The Final Conference 6 th – 9 th June 2013 Jelgava , Latvia

1. AWAKE -Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience1st August 2011 – 31stJuly 2013Implementation and benefits The Final Conference6th – 9thJune 2013Jelgava, Latvia

2. AboutGrundtvig AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference The AWAKE projectwasimplemented within Lifelong Learning Programme 2007 – 2013, in partnership with 5 european organizations. Project is funded by European Union. The Grundtvig program generallyconcerns education for adults and promotion of cooperation at European level in this area. It is addressed to both lernersand staff. Primarilyit promotes cooperation within adult education, with the support of vulnerable groups such as disabled people, elderlypeople and ethnic minorities, low skilled, rural, etc.

3. GrundtvigPartnershipProjects AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • Small-scaleprojects • The mainpurposeissharingexperiences and expandingEuropeancooperationbetweenorganizationsinvolved in adulteducation • Process-oriented • Partner organizationsstaff and learners from severalEuropeancountriesworktogether on selectedobjectwithinadult learning topic • Sharingexperiences, practice and methodscontributes to raiseawarness of culturaldiversity, social end economic development of Europe and to betterunderstandingareas of commoninterests

4. Partnership AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • The Centre for Senior CitizensInitiatives, Poznań, Poland – project’scoordinatior • Lithuanian Adult Education Centers Leaders Association (LAECLA), Vilnius, Lithuania • Voluntary Service CentreV.S.S.P., Turin, Italy • EducationInnovation Transfer Centre, Jelgava, Latvia • Association of „LIFELONG EDUCATION”,TârguJiu, Romania • Association of Women for a Healthy Aging (AMES), Madrid, Spain

5. Challenges AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • European countries are facing similar problems connected with the ageing of societies. • The number of older people in the population increases fast so it means that one should make sure that senior citizens are strong and actively participating in social life group. • Education is a powerful tool that makes such an activation possible. • The common goal wasto improve the methods of working with people over 50 years, based on proved European teaching and activating methods. • The maingoal was todevelop new programs and proposals for the coaches and staff of NGOs and public institutions, who are involved in everyday informal and non-formal education of seniorcitizens.

6. One issue – manysolutions AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • As organizations and institutions working with the elderly, we encounter the same problems, but our work among the elderly is different. Although we havea common goal, we often choose different ways to pursue it and place emphasis on other aspects related to education of the elderly. • By means of comparison, we couldexchange experiences, ideas and learn from each other.

7. Issues AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • At the verybeginning we consideredthe following issues connected with non-formal and informal education of peopleover50: • the ways of motivating peopleover 50towards learning and social activity, e.g. by team building activities or cultural integration, • volunteering as a method of lifelong learning, e.g. the benefits coming out from 50+ volunteering, organization of 50+ volunteering, • IT training and using IT in adult education, • cultural and artistic activities of 50+ people as a method of lifelong learning, • using the potential of non-governmental organizations and public institutions in seniorcitizens education.

8. Tasks AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • Organizingpartner meetings – staff and learners international journeys to partner organizations. • Organizingstudy visits in partner organization and sharing good practices. • Organizingseminars/conferences/workshops dealing with issues connected with informal education of people over50. • Carringout the survey researching educational needs of 50+ people. • Elaboratingsurvey results and preparing the research report. • Organizingthe international seminar which will sum up the project. • Transferringthe experience by the webpages, e-mails and video-conferences. • Autoevaluation. • Disseminatingof project results and experience.

9. Benefits AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • „AWAKE?” • „We havegained a lot more than we expected.” • When we thinkaboutbenefits we see: • Senior listeners and volunteers • Staff of organization • Organization • Localsociety

10. Benefits AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • For senior listeners and volunteers: • new skills: e.g. language, IT (using dropbox, Skype) • opportunityto travel andto meet other nations and cultures – better understanding and mutual respect • possibilityto evaluate oneself as a valuable person • increasedself-esteem • breaking stereotypes related to older people’s abilities • localAWAKE team meetings launched collaboration between volunteers from different organizations to createpartnerships for newprojects

