The IVISOC project aims to identify the skills and value that volunteers provide communities and focus on recruiting, retaining, and recognizing volunteers. It seeks to develop a volunteering framework and identify good practices within the social care sector. The project also examines the impacts of austerity across EU countries and the increased needs of marginalized groups. It aspires to propose amendments to policy and disseminate knowledge and practices to better support volunteers and promote positive change.
Presentation by Peter Lambreghts, EDF Board member & European Network of Independent Living,on the occasion of the EESC SOC section conference on Civil society perspectives on the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in Brussels on 2 October 2014.
Alfonso Lara Montero, ESN's Policy Director presented at the meeting of the Chairpersons of the Committees on Social Affairs, in Malta, discussing the issue of poverty and social exclusion/inclusion in light of the prevailing situation in Europe.
Presentation by Peter Lambreghts, EDF Board member & European Network of Independent Living,on the occasion of the EESC SOC section conference on Civil society perspectives on the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in Brussels on 2 October 2014.
Alfonso Lara Montero, ESN's Policy Director presented at the meeting of the Chairpersons of the Committees on Social Affairs, in Malta, discussing the issue of poverty and social exclusion/inclusion in light of the prevailing situation in Europe.
In this State of the Borough, we share an:
Introduction setting the scene
Overview of the challenges the borough faces, the progress we’ve made and delivery we’re planning next
The appendix outlines
Evidence that underpins work on each of the pillars for Towards a Better Newham
Case studies of what we have done as a council to tackle the challenges
Stories from residents who have benefited from these activities
Commitments we have made on what we will deliver going forwards
Child poverty, social exclusion and how social protection can help children enjoy basic living standards were the main topics of the Sub-Regional Conference on Social Protection for Children, organized by UNICEF in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, from 16 to 18 October. The event gathered high-level decision makers, social protection technical staff and policy influencers from the region to discuss innovation in social protection, exchange experiences and promote co-operation. IPC-IG's Senior Research Coordinator, Fábio Veras, was the keynote speaker of the session "Linking cash transfers and social services”.
Presentation by Sarah Cook, Director, United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, United Nations, on the occasion of the EESC conference on "Social economy and social innovation as drivers of competitiveness, growth and social well-being - Perspecitves and priorities for the new Commission and the European Parliament" (Brussels, 1 October 2014)
How Resilient Are Our Societies?Analyses, Models, Preliminary ResultsVincenzo De Florio
Traditional social organizations such as those for the management of healthcare and civil defense are the result of designs and realizations that matched well with an operational
context considerably different from the one we are experiencing today: A simpler world, characterized by a greater amount of resources to match less users producing lower peaks of requests.
The new context reveals all the fragility of our societies: unmanageability is just around the corner unless we do not complement the “old recipes” with smarter forms of social organization.
Here we analyze this problem and propose a refinement to our fractal social organizations as a model for resilient cyber-physical societies. Evidence to our claims is provided by simulating our model in terms of multi-agent systems.
In this State of the Borough, we share an:
Introduction setting the scene
Overview of the challenges the borough faces, the progress we’ve made and delivery we’re planning next
The appendix outlines
Evidence that underpins work on each of the pillars for Towards a Better Newham
Case studies of what we have done as a council to tackle the challenges
Stories from residents who have benefited from these activities
Commitments we have made on what we will deliver going forwards
Child poverty, social exclusion and how social protection can help children enjoy basic living standards were the main topics of the Sub-Regional Conference on Social Protection for Children, organized by UNICEF in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, from 16 to 18 October. The event gathered high-level decision makers, social protection technical staff and policy influencers from the region to discuss innovation in social protection, exchange experiences and promote co-operation. IPC-IG's Senior Research Coordinator, Fábio Veras, was the keynote speaker of the session "Linking cash transfers and social services”.
Presentation by Sarah Cook, Director, United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, United Nations, on the occasion of the EESC conference on "Social economy and social innovation as drivers of competitiveness, growth and social well-being - Perspecitves and priorities for the new Commission and the European Parliament" (Brussels, 1 October 2014)
How Resilient Are Our Societies?Analyses, Models, Preliminary ResultsVincenzo De Florio
Traditional social organizations such as those for the management of healthcare and civil defense are the result of designs and realizations that matched well with an operational
context considerably different from the one we are experiencing today: A simpler world, characterized by a greater amount of resources to match less users producing lower peaks of requests.
