Staff exchange visits - some questions?

[telecentre-europe]

Posted by Pawel Makowiecki on 1 October 2008 at 3:08am

We receive commitment from telecentre.org (for almost 10,000euro) to organize in Europe staff exchange visits (telecentre managers, coordinators, operators, trainers, motivators, volunteers). I am responsible for preparing application for that funding and to make it in the most smart way I have some personal question to all of you.

Context: Decision how we will organize staff exchange visits depends totally on the community expectations. But this is really hard to gues.

So please, if you are interested in taking part in staff exchange, put a comment below and answer for 3 questions (this is only research about community expectations which help prepare better application for funding, and not a final application for travel grant for organizations).

1. With which programs you would like to make exchange and why (if you don't know many things about programs of your friends from the network, you can check our applications for eInclusion Awards and make some research based on that)?
- apply for staff exchange can all members of Telecentre-Europe, not only those organizations that send their eInclusion Awards applications, but those applications are really usefull to learn more about programs with which we can match and exchange
2. How many people you want to send and for how long?
And the most important:
3. What can be a result of this study visit for your program and what can be a benefit for whole community?

I want to finish that research ASAP and I am waiting for your answers for my message till 8th October. I hope for many interesting answers.

Thank you a lot for your help in advance!

[telecentre-europe]

Reply by Pawel Makowiecki on 1 October 2008 at 6:34am

From polish Community Computer Education Centers I would like to send 2 or 3 volunteer trainers and coordinators to Wilma Borgt Computerwijk program in Amsterdam.

1. The reasons for that are, that Wilma also works:
a) In the city that is a similar size that Bialystok and maybe have a similar challenges.
b) She works with 22 telecenters in the city and we are in the process of dealing with city council to have access (in the evenings and in the weekends) to similar amount of computer laboratory in schools.
c) She works with volunteer trainers and we also, but Wilma recruit them from target groups in the neighbourhood (and we from youth).
d) She is planning so extend their program outside the city to other regions, and we also. I would like to learn a lot from her ideas and approach?

2. Cost: ~1000euro*/5 days for 3 people.
*- if they will travel Eurolines Bus (not a flight), have budget accommodation in hostel

3. Result for my organization can be that will also start volunteer recruitment from target groups, we will work better with city council and will know how to prove more effective way our added value and learn how in smarter way extend our program out side of our city.

Benefit for all Telecentre-Europe community can be good quality of blog post (stories) that we will publish and will have some deeper reflection on similarities and differences between Wilma's and our work. I also hope that Wilma will agree to host us :-)

Reply by Loreta Krizinauskiene on 6 October 2008 at 7:00am

It is great that Europe staff exchange program is developing so rapidly! I will speak only about the money part which is as much important as the topic for the exchange chosen. To my mind it is very important to have some rules of travel(exchange) funding. I do understand that some tecentreeurope organizations have volunteer students who can travel changing trains and buses and spending a night in a hostel. But up till now I have never had this type of volunteers and if I send people to the exchange visit according to the Lithuanian law I need to pay not only for the travel and hotel but per diem as well. So I think that we have to calculate travel,accommodation and some reasonable per diem (e.g. 25 EUR per day) which could be the same in every country. In this case I do not see any way of covering expenses by telecentreeurope but reimbursement which might not be acceptable to all organizations or private people. As we have little time till October 8 for preparation, it could be reimbursement but everybody should have a special form which is supposed to be sent (like in Prague event) shortly after the visit and be reimbursed. I am sorry if I sound too serious but I think eveverybody would be happy with some rules. RGDS, Loreta

Reply by Wilma Borgt on 6 October 2008 at 11:06am
Hello Pawel and others,

I would like to contribute to your discussion on this topic. Computerwijk is definitely going to apply for a staff exchange visit because we feel that there is so much more you can learn from each other by actually visiting another project.

To answer your questions:
1. We would like to visit the project in Ireland run by Peter Byrne. We are starting up a local employment project and Ireland has lots of experience with that. They have local sponsors for every part of their ctlc's and they offer their trained inhabitants a job with their own project. That is something we would like to achieve as well. Furtermore they serve a target group that we would like to reach, the native deprived people of the inner city. We work with target groups that they would like to reach, immigrants. So I think there is a lot to learn from each other and they could really help us forward with our development.

2. I would like to send two paid staff and two volunteers to Ireland for at least three days so that we can have a thorough exchange.

3. This visit can bring our project a step further in its development and in using professional working methods. This way it would help us to be prepared for the expansion we have planned for next year to other cities with other target groups. We would share our learning experiences with the community through the ningsite ofcourse!

kind regards
Wilma

Reply by Krisztina Fehér on 8 October 2008 at 12:19pm

Dear Pawel,

we would like to apply for this "Staff exchange visit" from Hungary to Spain.
1. There, in Hungary, the HTA's (Hungarian Telecottage Association www.telehaz.hu) leaders can be members, - they are telecentre-managers, too. We have developed more distance e-learning materials. We live in the "real-telecentre-life". We have more partnerships in Europe, eg. with Spanish organizations. Our leaning material for telecentre managers are adapted and streched via more countries. We would like to develop these and collect new and effecient "good practices" to use in Hungary.
2.
We would send 4 people (research-develepoers, telecentre managers)/ 4 days / 4000 Eur
3.
We have an all-country influence (430 telecentres), and a good relationship with a Spanish Foundation. We would like to have a stronger contact, because of they have some new solutaions of the telecentre's work areas (eg.:vivid contact with the citizens, new workplaces). We are able to work in these solutions into our practices - it would be usefull for the hungarian citizen in rural area! And naturally, we can share our experiences via Telecentre Europe Site.

