Supporting and strengthening European civil society actors is of high significance for the RBCM Network. Smaller NGOs often work under precarious conditions with limited finances. At the same time, they are doing important work for their cities and local areas and are a substantial pull for young, well-educated people to stay in their region.
In short, NGOs do crucial work in cultivating innovation and political and cultural stability.
The workshop drew on two past meetings with delegates from European NGOs and RBC Managers from Poland, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Germany, and Slovakia that dealt with questions about the structure and cooperative aspects of contemporary NGO work. It enquired into the societal impact of cultural workers and the strategies they have pursued in order to stabilize their own working conditions. The workshop studied the flexible, self-supporting structures and working styles of smaller NGOs, paying special attention to their ability to promote social innovation, participation, and the development of an open society.
The project sought to foster the transfer of knowledge between the network and society and thus involved participants outside the RBCM Network.
Sponsors and partners included: Robert Bosch Cultural Managers Network, Foundation for Polish-German Cooperation, Freunde der Borussia Olsztyn/Allenstein e.V., Fundacja Borussia Olsztyn, Goethe-Institut Warsaw
A project organized by Yvonne Meyer, Ludwig Henne, Julia Owtscharenko, Ewa Romanowska and Matthias Einhoff.