Presentation for Building Sustainable Community Based Youth TV: Dublin, Ireland 25 May 2013. A Youth in Action funded seminar with DCTV

1. Community, Innovation and Learning:
European Dimensions
Dr. Alan Bruce
Dublin 25 May 2013

2. Overview
• Learning and innovation in Europe
• Supporting changing communities
• Background to European resources
• Money, training, exchange
• Accessing resources
• Developing sustainable linkage
• Transforming our world

3. Contexts
• The European Union and its origins
• Expansion, hope and change
• The impact of shock: oil crisis, German
reunification, Balkan wars, the crisis of 2008
• A new Europe for a new century
• Identity and community

4. Contours of modern Europe
• From common market to Union
• Economic powerhouse: the social model
• Free movement of labour
• Diversity, complexity and danger zones
• The impact of globalization
• Triumph of neo-liberalism: the end of growth
• Mass unemployment

5. Changing worlds
• Dimensions of crisis
• Public spheres, private opportunities
• Multipolar fragmentation
• Altered world, transformed society
• Demographics: from ageing to migration
• Innovation in knowledge and learning

6. Technological transformation
• Instant communications
• Data explosion and access
• Cyber-security
• Learning and access
• Rapid modification potential
• Making sense of trends – from data to knowledge to
understanding

7. Europe and learning support
• Part of integration strategy since outset
• Designed to address labour market needs
• EU has no competence in national education
• Structural funds: address imbalances
• Form of redistributive financial tool

8. Key Structural Funds
• European Regional Development Fund
• European Social Fund
• European Maritime and Fisheries Fund
• All have key overarching strategic objectives
• Shared responsibility with Member States

9. The money trail....
• Balance: Union, Member State, Region.
• EU Strategic Priorities > MS national priorities
• Community Strategic Guidelines
– Community Strategic goals
• Operational Programs

10. ESF in operation
• Accounts for 10% of entire EU budget
• Operates in 7 year cycle (current 2007-13)
• Lisbon Agenda (2000)
– Innovation
– Entrepreneurship
– Adaptability
– Equal Opporuntities

11. Additional funding
• Community Initiatives (operated by EACEA)
• NOW – addressing needs of women in the labour force
• HORIZON and INTEGRA – addressing needs of citizens with disabilities
• Leonardo da Vinci – vocational training
• ADAPT – enhancing change, upskilling and learning in workplaces
• EQUAL (2001-07).

12. ESF priorities
• Improving human capital
• Improving access to employment
• Increasing adaptability
• Improving social inclusion of disadvantaged people
• Strengthening institutional capacity
• Advancing reforms in regards to employment and inclusion.

13. Framework Programmes for RTD
• Advanced ICT support
• Innovation and sustainable research
• Budget of FP7 (2007-13): €50,5 billion
• Budget of FP8 (2014-20): over €80 billion

14. Europe 2020
• The five key priorities now are:
– Raising the employment rate of adults
– Improved investment in research and development
– Reduction in greenhouse gas emissions
– Reduction of early school leaving and increased rates of
completed third level education
– Reduction of poverty levels by 25%.

15. Flagship Framework initiatives
• Innovation Union: enhanced innovation and research funding
• Youth on the Move: higher education performance improvement
• Digital Agenda for Europe: high speed internet improvement
• Resource Efficient Europe: improved energy efficiency and renewable
resources
• Industrial Policy and Globalization: improved business competitiveness and
sustainability
• Agenda for new Skills and Jobs: modernized labour market and mobility
• EU Platform against poverty: improving access for unemployed citizens

16. Funding environment
Those contemplating engagement with European funding
measures need to forge creative alliances, explore new
avenues for project work and significantly expand their
conceptual and programmatic horizons to access the
resources that are available.
This necessity raises significant issues around
familiarization, capacity and networking.

17. Criteria for future funding
• Results oriented measures (indicators, reporting, monitoring and evaluation)
• Performance frameworks (clear and measurable milestones and targets)
• Coordination with national reform programmes (this will have particular
emphasis in Ireland)
• Coordination and shared access to funds (from ESF and ERDF)
• Effectiveness (performance measurement frameworks)
• Efficiency (administrative capacity, reduced bureaucracy).

18. Caution
All EU programmes depend for co-funding both at national level (from
Member States) and at operational level by lead or participant
partners.
The increasing likelihood that core co-funding may not be available or
else severely restricted in the years ahead strongly tempers
expectations that EU funding could or should be viewed in any sense
as a replacement for other sources – sources both expected and
demanded by EU conditions for lending support.

