Copenaghen- Volunteering for stronger societies through innovation and cross-sector collaboration

The voluntary sector has seen many developments recently, and gained a well deserved place on the public agenda through the European Year of Volunteering 2011. However, there is still a long journey ahead for volunteers and organisations that support them to achieve the aim of their efforts: better communities, stronger societies. It is therefore crucial to build partnerships between different sectors, to approach the growing interdependence between the state, business sector and civil society with innovative ideas, and to increase collaboration among different actors in the decision making arena.

In its 23rd Multi-Stakeholders Symposium, CEV- the European Volunteer Centre, will address the need for increased collaboration through innovative action between voluntary, private and public sectors. Building collaboration for solid societies through volunteering means being able to respond to questions such as: How can partnerships between agents from different backgrounds be increased? What tools are available to enhance the quality of such partnerships? How can we gain new resources and competences through cross-sectoral collaboration? What can be considered good collective action from the point of view of voluntary organisations, private companies, municipalities and local governments? What is missing to make innovative cross-sector collaboration possible?

Venue: The Symposium will take place at The Danish Parliament, the Folketing, which is located in Christiansborg Palace on the Castle Islet, “Slotsholmen”, a small island in Copenhagen harbor in the heart of the city.

The objectives we are looking forward to achieving in this conference are the following:

• To provide a highly participatory and interactive space for debates, partnership building and expertise exchange;

• To identify and explore the best use of tools enhancing cross-sector cooperation;

• To develop action points for innovation and quality engagement in the voluntary field and society as a whole.
 

Registration deadline: 1st May 2012
For questions or suggestions please contact the CEV office via email: andreea.nagy[at]cev.be / communication[at]cev.be or by phone: (+32 2) 5117501.

Interpretation will be provided from English into Italian and from English into Spanish during plenary sessions.

Final Programme:
 

Wednesday 9th May

09:00 – 12:30 CEV General Assembly Meeting (CEV members only)
12:30 – 13:00 Lunch

13:00 – 14:00 Registration
14:00 – 14:15 Opening ceremony of the conference:
Eva HAMBACH, CEV President
Finn MORTENSEN, Chairman, The National Knowledge & Development Centre of Volunteering in Denmark
Pavel TRANTINA Member of the European Economic and Social Committee

14:15 – 14:40 Keynote addresses:
Karen HÆKKERUP, Danish Minister of Social Affairs and Integration
Christel SCHALDEMOSE, Member of the European Parliament

14:40 – 15:40 Plenary Debate: How to enhance cross-sectoral collaboration for long term impact of voluntary action?
John MACDONALD, European Commission
Terkel ANDERSEN, Director of The National Council for Volunteering (Denmark)
Marco BOARIA, Resource and Development Unit Coordinator ALDA (Italy)
Marian JUSTE, Telefonica (Spain)
Hervé SÉRIEYX, President of the Evaluation and Prospective Committee of France Bénévolat (France)

Group Photo

15:40 – 16:00 Coffee break

16:00 – 18:00 World café

18:15 – 20:30 “Marketplace” and partnership corner: bring along your tools and
raise visibility about your volunteering landscape! (Showcasing initiatives in different countries)


 

Thursday 10th May
 

08:30 – 12:30 Workshops and lunch at on-site visits*
 

a: Voluntary and private company collaboration
b: Voluntary and public sector collaboration
c: Social Ventures2200 a cross-sector partnership in practice
d: Service Learning and collaboration between NGOs and schools/colleges/universities
e: Academic research and the voluntary sector: Innovating volunteering through academic studies

*The on-site workshops will showcase a local project under implementation in Copenhagen and a similar initiative developed in another European country.

12:30 – 13:30 Transfer to the Folketing (The National Parliament of Denmark)

13:30 – 15:00 ‘Question-deliberate-share’: reporting on the workshops and local projects in the plenary

15:00 – 15:15 Coffee break

15:15 – 16:00 Reflective debate:

• What is the next step for me in order to develop collaboration?
• Organisations that work WITH volunteers and organisations that work FOR volunteering: how to best address the need for partnerships?
   

16:00 – 17:00 Closing of the CEV Symposium
Chair: Eva HAMBACH, CEV President

18:00 – Reception and boat trip on the canals of Copenhagen

CEV Symposium Volunteering for stronger societies through innovation and cross-sector collaboration is organised under the auspices of the Danish Presidency of the Council of the European Union.