Looking Ahead: European Parliament Elections in 2014

The next European Parliament Elections are approaching quickly. During 22-25 May 2014 citizens of the 28 EU member states will get the chance to elect their representatives to the European Parliament during 2014-2019. The elections are an opportunity to influence those to be elected and get their commitment to helping to create lasting solutions to injustice and poverty. The elections are also a good time for mobilizing citizens to demand a Europe that deals with inequalities and poverty in Europe and outside its borders.

A lot is at stake during these elections and the new election outcomes could have serious consequence to European development policies. The political sentiments in Europe, which include strong anti-European as well as anti-immigration and populists movements, could result in election outcomes that greatly change the political landscape of the European politics. David Earnshaw, talking at the March CONCORD Policy Forum indicated that some fear that the next European Parliament will be made up of up to 30-40% of extremist, racist, populist or generally anti-establishment party groups like Italy’s Five Star Movement, UK Independence Party or the “Pirate Party”.

Many European as well as national political parties are already preparing and deciding on their election manifestos for the next European elections as well as selecting their candidates. The more active election campaign period is expected to start in January 2014. Now there is the opportunity for civil society organisations to make sure development cooperation issues are included and addressed adequately in the election manifestos. This is what many development NGOs and NDGO platforms are doing at the moment. On the European level, a European Parliament Elections Task Force has been established at CONCORD to jointly convey the European development NGOs’ messages to European politicians, citizens and the media.

For more information about the CONCORD European Parliament Election Task Force contact Sabine Terlecki: Sabine.Terlecki@concordeurope.org.

Information provided by Mirjam Sutrop, TRIALOG

Seminar on Unconventional Partnerships for Sustainable Development

On June 25th, FoRS-Czech Forum for Development Cooperation in cooperation with Glopolis, the association of Czech environmental NGOs, Green Circle and the UN Information Centre Prague organises the seminar “Unconventional partnerships and domestic transformation: Challenges and opportunities for environmental and development NGOs”.

The aim of the event is to provide space for a political reflection on global and national tendencies in the field of sustainable development and for a discussion about the key changes necessary in the Czech Republic (e. g. in terms of social capital, better governance, or green economy) and concrete ways of cooperation between NGOs and businesses.

Contact person: Marie Zázvorková, marie.zazvorkova@fors.cz

Information provided by Marie Zázvorková, FoRS

Opportunities for Regional Cooperation at the Black Sea

The Romanian NGDO platform FOND is organising a debate on “Opportunities for Regional Cooperation at the Black Sea”. The event, which will take place at the European Parliament in Brussels on 26th of June 2013, aims at putting into perspective how the Black Sea regional cooperation is seen at the European level and to promote civil society’s cooperation initiatives in the Black Sea Region.

This initiative represents a follow-up to the 5th edition of the Black Sea NGO Forum (October 2012) and will include the presentation of a research paper on the impact of the Forum’s first four editions (2008-2011).

More information here.

To register, please contact Adriana Zaharia at adriana.zaharia@fondromania.org


Information provided by Adriana Zaharia, FOND

Call for Papers: 10 Years of SlovakAid

The Pontis Foundation would like to bring to your attention the CALL FOR PAPERS for the international conference "10 Years of SlovakAid: A Vision of Development Cooperation for a Changing World". The conference will be held on 16 - 17 October 2013 at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic in Bratislava.

Our aim is to stimulate a professional dialogue between governmental, non-governmental, academic and private sectors and media. The conference will give space to experts from Slovakia and abroad to search for innovative ideas and new opportunities for Slovak development agenda. The analysis of the outcomes and the new trends in the Slovak development cooperation will be focused on the topics of transmission of the transition experience primarily towards the countries of the Eastern Partnership and the Balkans, democratization challenges and opportunities in the Southern Neighbourhood and new trends in development cooperation in sub-Saharan Africa.

We would like to inform you about the opportunity to present your paper at the conference. More information about the conference topics can be found on our website.


The deadline for applications and submitting final copies of papers is August 30, 2013.

Information provided by Pontis Foundation

Report: Civil Society Transformations on the Way to the EU

The summary report of the TACSO conference "Civil Society Transformations on the Way to the EU", where TRIALOG was present is available online.

The Conference presented the experiences and challenges, which the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) are facing in the countries of the Western Balkans and Turkey, during the European Union (EU) accession process. TRIALOG director Christine Bedoya gave an input on TRIALOG's experience in "Linking EU and WBT through Development Cooperation".

Information provided by TRIALOG 

Private Sector in Development

How can CSOs and Private Sector work together towards Development? Discussions on the role of the private sector in development have taken place for a long time. However, the EU’s new development policy – Agenda for Change – puts more focus on the role of economic growth to ensure development. This places private sector in the centre of the development debate.