The new context reveals all the fragility of our societies: unmanageability is just around the corner unless we do not complement the “old recipes” with smarter forms of social organization.
Here we analyze this problem and propose a refinement to our fractal social organizations as a model for resilient cyber-physical societies. Evidence to our claims is provided by simulating our model in terms of multi-agent systems.
Wellbeing in Galway City - Presentation for the GCCN teamChris Noone
A description of the work of Dr. Michael Hogan, Dr. Benjamin Broome and their facilitation team using collective intelligence to facilitate the development of a shared vision of wellbeing in Galway for the Galway City Community Network and planning strategic objectives based on this shared vision.
Global debt relief has become a big issues especially as the economic clime is plagued with donor fatigue and inefficiently run nonprofits. However, the challenge is further worsened by the declining world economy.
This paper seeks to give an insight into why nonprofits should strive at engaging in partnerships rather than depend on donor funding...This reflects the LWI way of thinking.
Thank you.
The UK experience of person-centred planning and self-directed supportCitizen Network
Dr Simon Duffy of Citizen Network spoke to Netzwerk Persönliche Zukunftsplanung (the germans speaking community for person-centred planning) at their gathering in Luxembourg 2019. He explored the interaction of person-centred planning with self-directed support and the challenges of implementing social innovations within a time of neoliberal thinking and austerity.
Community development - a different way to think about local economiesJulian Dobson
This is a presentation given to the Local Government Information Unit's economic development learning network in London on 26 January 2010. I was asked to explore how community development and economic development are linked and the implications for economic development practitioners of a community development approach.
Accountability in Complex Organizations: World Bank Responses to Civil SocietyDr Lendy Spires
Among institutions of global governance, the World Bank is one of the most visible and most frequently targeted by civil society organizations (CSOs) located in both the global North and South.
The critiques vary widely. On one hand are those who see the Bank as the fount of a neoliberal globalizing agenda responsible for increasing poverty and indebtedness by promoting inequitable projects and policies. On the other hand are those who see the institution as a necessary multilateral actor in global development, but much in need of reform. The tactics of these civil society critics have also varied greatly, ranging from highly visible protests and confrontations about social and environmental impacts of Bank activities, to more collaborative efforts with management and staff in order to gain influence from the inside. What difference has this civil society activism made?
More specifically, how and to what extent have civil society actors furthered the accountability of the World Bank to its constituents? The case of the World Bank is important to the central question of this volume for two main reasons: the Bank has not only been a major target of civil society activism, but it has also been comparatively responsive in developing various forms of engagement with civil society, possibly more than any other multilateral institution. We begin this paper with a brief introduction to the World Bank, followed by a set of normative arguments on the key accountability challenges facing the institution. We then provide an overview of the accountability mechanisms currently in place at four different organizational levels in the World Bank.
While this approach does not enable an investigation of each mechanism in depth, it has the advantage of situating accountability efforts within a complex organizational landscape, and the roles of civil society actors within it. We then discuss, in more detail, efforts undertaken by civil society groups to increase accountability — especially in terms of the Bank’s own policies and projects. We note both the successes and failures of these reform efforts.2 Finally, we close with some reflections on the implications of our analysis for understanding the deeper structural conditions of global governance.
Similar to MEETING 3 PRESENTATION (2) INSIGHT SOCIAL RESEARCH LTD (UK) IVISOC 2012 (20)
2. 24.05.2012 www.researchatinsight.org
IVISOC [1] ▪▪▪
• Attention is given to the frameworks through which social inclusion is promoted and
the Lifelong Learning Programme is a ‘catalyst for structural change through support
to policy development, cooperation and mobility’… IVISOC aims to identify:
• the knowledge and skills that volunteers bring and the ‘added value’ that this
affords communities (at both local level and across the EU more broadly); with a
• further focus on the ‘3Rs’ – Recruitment, Retention and Recognition within the
volunteering sector… in order to help define project deliverables; and
• the collaborative development of a Volunteering framework and the consideration
of ‘good practice’ within the social care sector to facilitate [more] effective working
structures.
3. 24.05.2012 www.researchatinsight.org
IVISOC [2] ▪▪▪
• Austerity is impacting upon quality of life for many EU citizens, particularly
‘marginalised’ groups. Cuts to disability allowances have been implemented across
the EU and cut-backs are disproportionately affecting women.