11. Benefits • For staff: • neworimproved skills, e.g. language, IT, • knowledgeand experience in the field „lifelong learning”, especially using ngo’senvironment, IT, cultural activities,volunteering, • broadknowledge of the educational systems in Europe, • importantexperience in realization of international projects, especiallyin the field of management and evaluation, • beeingpart of local activities in partner countriesas anopportunity to meetwonderful peoplerepresentingdifferentnations and cultures, • self-confidence and self-esteem to create new initiatives and overcome own barriers, e.g.to speak English, • motivatedand encouragedto take further actionsespecially at the international arena, • builda strong network of contacts in Europefor creating new partnerships, • developedand enriched the teaching methods connected with the education and activation of seniors, which will contribute to the improvement of the quality of our work. AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference

12. Benefits AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • For organization: • for new organizations it was aninspiration to development by showingnew ways and directions • showednew solutions and ideas in adults learning • recognition of power of the cooperation – creatingnewlocalpartnerships • localvisibility, reward from local authorities • internationaland personal contacts • possibilityto create new projects • newvolunteers • visibleresults - products

13. Benefits AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • For localsociety: • increasedawareness of seniors citizens needs • showednecessityof IT courses • developedtrainingmethods • increasedmultitude of activities for senior listeners • implementedbestpractises • launchedinnovationsatlocaleducational market • creatednetworkof organizations, international contacts

14. Visibleresults – AWAKE products AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • Educational needs • Questionnaire „Educationalneeds and expectations of peopleover 50”(tool) • Spreadsheet – excell file (tool) • Report from the survey with recommendations

15. Visibleresults – AWAKE products • Teaching methods • „How to use the potential of local institutions and organizations in education of 50+ people” (Poland) • „How to use potential of voluntary organizations in active aging” (Italy) • „How to use cultural classes in education of 50+ people”(Lithuania) • „How to use the potential of non-governmental organizations in education of 50+ people” sidedview(Latvia) • „How to use ICT in education of 50+ people”(Latvia) • „How to use ICT in education of 50+ people .Tips for EU institutions”(Latvia)supplemented by two appendixeshowto promote e-skills: • „Initiation intoIT foradults 50+. Practical support” (Romania) • Collection of best practices in IT trainingfrom every country AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference

16. Visibleresults – AWAKE products • Project monitoring and evaluationinstruments • Questionnaire1: „Evaluation of efficiency of the communicationamongpartners” • Purpose of thisquestionnaireis to assess the partners’ views on communicationmethods and theireffectiveness in order to implementsucessfully the projectobjectives, plan activities and promotecooperation. • Questionnaire2: „Meetingsevaluationquestionnaire” • Purpose of thisquestionnaireis to assess the meetingsorganization and itscontribution to implementsucessfully the projectactivities and promotecooperation. • Questionnaire3: „Partnershipsevaluationquestionnaire” • Purpose of thisquestionnaireis to knowpatners’ views on participation in projectactivities, cooperation,the environment and opportunities. AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference

17. Visibleresults – AWAKE products • Example: • „How to use the potential of local institutions and organizations in education of 50+ people” AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference

18. Visibleresults – AWAKE products • Example: • „How to use the potential of voluntaryorganizations in activeaging” AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference

19. Benefits AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • Something specific for: • •Latvia – „Several original approaches in the field of the project management and evaluation have been deployed […]. Most important of them arehow to organize a project to achieve the "tangible" results of the project and how to increase the project implementation quality.” • •Romania – „We understand that only the intelligentorganization (steps and concrete tasks/partners), the cooperation and the communicationwill lead to achievements.” • •Italy – „Thanks to AWAKE Europeanproject there are no more dream, but a strong reality in VSSP organization.” • •Poland – „The greatest value of the project was certainly a greater insight into the process of education and a sense that there are no such initiatives or ideas for motivaiting the elderly, which would not be connected to learning.”

20. Benefits AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • Something specific for: • • Lithuania – „Our seniors now have much more motivation and encouragement to gain new experience at the international level, theygot linguistic experience, increased their self-esteem, they have growing desire to explore the cultures of other countries, they have many new contacts in various European countries. […] Each of us found out: • How interesting and useful isto participate in international project. • Seniors can teach young people a lot of things. • Everyone can speak and be heard. • We have a lot of new friends in different European countries. • We can speak in different languages. • We are REALLY learning all our life!”

21. Benefits AWAKE - Aging With Active Knowledge and Experience, The Final Conference • Thankyou for yourattention!