This TRIALOG Policy Digest explores different forms the private sector is engaged in development, while putting special attention on civil society organisations’ (CSOs) cooperation with the private sector in development activities. Another focus is on EU level policy processes on the topic and suggestions how to get involved and influence them through civil society actions.

Download the digest here.


The digest was written by Inese Vaivare of the Latvian Platform for Development Cooperation - Lapas and Gordan Bosanac of the Croatian Centre for Peace Studies in coordination with Mirjam Sutrop, TRIALOG Liaison Officer.

The TRIALOG Policy Digests provide insight to currently discussed development policy topics. They are written by drafting teams made up of TRIALOG partners and are published on a regular basis every other month. Find digests on more topics here.

Information provided by TRIALOG

Czech Development Actors Discussing the Role of Czech ODA and NGOs

Representatives of Czech development NGOs, Czech Development Agency, private and academic sector gathered on two interlinked events in Prague on May 14th and 15th to discuss some key topics in the current aid and international development cooperation debate. The events were organized by the Czech NGDO platform FoRS.

On May 14th, the event Czech Development Cooperation on the Crossroads: What is the contribution of development cooperation for Czech Republic in the global context? was held. Three keynote speakers: Sara Worku Zergaw (representing Ethiopian civil society), Šimon Pánek (director of the Czech NGO People in Need and member of FoRS Board) and Olivier Consolo (director of the European NGO confederation CONCORD) opened ground for further discussions related to Czech aid in the current context characterized with new challenges and issues for development actors. The debate turned around the role of Czech aid, how it is perceived by us, whether we fulfil its expected goals, how to get prepared for the upcoming changes and what is our ability to influence them. The first day was concluded by a session on gender mainstreaming in development cooperation.

During the second event, FoRS´ Development Day, FoRS members and observers discussed in more depth and shared their experience in four topics: how to better link the experience from development projects with development education and awareness raising and policy and advocacy work; how to ensure financial sustainability and/or independence; how to ensure positive impact and sustainability; and what are the possibilities for cooperation with the private sector in development. The crosscutting question was on how to communicate these issues to the media, general public and politicians.

FoRS is currently elaborating the outcomes of this event in a substantial material and is going to use it both in the process of creating its own communication strategy and to feed in the work of CONCORD on a new political narrative. Both events were held in the framework of the project RESAREAS on Cooperation Network for Research of Non-European Countries supported by the Czech Ministry of Education and the European Social Fund.

In the picture: Panel at the Czech Development Cooperation on the Crossroads event, FoRS

Information provided by Marie Zazvorkova, FoRS

Who Should Feed the World? Discussion on Food Security in Estonia

The Estonian Roundtable for Development Cooperation (AKÜ) organised the conference WHO SHOULD FEED THE WORLD? Politics of Guaranteeing Food for the World. Key topic of the event, held on 14 May 2013 in Tallinn, was food as a human right and Estonia’s opportunities of helping to guarantee a decent life for the whole world.

The keynote speaker Ms. Marikki Stocchetti from the Finnish Institute of International Affairs explained how trade and development policies can contribute to food security for all people. A global perspective was added by H.E. Ricardo José Alvarado Noguera, Ambassador of Nicaragua to Estonia.

Climate change will change more than just the climate.
Mr. Patrick Worms from the World Agroforestry Centre described the effects of climate change on food security and offered using trees in agriculture as the solution. Participants also learned about the Estonian start-up company Vital Fields that provides unique field-based weather forecast for farmers. In addition, several experts from Estonia and abroad shared their thoughts and engaged with the audience.

Read more here.


Source: Estonian Roundtable for Development Cooperation (AKÜ)  

Visegrad Group and International Development Cooperation Towards Africa

On 16th May 2013 the Slovak NGDO Platform MVRO and Partners for Democratic Change Slovakia (PDCS) welcomed, in cooperation with their Visegrad 4 (V4) partners from the Czech Republic (People in Need), Hungary (DemNet Foundation) and Poland (Polish Humanitarian Action) participants to the conference “Visegrad Group and International Development Cooperation towards Africa”.

The event was held under the auspices of the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Slovak Parliament František Šebej and took place at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic. The conference aimed at searching synergies among development activities of V4 countries in Africa. It was opened by the State Secretary of the MFaEA SR Peter Burian, the member of the National Council of the Slovak Republic František Šebej and the Chairwoman of the Slovak NGDO Platform Zuzana Fialová.

Before the panel discussions, main findings of the report based on the predecessor conference Visegrad Countries in International Development Cooperation, which took place in January 2013, were introduced. In the panel discussions representatives of the national parliaments of V4 countries as well as the European Parliament, executive bodies and the International Visegrad Fund discussed further possibilities of V4 cooperation with African countries. In the last panel representatives of V4 academia and NGOs discussed the involvement of private sector in development cooperation and shared experience from their countries.

