Telecentre.Europe

Acronym of the case:

Telecentre

Web address of the case:

http://www.telecentre.org/telecentre-europe

Country of the case:

Pan european

Posting Date:

22 November 2007

Last Edited Date:

07 January 2010

Author:

Carmen Ramilo Araujo (Universidad del PaÃs Vasco (UPV-EHU))

telecenter | skills | training

Type of initiative

Network

Case Abstract

Telecentre.Europe is a network of 19 organizations working across Europe on einclusion. By 2010, it will be a network of viable telecentre projects collaborating at international level and a recognized competent organization advising European Union decision-makers on their strategies including eInclusion, e-skills and IT social business. Telecentre.Europe aspires to be a leading European Project on developing citizensâ€™ e-skills, employing large scale information technologies for eInclusion, quality of life and social business.

Description of the case

Domain

eInclusion

Topic

Digital literacy and competences | eAccessibility

Sector

Education, Science and Research | Local/Regional Community Development | Social Services

Start date - End date

June 2006 (Ongoing)

Date operational

June 2006

Target Users

Target Users Description

Target groups are generally those who are disadvantaged within a particular country and lack e-skills: the disabled, long-term unemployed or economically vulnerable, seniors, various minority groups and children-at-risk.

Scope

International | Regional (sub-national)

Status

Pilot

Language(s)

English

Policy Context and Legal Framework

The network aspires to play a prominent role in the development of citizensâ€™ e-skills and the innovative implementation of large scale information technology programmes for e-Inclusion, quality of life and social enterprises in Europe. We see our efforts as completely consistent with the objectives of the Lisbon Agendaâ€™s principles and frameworks. Telecentre.Europe follows a project-driven approach in its development, based on recognizing leadership in different areas of competence. It is establishing an effective communication and operational environment for national telecentre projects to collaborate, partner, and integrate resources toward achieving the EU strategic goals for building the European Information Society.

Project Size and Implementation

Type of initiative

Awareness-raising information

Overall Implementation approach

Partnerships between administration and/or private sector and/or non-profit sector

Technology choice

Not applicable/not available

Funding source

Public funding national | Public funding regional

Project size

Implementation: €15-49,000

Yearly cost:

€1-49,000

Implementation and Management Approach

The management approach is to keep the network agile and light on infrastructure and rely heavily on the interests of each member to entice engagement while facilitating easy communication between all. This builds upon lessons learned from past pan-European efforts at creating a network around e-skills/eInclusion efforts. The approach of the steering committee is professional but accessible. There is a project coordinator recently brought on staff at Foundation Esplai to help with the communications infrastructure of the network. Coordination of the steering committee is also supported by an intern dedicating 50% of his time to supporting the team.

Technology solution

The technologies used by the NGOs within the network range from very basic to highly sophisticated portals and collaboration tools. State of the art e-Learning and more conventional off-line approaches are used to train people in cities, rural environments and even through mobile classrooms. Similarly, management of the centers is accomplished using both state-of the-art tools and web portals and more conventional means. Consistent across all efforts is recognition that training and using technology successfully does require investment in face to face interaction to maximize the benefits and relevance of technologiesâ€™ promise.

Impact, innovation and results

Impact

Impact â€“ Telecentres.Europe brings forth a collection of institutions working on accessibility and employability to reach across borders for knowledge sharing and developing standards of excellence in training efforts reaching over 80,000 European citizens each year. Value â€“ Development of a European Network of Telecentres of Excellence, not only to share but also to demonstrate and promote best practices in different areas (eSkills for Employability and Inclusion, technology solutions, and business models). This will bring improved performance, effectiveness and efficiency to various national eInclusion efforts. Results â€“ The Telecentre.Europe network runs across 19 NGOâ€™s in 19 countries and provides e-skills to more than 80,000 people every year. The training happens through the 600 centers that these NGOs manage and support.

Track record of sharing

Since June 2006, the network has: - Resulted in staff exchanges and joint applications for project funding among 4 organizations - Provided comment and offered further dialogue on the Commissionâ€™s e-skills communication of 7th September 2006 - Developed profiles of each member specifying their expertise and interest in further exchange - Explored specific opportunities to jointly apply for funding of projects from the EUâ€™s various social channels - Developed plans to share experiences at four major conferences

Lessons learnt

Lesson 1 - Multi-stakeholders partnerships are key to building NGOâ€™s capacity to run effective and more sustainable training programmes. Lesson 2 - It takes a lot of time and energy to bring together organizations with different expertise. Lesson 3 - There is a need for concentrated resources that can be amplified through networking.