On April 9 and 10, the meeting opening a six-week-long process of tutoring was held at the seat of Polish-American Freedom Foundation. It was attended by 42 participants – representatives of PAFF beneficiaries from 14 municipalities and rural communes who decided to set up Initiative Groups, and 9 Animators of the Common Good Lab.
The beneficiaries of the Polish-American Freedom Foundation programs invited to participate in the 6th round of the “PAFF Local Partnerships” Program have just started the tutoring process. Over subsequent six weeks, they will learn a method of engaging local communities in activities for common good; they will prepare a diagnosis and then they will make an effort to set up local partnerships based on common good.
On the first day of the training they discussed the role of Animators in consulting process of local partnership building, so that they could be best prepared to their role. The tutoring program designed by Tomasz Schimanek, an independent expert in social affairs, was presented in form of a manual and discussed in detail by the Author. It was also discussed by the training participants on the basis of their experiences in the area of local animation. The animators had the opportunity to share their tips and opinions on effective methods of acting. There was also a coach training improving their skills in the area of team work, conducted by Jacek Jakubowski, a social psychologist, one of the TROP group founders.
On the second day the representatives of Initiative Groups joined the Animators. The meeting was opened by Paweł Łukasiak, the Academy for the Development of Philanthropy in Poland President and Kalina Grzeszuk-Zajączkowska, the Polish-American Freedom Foundation Program Officer. Emilia Dmochowska and Stanisław Głąbski of the Academy for the Development of Philanthropy in Poland presented the “PAFF Local Partnerships” Program and the rules of participation in the tutoring program. The Initiative Groups were assigned their Animators – the caretakers who will support and consult them in the stage of diagnosing and setting up a partnership. Next, Tomasz Schimanek presented the method of local community animation to acting for common good.
The two-day meeting ended in a workshop conducted by the representatives of the Unit of Social Innovation and Research “Shipyard”. Maja Durlik and Łukasz Ostrowski spoke about the social diagnosis, presenting useful methods and tools.
A local diagnosis is the first stage of local community animation to acting for common good method. The Initiative Group can get a mini grant of up to PLN 3,000 for carrying it out. The money will be earmarked to cover the cost of research, social consultation and legal opinion. The whole tutoring process participated by the Initiative Groups will be completed in June, and it will result in submitting partner projects. Seven of them will be selected to be implemented as part of the 6th round of the “PAFF Local Partnerships” Program.
The objective of the “PAFF Local Partnerships” Program, implemented since 2009, is to initiate and develop cooperation of various PAFF initiatives participants in form of partnerships that implement various projects important for local communities. Under five rounds of the program implemented so far, a total of 38 partnerships have been set up in 85 municipalities and rural communes, engaging almost 600 partners.
