On 26 April, the IHEDN Endowment Fund and the IHEDN Auvergne regional association organised a «National Cohesion and Citizenship» day in Clermont-Ferrand on the theme of resilience, The event was attended by Danièle Polvé-Montmasson, Prefect of Puy-de-Dôme, Marie-Danièle Campion, Rector of the Clermont-Ferrand education authority, and Lieutenant General Bernard de Courrèges d'Ustou, Director of IHEDN.
At a time when the republican and democratic principles that form the bedrock of our society are being undermined, the local authorities, with the support of the IHEDN Community, wanted to bring together those who work on a day-to-day basis for the benefit of young people, with a specific aim: to inform and encourage a necessary exchange around the notion of citizenship among young people.
The seminar was attended by around 80 people, including association executives, teachers and school heads, urban policy and local authority executives, local councillors and members of the military.
Three conferences followed by discussions were on the programme:
- What is national cohesion? by Admiral François Dupont, former Director of the IHEDN, who was behind the creation of the National Cohesion and Citizenship seminars in 2006.
- The Ministry of Defence's youth initiatives«, by Gérard Gachet, Ministerial Delegate for Youth and Equal Opportunities (DMJEC)
- Sport and the armed forces as vectors for integrating young people«, by Commandant Henri Duval, executive at the Centre national des sports de la Défense (CNSD).
After Lille, Marseille, Le Havre, Nantes, Lyon and Amiens, this trip to Clermont-Ferrand was the 7th seminar on «National cohesion and citizenship» organised since 2011 in the French provinces by the IHEDN Endowment Fund, with the support of the IHEDN Community.
