, that is, they feel comfortable and part of the community, but there is also a weak external identity in the sense that people in the city’s other parts mainly see the problems in that district. One such area, which lies outside the major cities but nevertheless has the character of a Million Programme area, is Norrby in Borås. In the Norrby district, several efforts have been made in order to promote social and cultural participation. One forum for creating meeting places between people is the ’one stop shop’ public office at Norrby.

Overall issues in the project:

• What types of efforts are being made? How are they used by the residents of the area?
• In which aspects is such a meeting place of importance to the people in the district, according to staff and residents?
• How do these meeting places promote the intercultural dialogue between the majority and minority people of the city?
• In what form are there close links and cooperation with the civil society?
• What challenges and development opportunities are linked to its activities?