To introduce the panel a video interview with a Slovak company active in Kenya was shown.
The programme of the conference can be found here.

On 18th May 2013, PDCS in cooperation with the Society Development Institute and the Slovak NGDO Platform organized a celebration of the Africa Day in the Medická záhrada (Medical Garden) in Bratislava. Visitors had an opportunity to discover the diversity of languages, literature and cuisine of some of the African countries. The events were supported by the European Union (V4 Aid - United Support for Millennium Development Goals project) and the International Visegrad Fund.



Information provided by Andrea Girmanova, MVRO - Slovak NGDO Platform

Global Education Exchange in Search of a Common Ground

The International Seminar on Global Education has brought together teachers and Global Education experts from six countries to work together on a Global Learning Framework, which could help in mainstreaming Global Education in the formal education sector.

The seminar which took place in Wilga near Warsaw from April 10-12, 2013 was at the same time a kick-off meeting for the World-Class Teaching project which has been initiated in January this year. The project has been created at the TRIALOG Partnership Fair in 2011 by organisations from Austria, Slovakia, United Kingdom and Poland.

The first phase of the project is focused to develop a common Global Learning Framework which will help in mainstreaming Global Learning in teaching. The Framework will be used by teachers to develop subject-specific teaching materials and by trainers who will develop training programmes to assists teachers of selected subjects like languages, English as a foreign language, science, biology, geography, history, civics and art. The seminar was designed as a consultative process which allowed the project team to share outputs from its first phase and discuss it with teachers who will later work within the project. It has also been a chance to get a constructive feedback from education experts from Brazil (CECIP) and Benin (NEGO-COM). For the teachers participating in the meeting it has also been an opportunity to exchange on the way they work with students and to learn more on how the school systems work in their countries.

World-Class Teaching is run by Centre for Citizenship Education (Poland), People in Peril Association (Slovakia), Südwind Agentur (Austria) and Leeds Development Education Centre. The project is funded by the European Union and co-financed withinthe Polish development cooperation programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2013.

For more information please see the project summary or contact jedrzej.witkowski@ceo.org.pl.

In the photo: Participants of the Global Education Seminar in Warsaw.


Information provided by Jedrzej Witkowski, Centre for Citizenship Education

Global Campus - Students for Global Justice

The project Global Campus, jointly implemented by Suas (Ireland – lead organisation), Cardet (Cyprus), Südwind (Austria) and KOPIN (Malta), focuses on providing awareness raising, educational and action-oriented activities on the campuses of 13 universities across the four EU member states.

“Inspire, Educate & Engage” is a step-by-step participatory approach to motivate students as well as university staff to become active agents of change for more global social justice.

The three-year project (beginning 2013 – end 2015) focuses on issues related to the MDGs and the post-MDG agenda, i.e. on topics of global importance. In each country, the partners provide three activity cycles per annum, aiming at the involvement of 36,000 students, academic and administrative staff. Following the establishment of the consortium, the choice of a project name and logo (voted for by students themselves) and a baseline study on the knowledge of students about development issues, the partners are now planning the actions on campus, which will kick-off this summer.

The project is co-financed by EuropeAid of the European Commission, Irish Aid, Ireland’s aid agency, and the Austrian Development Agency, among others. For further information, contact the project partners whose details can be found on the respective websites, and soon also on the project’s website www.globalcampus.eu and social networking profiles.



Information provided by KOPIN Malta

Raising Awareness on the Sustainable Management of Forests

In collaboration with P.A.R.K. and the 34U Campaign, KOPIN presented the “FORESTS IN THE WORLD” Film Festival & the “Plant for the Future” audiovisual and interactive exhibition on 17th of May 2013.

FORESTS IN THE WORLD – Film Festival
In the wonderful setting of Buskett Gardens, Malta’s best known woodland, KOPIN screened a number of short movies that critically deal with issues related to forests – from the sustainable use of forest products to the impact of uncontrolled deforestation on indigenous peoples, to the crass negative impact of big business on people and the environment.

“Plant for the Future” – Audiovisual Exhibition
An unique audiovisual installation,  guided through some of the most gorgeous green lungs of the Earth in a forest-like environment!

The Exhibition aimed to
- raise awareness about world forests and about their environmental, cultural, social and economic importance;
- highlight the main problems related to deforestation and the other destructive and exploitative practices;
- raise awareness about the direct links between current lifestyles and their environmental and social impact on world forests;
- contribute towards changing consumption patterns towards a fairer and sustainable use of forest resources, in particular by promoting the selection of certified products and services above others.


