Arboreal Futures
Start date: Dec 31, 2016,
End date: Dec 30, 2018
PROJECT
FINISHED
The partners, are based in Kohoutov, Hradec Králové Region, Czech Rep., Spilinga, Calabria, Italy, Kaunas County, Lithuania, Iasi, NE Romania & Sarn, Mid Wales,UK are from community groups, a library institution & a Technical High School.The partners & the participants are based in peripheral areas. There are degrees of disadvantage within the partnership but every partner exhibits some aspect of ‘marginality’ within their own national context.All partners are engaged in educational processes & the project will develop the informal skills already in use with participants of all ages.Each partner also has a rural focus to their project work & will engage with people in isolated communities having few opportunities for economic, personal or social development. The project encourages those so excluded to engage in creative & entrepreneurial work. objectives The project will, with actions across European communities & institutions in the partnership, share a process to counter the impact of isolation (individual, social, community & institutional) by creative encouragement of a revived (or new) social cohesion.The project provides informal education & development opportunities for all Ages, increasing skills & capacity for individual & social entrepreneurial action. The partners will share local developments & provide & share their specialist expertise with each other.The project has objectives to:- Improve & extend the offer of high quality learning opportunities through an inclusive educational opportunity- extend & develop educator competences to increase the capacity of communities to address local needs. - increase a productive connectivity within local communities & regions & nationally & with the wider European community number and profile of participants; The numbers in the project are:Directly: 100Assisting and occasional: 230Associates (supporting, informed, core groups at celebratory events): 700The outreach from these core activities may, in rural areas (based on previous experience) include over 50% of the local population. description of activities; The partners will:- Create ‘arboreal spaces’ to be publicly accessible, for meetings & reflection. - Research, collect, collate & publish collections of local & regional stories & pictures re: trees & forgotten fruits.- Provide informal educational opportunities for learning of skills relevant to the activities & the development of entrepreneurial attitudes (social & individual). The process will be the cause of - Celebratory events related to & using the arboreal spaces methodology to be used in carrying out the project; The methodology will be informal, creative & experiential using processes ensuring critical thinking, open dialogue, reflection & shared decision making. The experiences & skills of older community members will be engaged & shared skills with young members. Institutions will encouraging students, teachers & management to engage with local communities & community groups will engage with local institutions.The management will be ‘flat’ with local initiators of the project as ‘facilitators’ in the learning process. Dissemination of the process is essential from the start. a short description of the results and impact envisaged; and The tangible results are:1. Creation of publicly accessible ‘arboreal spaces’2. Collections of local & regional stories & pictures re: trees 3. New skills developed re: tree management & conservation4. Celebratory events for communities associated with the arborThe intangible results include an- increase in a wide range of ‘soft skills’- Increased competences & capacity for all participants including learning processes & entrepreneurial attitudes.The impact is expected to include individuals and groups with increased competences able, through sharing in community life and development, to- Enhance the social capital within their localities- Access other learning, economic & social opportunities- Further assist local individual & social action with & for others both individuals & community groups- Create connections regionally and internationally- Engage with others within the European community the potential longer term benefits. Primarily the reduction of isolation of individuals & communities & improved social cohesion through continuation of development of practical activities that have increased competence, entrepreneurial spirit & engagement (educational, social, economic, cultural) at all levels.The partners also hope that the success of the project will allow a further development of the project - both by sharing with other communities & by a more formalised programme of further action-research, development & publishing of the whole process internationally.