„Láng giềng thân mến!“ The city of Brno publishes a new guide for foreign nationals in six languages

The city of Brno publishes a new information guide for newly arrived foreign nationals in six languages. The creators of the 40-page guide drew on many years of experience with the integration of foreign nationals in Brno and on the newly acquired knowledge of intercultural workers.

“Dear Madam, Dear Sir, Dear Neighbours, I am glad to at least symbolically welcome you to my hometown of Brno, the second largest city in the Czech Republic. I am sure that you have already heard of Brno’s reputation as a friendly, welcoming and peaceful place, and I trust that you will see it that way as well,” says the mayor of Brno in six languages to welcome the readers on the first page of a new guide for foreign nationals who have just come to live in Brno.

The city publishes this guide as an output of the project of intercultural workers, based on the experience of individual intercultural workers with the needs of foreign nationals, and with the involvement of other organizations in the city that work with foreign nationals.

This 40-page guide is published in Czech, English, Russian, Ukrainian, Romanian, Vietnamese and Arabic. Its creators were motivated by the previous experience with the integration of foreign nationals at the city level – it turned out that newly arrived foreign nationals find themselves disoriented in the city without the necessary information to get started, which is the only way to start their smooth adaptation. “In this guide, we focused on key areas of integration, we included tips and warnings based on our experience, and provided all the contacts needed for further orientation,” explains Lenka Šafránková Pavlíčková, one of the project coordinators.

This guide provides the answers in a clear and understandable way to the most basic questions one needs to know in order to easily settle in the city and integrate into its structures: What should I do first? How can I find suitable accommodation? What needs to be arranged immediately for my family? What do I have to do to start working in Brno? How do I ensure healthcare for myself and my family? What is everyday life in Brno like?

This guide also contains a well-arranged directory of the most important contacts and city maps. The guide can be downloaded in all languages on this website.