19. Thematic Objectives (2014-20)
• Research and innovation
• Competitiveness for SMEs
• Employment and labour mobility support
• Social inclusion and combating poverty
• Education, skills and lifelong learning
• Institutional capacity building.

20. Future shape of EU funding strategy
All project proposals must provide an evidence based case for funding
based on research, track record, capacity and demonstrable need.
All dimensions must correspond to both national and EU priorities.
These priorities can and do mutate over the lifetime of specific funding
mechanisms.
Responsibility is clearly placed on project promoters to familiarize
themselves with requirements and to ensure proposals align closely with
aims and objectives set by EU funders.
This process in itself demands a high degree of awareness and contact
with EU resources and information points.

21. Running the show: the EACEA
– Operational responsibility for the Lifelong Learning
Programme
– Responsible for Erasmus Mundus Programme
– Responsible for Tempus Programme
– International bilateral cooperation: e.g. Atlantis (with United
States)
– Operates Culture Programme
– Operates Media Programme
– Operates Europe for Citizens
– Operates Youth in Action Programme

22. Getting the balance right
Project promoters must ensure that they are conversant with current
policy frameworks, identified priorities and specified target areas for
allocation of EU resources.
Getting an effective match between what promoters and EU bodies
want is part of the system of coordination and learning underpinning all
European actions.
This may be frustrating to project partners who may have a sense of the
urgency and importance of their mission but not necessarily the
resources, time or research background to scope what is available and
potentially appropriate to their requirements.

23. Funding focus
All EU funding is described as support co-funding. It is not in
any way core funding.
As part of a coherent overall strategy, a menu of connected
resources, it can and should play a critical difference in
developing the profile and professionalism of participant
organizations in maintaining and enhancing operations.

24. Skills relevant to EU funding and project
management
– Research
– Proposal writing
– Capturing learning
– Transnational partnerships
– Networking opportunities
– EU specific terminology
– The innovation imperative
– Report writing
– Transversal linkage
– Evaluative capacity (internal and external)
– Outcomes and deliverables
– Selecting appropriate strands

25. The ULS experience
Starting Year Programme or Initiative Identification number Contracting organisation Title of the project /
network
Website
2012 LLP Comenius 528005-LLP-2012-GR-
COMENIUS-CMP
Ellinogemaniki Agogi TRANSit www.transit.eu
2012 ICT-PSP ODS-297229 Intrasoft Ltd OPEN DISCOVERY
SPACE
www.opendiscoveryspace
.eu
2011 LLP 519242-LLP-2011-BG-
KA2-KA2MP
Eurinform Bulgaria LANGO www.lango.eu
2011 LLP Comenius 517748-LLP-1-2011-1-IE-
COMENIUS-CNW
Enable Ireland FIESTA www.fiestaproject.eu
2010 LLP 511641-LLP-1-2010-1-
RO-KA3-KA3MP
EuroEd MyStory www.mystories.eu
2010 LLP Leonardo 510784-LLP-1-2010-1-
RO-LEONARDO-LMP
EuroEd UEmploy www.uemploy.eu
2008 LLP Grundtvig
Partnership
GR2008-028P VUC-VS Denmark Mentor: Sink or Swim www.vuc.dk/sinkorswim
2008 LLP transversal
research
143725-LLP-1-2008-ES-
KA1-KA1SCR
University of the Basque
Country UPV/EHU
Creanova www.creanova.ehu.es
2008 LLP Comenius 142447-2008-LLP-IT-
CMP
Fondazione IARD Speak www.speak.it
2006 LLP Minerva 229413-CP-1-2006-1-
GR-MINERVA-M/2006
Platon School Educonlinux www.educonlinux.eu
2005 Leonardo da
Vinci
FI-05-B-P-PP-
160601
Adulta, Finland Catit www.catit.fi
2005 EQUAL2 IE-05-EQ2-19-EBM Galway City Partnership You Are Equal www.youareeqaul.ie/gcp
2003 Leonardo da
Vinci
IE-03-B-F-PP-153101 Enable Ireland, Cork Co-Guide www.coguide.ie
2002 EQUAL IE-02-EQ1-23-E NUIG/FAS TRED www.tred.ie

26. Crisis impact: system change

27. Summary
• EU Funding offers significant opportunities
• EU funding is not a substitute but a supplement
• The non-finance resources offer as much if not more
• Transnational action is the only viable method in a
globalized world
• No substitute for professionalism and expertise
• All rests on vision and passion for community needs

28. Thank you
Dr. Alan Bruce
Universal Learning Systems
34 Charleville Road
Phibsborough
Dublin 7
Ireland
abruce@ulsystems.com
Associate Offices: AMSTERDAM HELSINKI EDINBURGH ATHENS CHICAGO