I hope, HTA can offer a realised aim for you: new solutions for the rural citizens via experiments.

Best regards,
Krisztina
Budapest

Reply by Weronika Pielas on 8 October 2008 at 1:23pm
Dear Paweł,

1. We have just invited to telecentre.europe a new organization that runs 102 telecentres in Moldova, most of them in rural areas. We would like to organize a visit of stuff from my foundation in Moldova.
This stuff exchange would be a part of a wider project concerning promoting education of disabled people through telecentres in Moldova. It includes shooting a documentary on telecentres in Moldova, translating our promotional materials into Moldavian and wide promotion of the subject in Moldavian newspapers and television.
We would like to supplement those activities with stuff exchange sponsored by telecentre.europe so that we can share our experience and take part in promotional activities personaly.

2. 4 persons, 4 days.

3. As our partner, Victor Koroli told us, a subject of using computers as educational tools accessible for disabled people is new in Moldavia. We are happy to be able to share our experience with Victor’s organization. I am also sure, that relations from this experience will be an inspiration for the rest of telecentre.europe members.

Best regards,
Weronika

Reply by AHMED EISA on 8 October 2008 at 2:54pm

dear friends
gedaref digital city organization (GDCO) I is non-profitable NGO (Gedaref Sudan) It is the founder of the first digital city in Sudan (2005) and the first national Telecentre academy in Africa (2008) It is the winner i4d 2007 & i4d 2008 for the best innovative grassroots Telelecentre It has strong partnership with the great people of Eindhoven through the digital city of Eindhoven (DSE) were 750 computers were donated to establish many projects in Sudan.

In June 2008 GDCO hosted the 5th EATLF ((27 international participant from 17 countries) and the main agenda was the Telecentre Academy. So SuNTA was established as first Telecentre academy in Africa and the middle east and the 13th in the world.
our objectives
1/ Utilization of ICT for Dev.in Sudan.
2/ bridging the digital divide (gab ) and inclusion of the disabled through ICT.
4/ establishment of strong partnership to support existing Telecentres and establish new ones and seeking financial & technical support .
5/ training of trainee (T.O.T) by Providing Telecentre managers and operators with ongoing training, capacity building, and professional development opportunities and ensure that Telecentre managers have the necessary skills an
1/ i would like exchange with DoIT partnership organization because it is working on bridging the digital divide and also it has the prefrence of the marginalized populations, victim of social exclusion due to a lack of computer knowledge. Also GDCO works on bridging the digital divide and include the excluded (disabled) is one of its objectives.
2/ one or two persons for 5 days
3/ I will expect to share experience with them and see what is ideal methods they used also I might have channce to visit sometelecentres . In addition to this we started a new relation with close the gap (a belgium organization provides computers to african countries with cost price) and this will give us chance to meet them.
http://www.gedaref.com/
http://www.telecentre.org/photo/album/list
http://www.gedaref.com/
http://www.dse.nl/node/view/1402
http://www.dse.nl/node/view/2036
http://www.dse.nl/~gedaref/archief.htm
http://www.telecentremagazine.net/articles/article-details.asp?Titl...
http://www.telecentremagazine.net/interview/interview-details.asp?i...

Reply by Laura Grineviciute on 9 October 2008 at 5:58am
Hi Pawel,

Despite being a bit late with my proposal I very much hope that it could be accepted along with my very sincere apologies.

Here is our proposal:

Lithuanian organizations – Association Rural Internet Access Points and Association Window to the Future – are looking forward to participate in staff exchange programme and visit Interface3 in Brussels. A short summary of the anticipated visit is attached below.
1. With which programmes you would like to make exchange and why?
Currently Lithuania has over 800 rural internet access points or telecentres (RIAPs), mostly in rural areas with the main function being to provide free internet access to local communities. Lithuanian organizations Association Rural Internet Access Points and Association Window to the Future are working closely with the curators of the RIAPs. Their vision is that RIAPs must expand their activities and provide wider services to local communities in the nearest future. This process has already kicked off. However, we are looking for organizations that could share their experience and knowledge. One of such new services for RIAPs could be educational function – training of ICT.
Because of that reason we would be pleased to visit Interface3 (training center) that has much experience with regards to specific trainings. Some of the specific expectations from the visit include:
1. Activities of the training centre organized and what training courses are offered,
2. How information about centers activities is spread among target group,
3. Whether impact of the activity for the society is measured and how;
4. What methodologies are used in training of information technologies (computer literacy, e-services, etc.),
5. Visit centres that are part of the "DoIT" network in Belgium.
2. How many people you want to send and for how long?
We would like so send two staff: one from Association Rural Internet Access Points and another from Association Window to the Future. We think that 3 days will be sufficient for the visit. Approximate costs of study trip would be around 1.200 EUR.
3. What can be a result of this study visit for your program and what can be a benefit for whole community?
The main result of this exchange visit on national level acquisition of new knowledge and perspective that will be used implementing different ICT training projects for RIAP curators. This will assure utilisation of the experiences in focus to provide qualified trainings to Lithuanian public and to increase qualifications of RIAPs' curators.
Sharing of knowledge and experience on Telecentre-Europe website would be an indispensible asset for the whole Telecentre-Europe Community.

Best regards,
Laura