• In Cyprus, 71% of the working population are employed in the services sector and
has the lowest proportion of public health expenditure in the EU (at 4% of GDP);
• In Greece, while life expectancy has increased, Greece has the third lowest fertility
rate in the EU (1.3 children per female of child-bearing age);
• In Italy, the ‘old-age dependency ratio’ is predicted to reach 60% by 2050 – with only
Japan expected to exceed this;
• In Romania, the proportion of people at risk of poverty is 41% – and Romania has the
highest maternal mortality rate of the EU-27 (at 27 p/100,000); and
• In the UK, with rising living costs, poorer housing conditions and healthcare burdens
children are more likely than adults to live in low-income households.
4. 24.05.2012 www.researchatinsight.org
IVISOC [3] ▪▪▪ http://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/
• The interactive ‘tool’ Your Better Life Index constructs a ‘well-being’ comparison of
34 countries (based on 11 dimensions) from the people’s perspective.
• The Better Life Initiative (looks at the functioning of the economic system
alongside the experiences and living conditions of individuals).
5. 24.05.2012 www.researchatinsight.org
IVISOC [4] ▪▪▪
• in the UK the ‘ethos’ of the coalition’s Big Society is challenged by the Charities Aid
Foundation following the Chancellor’s tax relief ‘cap’ on donors of large sums of
money;
• in Greece, the Catholic News Agency reports that Caritas is ‘working harder than
ever’ to help those (particularly immigrants) affected by the country’s financial
disintegration;
• in Italy, Berlusconi’s declaration that Italy’s ‘restaurants are full’ at a time when
food distribution centres battled to meet demand, reportedly caused a ‘national
uproar’;
• in Romania, the majority of people are 8 times poorer than in 2007, and UNICEF
intervention is reaching out to 400,000 ‘absent’ children to deliver an OECD
standard of education; and
• in Cyprus, a national campaign by school-children has succeeded in raising funds
for its Greek neighbour – one municipality alone sent 800 kg of beef to the Greek
homeless.
6. 24.05.2012 www.researchatinsight.org
IVISOC [5] ▪▪▪
• ‘is it time for a new social contract between citizen and state which sets out the rights
and responsibilities of each?’ EUROPEAN SOCIAL NETWORK (2010)
• ‘what does the credit crunch mean for the third sector?’ THIRD SECTOR (2008)
• ‘how well is the concept of volunteering articulated and explained and how well
understood by those agencies that work with them?’ T. WALLACE (2009)
• ‘volunteering can raise awareness of, and a commitment to, combating existing
unequal power relations and deep-seated causes of poverty, injustice and
sustainable development’ P. DEVEREUX (2008)
• ‘focused on the needs of citizens, with citizens who are engaged in the development
of services and who receive services which are efficient, effective and innovative’
WELSH ASSEMBLY GOVERNMENT (2010)
• ‘development effectiveness needs to be measured not only by GDP per capita, but
also by the extent to which people’s choices have expanded and improved their
quality of life’ UNITED NATIONS (2010)
7. 24.05.2012 www.researchatinsight.org
IVISOC [6] ▪▪▪
• IVISOC aspires to develop a framework that proposes a clear basis for
amendments to policy instruments, with dissemination of shared knowledge
and good practice at its core.
• Insight and intuition can be applied to extend a shared vision of connecting
people to the local community, reaching beyond the implementation of
guidelines and moving towards more proactive models of support and
promoting positive change.
• although organisations can differ in approach regarding the development of
volunteers, what is clear is that all organisations consulted want ‘the best’
for their volunteers…
• the main challenge, therefore, has to be ‘how do we assist organisations in
ensuring the best for their volunteers to enjoy the quality of life that they
deserve and (in turn) provide a better quality of life to others?’
8. 24.05.2012 www.researchatinsight.org
IVISOC [7] ▪▪▪
• The question must be posed as to the extent to which initiatives that seek to
influence behaviour in a particular way can be construed as good practice…
• …this does not consider all national, social, cultural, political and economic
contexts – and while the term ‘good practice’ is regularly regularly cited, few
sources define what it means.
• This was explored in a 2006 Good Practice Framework Workshop
concerned with e-Participation, and referred to a slogan ‘No Citizen Left
Behind’ that was prominent in a Declaration by EU ministers in 2005.
• The theme of spreading knowledge reflects a notion that true good practice
represents ‘optimal’ rather than ‘best’ practice –
• IVISOC aims to provide a ‘know-how’ that encourages participation through
the creation of accessible opportunities for volunteering and volunteers.