On some cold and rainy December days, representatives of Politeia member organisations from Ireland, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia and Croatia came together in Amsterdam for the annual Politeia conference. Items on the agenda were the evaluation of the Politeia European exchange project of 2006 (“Exchange of Good Practises in the Field of Participation and Citizenship of Underrepresented Groups”), future fundraising activities for Politeia and the transformation of the Politeia network into an association.
The three days lasting discussions were lively: experiences of the study visits in Ireland, Romania and Slovenia were exchanged and numerous new activities planned.
All present were convinced that the successful exchange project of 2006 proved, that Politeia is on the “right track” and that it is worth it to create an association to strengthen the cooperation of Politeia member organisations even more. The representatives of the different organisations agreed on draft statutes of the future association that will be legally enforced in spring 2007.
A special part of the conference programme was dedicated to future fund-raising activities. The conclusion was that the major aim of Politeia (to promote active European citizenship) is obviously in great congruency with the newest EU programme “Europe for Citizens”. Therefore, Politeia members expressed their hope that especially after the creation of an association the funding for joint projects in the field of citizens' participation might become easier.
A high-light of the conference was the presentation of the new Politeia website, to be launched in early 2007. The conference participants agreed unanimously, that the new lay-out will pay its contribution to attract further interested groups and individuals to join Politeia.
Tatjana Meijvogel-Volk, IPP, Dutch Centre for Political Participation