(hopefully) European Union supported Project in the Developmental Sector.

Participating countries: Germany, Austria, Hungary, Lithuania

Table of contents of this page Overall objective(s)    Specific objective    Target Groups    Issues Adressed    Estimated Results    Objective    Workpackages    A Coordination    B Capacity Building for NGOs - an Utopian Perspective (supprt project)    C Health as Utopia    D Utopian Mainstreaming    E (Global Utopia Goes School)    F (Fair Worlds)    G (Lingua Franca Utopia)    H (Global Utopias)    I Leading by Learning    K Alternative Economies, Alternative Societies    L Audit and Evaluation    Methodology    Questions & Answers    Discussion

in particular, in workpackage "I", GIVE (responsible FranzNahrada) and the Atzylinas Youth Club in Vilnius (responsible: AndriusKulikauskas) will get some EU support to do Videobridging in 2007 and 2008. While GIVE will build on existing infrastructure (rent Videoconference facilities) and focus on content and speakers, Atzylinas will be supported in acquisition of hardware, too. A DVD will be produced to create a visual teaching tool for VideoBridge setup.

Overall objective(s)

Mobilizing public support in Europe for development, for strategies and policies that fight poverty - expecially among key groups that are critical against politics of dominance, but not necessarily aware of the needs of people in the South. Strenthening the capacities of small organisations to do public awareness raising in the EU on development and/or for more equitable North-South-relations.

Specific objective

Implementing the perspective of development, North-South-relations and global poverty into the contemporary, growing debate on utopian perspectives for today’s society. Preventing the emergence of an utopian debate that has no awareness of, nor responsibility for, nor learning from the developing world, their realities, needs and knowledge.

Target Groups

People engaged in the ongoing debate on utopian perspectives. Students, scientists, political and cultural activists, multipliers (journalists).

Issues Adressed

World markets and alternative economy, unequal North-South- relations, colonialism and its long-term results, self-organisation and self-sustainability, empowerment, empowement of women and other vulnerable groups.

Estimated Results

Building a network of EU-based NGOs and/or grass-root organisations that is focused on Capacity Building and more equitable North-South-relations.

Objective

At the moment, we have a growing, emerging debate on utopian perspectives, that ist getting stronger since some years now. Discussion about alternatives to the present economic, political, cultural order had been sparse in the 90ies, under the impression of a possible “end of history” (the downfall of any attempt to willfully alter society and its driving forces). But since 2000, an utopian debate has unfold anew, supported by the global movements’ search for “another world (that) is possible”. Indicators are the number of conferences, projects, publications that are focused on this issue. Indicators are beginning shifts in the public debate, that shows less confidence in unregulated powers and fully market-driven tendencies, and more need for alternative ways of addressing problems and for social regulation.

The problem is that this new search for alternative pathways does not necessarily include the perspectives, needs, experiences and contributions of people in the South, of developing countries, of movements, groups, of partners there. Without explicitly implementing a “Southern” point of view, the force of the new utopian debate may even go against the interests of people in the South. An utopian debate that has no awareness of North-South-relations may take a nostalgian, conservative trend of self-interest, exclusion, of counter-development.

In a historical situation where capital, technology, knowledge, information, infrastructure is more unequal distributed than ever, an utopian debate of “let’s see how we can get along better with what we have” may foster a kind of “utopian chauvinism” in the highly developed countries that denies the necessity of re-distribution of these goods, of development, of new and juster relations and solidarity between people in the developed and the developing world. On the other hand, a new utopian debate is a great change to build coalitions that include the interests of vulnerable and poor groups in the South and of movements and NGOs in developing countries.

Therefore, the project’s specific aim is to implement the perspective of development, North-South-relations and global poverty into the contemporary, growing debate on utopian perspectives for today’s society; and to prevent the emergence of an utopian debate that has no awareness of, nor responsibility for, nor learning from the developing world, their realities, needs and knowledge.

This is seen as a contribution to the overall aim of mobilizing public support in Europe for development, for strategies and policies that fight poverty. If the new utopian debate is a specific danger, but also a specific opportunity for this, the project’s specific aim will be a relevant contribution to this overall aim.

