CCRIT is a non-profit-making organisation, open to any person, association or institution willing to subscribe to its purposes and contribute in an active manner to different activities that are initiated or assisted by CCRIT. The organisation is not politically involved and it is led by a Board of Directors.

As compared to other Eastern European Universities, the "Babes-Bolyai" University in Cluj has as a specific feature a multilingual (basically bilingual) profile: Romanian and Hungarian teachers and students work together. This mirrors the multicultural situation of Transylvania. The relations between (and among) different ethnic groups of this region are not always harmonious because both before and after 1989 the dominant discourse dealing with ethnic relations was more or less marked by nationalism. At the initiative and with the contribution of the late professor Ion Aluas (sociologist, the first director of CCRIT), a group of academics and researchers from the "Babes-Bolyai" University wanted to materialise their interest in interethnic relations in a scientific approach to these issues and civic action based on this.

The core activities of CCRIT include:

• To research the cultural heritage of different populations and ethnic groups in Romania (especially from Transylvania);
• To offer scientifically grounded data on controversial aspects of past and present day issues of different ethnic groups in this region, frequently mentioned by intellectuals and politicians in political disputes;
• To offer a research frame for different persons interested in improving their knowledge on what concerns ethnic relations and nationalism, either from a theoretical point of view or by performing field research in Transylvania.
• To offer assistance for different NGOs whose purposes are to improve interethnic relations and the social climate in Romania.

Given that in Romania there is a scarcity of information and research on ethnic relations, NGOs working in this field seek for scientific support for developing and performing activities dealing with the improvement of interethnic relations. CCRIT offers documentation on ethnic issues and social science at the "Ion Aluas" Documentation Centre on Multiculturalism. In the past, CCRIT collaborated with YAP (Youth Action for Peace) on problems of multiculturalism and tolerance, participating at seminars and meetings or assisting and counselling. Furthermore, CCRIT supported the CIVITAS foundation program for training in conflict prevention in local communities. CCRIT also co-operated with UNICEF Romania, sustaining lectures on the topic of ethnically sensitive social work for people involved in the child-care system. At present, CCRIT in more involved in research projects concerning the situation of ethnic minorities.