Both events were opened by Hon Leo Brincat, Minister for the Environment, Sustainable Development and Climate Change.

In the frame of KOPIN project FOREST IN THE WORLD, that deals with issues related to sustainable consumption of forests’ products and its social impact, an Italian delegation made up of four students and two teachers from two different Italian secondary schools, visited Malta between 9th and 11th of April. The group, accompanied by Samanta Musarò, a representative from Italian NGO COSPE, also partner in the project, took part in several activities organised by KOPIN staff, with the help of different Maltese stakeholders.
On the morning of their first day in Malta, the Italian group, together with two KOPIN members, joined some students at Birgu Boys’ secondary school in Verdala, to discuss topics related to environmental and social aspects of forests’ resources consumption. There was an introduction by teacher Ms Rita DeBattista, followed by a presentation of fair trade market and its principles held by some volunteers from Koperattiva Kummerċ Ġust. In the afternoon the Italian group visited Manikata Rural Cooperative and was leaded through its “Heritage Trail” to discover some techniques of organic farming and cultivation.    

For further information about the project, visit the website www.forestintheworld.org or also contact KOPIN info@kopin.org


Information provided by KOPIN Malta

Fit for Fair: Global Learning for Decent Work in the Sportswear Industry

Organisations from Bulgaria, Moldova, Germany, Romania, Slovakia and the UK have joined their efforts to work on the problem of poor working conditions in the garment industry in less developed countries. The three-year project “Fit for Fair” aims to develop a critical approach to buying sportswear by the consumers in the developed countries and thus it is expected to improve the working conditions for the workers who produce these goods.

The project includes a strong gender aspect since the workers of garment industry are mainly women. The initiative is a tool for bridging the cultural gap related to decent work in various countries of European Union and beyond. The activities within the project are to provoke a change of the mindset and behaviour patterns of youth and teenagers as a result of increase of understanding of the human costs related to the production of high quality sportswear. The project is designed to benefit both: developed and developing countries by providing insights into the differences between the ideas of labour rights and responsibilities of consumers and the workers, and thus contribute to decreasing the gap between them.

The project is jointly financed by the European Commission and other sources and it will be implemented by partner organisations including Christliche Initiative Romero - CIR and Germany Gender (D), Education, Research and Technologies Foundation – GERT (BG) Labour behind the Label (UK) Slovak Centre for Communication and Development and Slovakia Gender - Centru (SK), Gender Centrum Moldova and AUR – National Association of Human Resources (RO). GERT and AUR will create a multiplier effect with respect to the distribution of learning approaches, contents and materials in other Eastern European EU member states.

For more information please contact Jivka Marinova from GERT at: gert@mbox.contact.bg

Source: KARAT Newsletter from 6th of May 2013

Stories from Slovenian Development Assistance in Montenegro

Institute Circle focuses its development work in the north of Montenegro, where a high poverty rate leads to many environmental, social, education and economic problem.

In April 2013, Institute Circle, in collaboration with Emma and the Centre for Social Work Šiška Ljubljana, organised a technical seminar for the judiciary and the police on domestic violence in Plav, Montenegro. The Director of the Centre for Social Work Plav, which is a partner organisation in the project, invited participants to work together, for a cooperation of governmental and non-governmental organisations, and she expressed a desire for better conditions and a lower level of violence in the city. Seminar participants signed a declaration against violence in the family and society. Seminar participants expressed the opinion that Montenegro needs to improve cooperation between non-governmental organisations, the judiciary and the police. They also agreed on the fact that any seminars on this topic are welcome because there is a lack of education of government organisations and all present participants wanted to help improve the current situation. Above all, it is very important to share the conscience that we are all responsible toward society and, consequently, we have a duty to declare any form of violence. For this is the purpose in Plav there will be implemented a local social campaign against violence “Instead slaps, give a flower”.

Another seminar was organised for employees of the Day Centre for Children with Special Needs in Lipa. The activity took place within a three-year development project, supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia. Representative of the Embassy of Slovenia in Montenegro visited the Centre.

Further, representative of the Institute Circle visited children and teachers from three primary schools, that took part in the sustainable project "From the environment to the family", in years 2010, 2011 and 2012. The children spent a rehabilitation week in Slovenia. With children and teachers stories and experiences that from our holiday were revived, we laughed, joked and sung a few songs. The representatives of the Institute Circle were very glad to have the opportunity to meet all. It was a pleasant feeling to see that they thought of us, of the events in Slovenia and everything they have experienced with us in Slovenia, they are carrying in their hearts. We were pleased that our project left a great impression to them and that the positive results of their stay with us are visible.


Photo: Group of school children from the project "From the environment to the family"

Information provided by Emina Hadžić, Zavod KROG