Methodology and action 2005

OBJECTIVES

Long-term Objectives

Create a space of information, dialogue and reflection for the different types of players interested in exercising their responsibility in a way that maximises the impact of their activities on the assumption of individual and collective human responsibilities.

Medium- term Objectives

1. Identify and pinpoint people, organisations, movements, socio-professional groups (and events they organise) that have begun reflection and action regarding their own responsibilities in a given professional context (i.e. company executives) or regarding the responsibility all of us have (i.e. NGO work on the responsibility all of us as consumers have in regards to the environment).

2. Expose and develop both coordination work for Europe and responsibility-oriented reflection/action work and initiatives of these key people/organisations in Europe. Identify and develop the most significant initiatives, that is, those that are the most inspiring and which can be easily reproduced.

3. Build up synergies between players

 Develop collaborations with identified people/groups and disseminate their work to other groups/sectors; involve them in our project.
 Carry out awareness-raising and education work on the concept of responsibility aimed at certain target groups (i.e. journalists, educators, NGO members).
 Initiate reflection on the concept of responsibility (personal and collective) and the Charter as a work tool in diverse socio-professional contexts, making use of direct professional opportunities.

4. Build up synergies with the work of other members of the Steering Committee on a worldwide scale.

METHODOLOGY

1. Identify and pinpoint responsibility-based initiatives of reflection/action in Europe:

 Draw on available knowledge/material/past initiatives

• Identification of key people and/or organisations prioritising Eastern and Northern European countries and making personalised contact with them. Take advantage of direct professional opportunities: education and environmental NGO milieus; Regional and local authorities and international organisations (“Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions of Europe”, “Green Cross International”, etc.); Public implicated in reflection over European citizenship/democracy.
• Bibliographical research using the Alliance’s Proposal Booklets as a basis and expanding from there using bibliographical references found in the Booklets.

 Make contact with players we do not know

• By drafting an informative leaflet on the project’s activities in Europe and its connections to work being carried out on other continents, clearly specifying what we mean by “responsibility”;
• Through identifying people able to spread Charter promotion information in their country, communities, networks, etc.;
• Through internet research;
• By ensuring the Charter is translated into different European languages.

2. Expose and develop coordination work for Europe and responsibility-oriented reflection work/actions of these people/key organisations in Europe.

Create, construct, organise and regularly update the Europe section of the Charter’s website. Create links between this site and those of pinpointed people and organisations and disseminate our work on other sites.

3. Build up synergies between players

• Depending on the circumstances, assess the opportunities for disseminating the Charter to the public that we have priority access to.
• Build on actions and experiences with experience records (also explore other enrichment methods)
• Identify events (conferences/meetings, etc.) where the work of the Charter could be presented and identify its connections to work being carried out in other continents.
• Publish informative notices, articles on experience accounts, etc. in magazines and newspapers in different European countries.

4. Build up synergies with the work of other members of the Steering Committee on a worldwide scale.

• Via the international steering committee
• Via international meetings
• Via joint development of diverse materials

RESOURCES

 The database of the Polis network, people and organisations in 60 countries.

 The database of participants’ contacts from the Alliance’s continental meeting held in Romania in 2001.

 The Proposals Booklets of the Alliance for a responsible and united world, which contain several examples of reflection and action based around the question of responsibility (i.e. responsible companies, ethical consumption, ecological footprint, etc.).

CALENDAR

November 2004 – March 2005

Most of the work ; but it will continue throughout 2005

Locating and pinpointing players and events

January 2005

Meeting of the Charter’s International Steering Committee

World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil

From February 2005 onwards

Constructing and organising the website

Drafting of experience records

Spring 2005

Preparatory Assembly of the European Social Forum in Athens, Greece

Summer 2005

Mediterranean Social Forum, Barcelona from June 16th to 19th 2005

Actions planned for 2006 onwards

1. Create a network of mediating people/organisations to disseminate the Charter process on a European scale

2. Development of easy-access material (cartoon, booklet) on the concept of responsibility.

3. Get a responsibility-oriented discussion forum on the internet up and running.