The project

• encourages collaboration between NGOs
• highlights the interdepence of the EU and the developing countries
• mobilizes support for more equitable North-South-relations
• ensures an enlarged-EU dimension by involving NGOs from the new member states, including actions that facilitate exchanges of experiences and networking between NGOs from the fifteen old member states and the member states which have joined the EU in May 2000
• allow partners from developing countries to play an active part

• World markets and alternative economy, unequal North-South-relations, colonialism and its long-term results,
• self-organisation and self-sustainability, empowerment, empowement of women and other vulnerable groups.

Workpackages

A Coordination

• Responsible: Gesundheit und Dritte Welt, Bielefeld (D)

B Capacity Building for NGOs - an Utopian Perspective (supprt project)

• Support projects for smaller organisations participating in the CBP.
• Content is
• 3 international workshops with the participating NGOs and other interested NGOs, expecially from new member states
• documentation (brochure, English, with into in all participants languages)
• Responsible: Intkom Bremen (D); Gesundheit und Dritte Welt

C Health as Utopia

• Responsible: Gesundheit und Dritte Welt

D Utopian Mainstreaming

• Utopian Mainstreaming is a project that focuses on
• North-South-relations and development issues as part of
• contemporary utopian debate. Its content is:
• publication of 3 magazine issues about “utopian mainstreaming”
• 3 workshops relating to these issues
• Responsible: V-Pop, Bremen (D)

E (Global Utopia Goes School)

• Responsible: AKP, Göttingen (D)

F (Fair Worlds)

• Responsible: ...... Marburg (D)

G (Lingua Franca Utopia)

• Responsible: WSCF, Budapest (HUN)

H (Global Utopias)

• Publishing of print material (magazine issue) on globalisation of utopian thinking and development as a key issue for future visions.
• Responsible: Eszmelet, Budapest (HUN)

I Leading by Learning

• Building of video bridges between NGOs, expecially between local NGOs in developed and in developing countries, as a tool of mutual learning and raising public awareness of South issues in the North
• Responsible: Liaudies kurybos klubas Atzalynas, Vilnius (LITH); GIVE , Vienna (A)

WorkplanVienna?

K Alternative Economies, Alternative Societies

• AEAS is a political/cultural project that collects video interviews with contemporary utopian thinkers worldwide. Content of this activity is:
• translation and publication of the texts (transcripts) from the video interviews in Hungarian and Lithuanian, with an introduction / commentary on development relevancy / “North-South-mainstreaming”;
• 2 book launches;
• 1 foto exhibition, to be combined with the book launches.
• Responsible: Involved, Vilnius (LITH); Republicart, Vienna (A)

L Audit and Evaluation

• Responsible: Gesundheit und Dritte Welt

Methodology

We think that small NGOs and grass-root organisations are actors of great importance with specific possibilities and specific problems. Usually they are very creative, very innovative, but have problems with giving their actions a clear aim, with planning, with evalution, with developing clear, provable strategies.

While bigger organisations have their own, business-like ways of capacity building, small NGOs need support, tools, networks of their own. This has to be developed collectively, in exchange, which is in itself very much part of the solution.

Questions & Answers

Q. Is there a official project home page?

A. There is no project site yet. This wiki page is an attempt to fill the gap... Franz

Q. Who are the offical partners in this project?

A. Coordinator: Gesundheit und Dritte Welt Bielefeld, Intkom e.V., Bremen (Germany); Adivasi-Kooperations-Projekt, Göttingen (Germany); Weltladen (???), Marburg (Germany); V-Pop, Bremen (Germany); WSCF, Budapest (Hungary); Eszmelet, Budapest (Hungary); Liaudies kurybos klubas Atzalynas, Vilnius (Lithuania); Involved, Vilnius (Lithuania); GIVE Forschungsgesellschaft, Wien (Austria); Republicart, Wien (Austria)

Q. What does "European Union supported" mean exactly?

A. 75% of expenses covered on the base of a submitted budget plan that must be observed. Only expenses within the EU and fully paid are deductable

Discussion

BerichtLitauen2007