LIDERA: Open applications for the 2nd edition of the media literacy project in libraries

Applications are open until 8 October for the 2nd edition of LIDERA – Reading Daily Information to Choose, Reflect and Act, a project promoted by the UNESCO Chair of Communication, Media and Information Literacy and Citizenship (ESCS-UPL/LIACOM), the ERC – National Regulatory Authority for the Media, and the School Libraries Network (EduQA).

Find here all the information about the project, including the sessions schedule and the application form.

The project aims to promote critical reading skills for media content and the ability to assess journalistic content, contributing to stronger media and digital literacy, informed citizenship, and resilience to disinformation.

LIDERA is aimed at teacher librarians, higher education librarians and municipal librarians, who, as mediators, take part in training sessions and subsequently replicate the activities with their respective audiences – secondary school students, higher education students, and families, senior citizens and communities in general.

In this 2nd edition, LIDERA builds on the work carried out last year, involving new participants as well as mediators from the 1st edition. New participants will complete the full training programme and implement it in their local settings, while mediators from the previous edition will continue their work with new classes or target groups, benefiting from dedicated follow-up sessions. Together, they will become part of the LIDERA Community.

The programme will be dedicated to the six thematic areas from the previous edition: “Journalism: What It Is and What It Is Not”; “I Know How to Read the World: Press Review”; “Media Content: Comparing, Distinguishing and Identifying”; “Journalism and Artificial Intelligence: Dilemmas from the Newsroom to the Reader”; “Is Everything (Dis)information Now?”; and “Media, Power and My Freedom”.

The first session will take place on 12 October and is intended for all registered participants – both new participants and mediators continuing the work started last year.

Pilot edition involved thousands of participants

The 1st edition of LIDERA took place between October 2025 and May 2026 and involved around 100 libraries (school, higher education and municipal libraries), with an average attendance of 90 mediators at the training sessions. These sessions were subsequently replicated in more than 700 local sessions, involving over 3,600 participants.

The evaluation results reflected an overall very positive assessment, both from the mediators and participants. Mediators particularly valued the quality of the materials, the topics covered and the opportunities for reflection. Meanwhile, feedback from participants (students and users of municipal libraries) particularly highlighted the development of their ability to distinguish reliable information from disinformation and to analyse news critically.

Read here the full article about the 1st edition of LIDERA.

The LIDERA – Reading Daily Information to Choose, Reflect and Act project is part of the UNESCO Chair‘s area of activity dedicated to Education.