European countries can turn the migration crisis into a “window” of opportunity, dialogue and encounter between migrants and their citizens, according to Pope Francis.

The Pope was speaking as he welcomed ‘Snapshots from the Borders’ – a group aimed at improving the understanding of the flow of migrants into Europe – to the Vatican.

“No one can remain indifferent to the human tragedies that continue to occur in different regions of the world. Among these, we are often challenged by those that have as their theater the Mediterranean, a border sea that is also, however, a sea of encounter among cultures,” the Pope said.

The current migration crisis, he said, is “complex and often has dramatic implications” that “challenge everyone.”

While the international community “has been content with military interventions” to respond to regional tensions, he said, it should instead build “institutions that can guarantee equal opportunities and enable citizens to assume their responsibility for the common good.”

“In front of these challenges, it seems clear that concrete solidarity and shared responsibility, both at a national and international level, are indispensable,” the pope said. “We must act together, not alone.”

Pope Francis emphasised the need to “change the way we see and talk about migration” and pave the way “toward a new humanism” not only “as a philosophy of life, but also as a spirituality and a style of behavior.”

“Borders, which always have been considered barriers of division, can instead become ‘windows,’ spaces of mutual knowledge, of mutual enrichment, of communion in diversity,” the Pope said.

‘Snapshots from the Borders’ is a three-year project co-funded by the European Union. Its goal is “to improve the critical understanding of European, national and local decision makers and of public opinion” about the flow of migrants in Europe “to promote more effective policy coherence at all levels”.

It is made up of 35 Local Authorities and Civil Society organisations keen to explore global interdependencies determining migration flows towards European borders, in the perspective of reaching the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

“Specifically, the project intends to strengthen a new horizontal, active network among cities directly facing migration flows at EU borders, as a way to promote more effective policy coherence at all levels,” the group’s website says.

The heart of the project is “voice and experiences (snapshots) from the borders” and their broadest diffusion among European citizens.

The voice of the real protagonists will travel from periphery to the centre, at national and European level, where the decisions are taken.

The project aims to inform European citizens that migration is a complex and multidimensional phenomenon and a political issue which needs efforts and concrete actions taken by people and organization/network at all level of society. A better understanding by Europeans of migration as a development issue paired with engagement fosters global citizenship and build strong bonds of solidarity.