ABSTRACT
Germany has about 81 million inhabitants (Statistisches Bundesamt 2015). It is the largest country in the European Union (EU) in terms of population. Germany likes to present itself as a modern, cosmopolitan country with a society shaped by a plurality of lifestyles and ethno-cultural diversity. Indeed, German society has become more diverse, more fl exible and perhaps even more tolerant in recent decades, and yet the challenge to combat social exclusion and work against the discrimination of minorities is still a political as well a professional task and a major challenge for civil society.
