CONTACT POINT FOR ROMA AND SINTI ISSUES  //  55 ACTIVITIES ROMA AND SINTI POLITICAL PARTICIPATION Promoting active participation in public and political life is one of the priorities under the 2003 OSCE Action Plan for Improving the Situation of Roma and Sinti within the OSCE Area. To that end, ODIHR organized a workshop on “Strengthening Diverse Leadership, Participation and Representation of Roma, including Women and Youth, in Public and Political Life”. The workshop, which was held on 27 and 28 March at the European Parliament, in Brussels, and supported by the United States Helsinki Commission, provided a platform to share experiences of successful community participation in public and political spheres, to change narratives and anti-Roma discourse and to explore ways of influencing and changing policies for Roma and Sinti communities. The event was part of the European Union Roma Week, held under the patronage of the European P ­ arliament and the European Commission. The workshop brought together a diverse group of 41 experts, civil society representatives, politicians and policymakers (18 men, 23 women) from a number of OSCE participating States and intergovernmental institutions. During the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting, on 18 September, in Warsaw, ODIHR discussed perspectives and presented recommendations to OSCE participating States on progress in the implementation of policies addressing Roma and Sinti communities, including the participation of Roma and Sinti in policymaking processes.