TOWARDS A URBAN POPULAR UNIVERSITY (UPU)

1. General objectives: to raise awareness on habitat, urban and housing issues by linking research, publication and learning activities to empower habitants associations staff and volunteers in learning areas relevant to their work and struggles; to facilitate intercultural learning experiences - critical and transformative culture on habitat issues. TOWARDS A URBAN POPULAR UNIVERSITY (UPU)

2. IAI members and friends expectations • Learning about strategical organisational issues such as Planning and Assessment • two-thirds of organisations are giving priority to learning in terms of Peer organisations exchange and Collaborative relations • same attention to Community/political action, Housing policies, Policy development and by organisational issues such as Communication, Resource management

3. Learning methods • Mixed staff group approach • On-line open learning • Training in the following areas is considered to be useful by the respondents: • Strategic applications of ICT in their organisation • Network systems • Constructing an Information Intranet.

4. from a mechanistic toan ecological educational paradigm(i.e. learning communities) • from preparation for economic life • to participation in all dimensions of the sustainability transition - social, economic, environmental • from competition • to co-operation, collaboration • from specialisation • to integrative understanding

5. First scenario • International and local/regional courses providing capacity-building for local associations of inhabitants. Such courses should involve different actors such as social leaders, local and international professionals, trainers, university scholars, etc. to build the capacity of inhabitant's associations, with the objective of strengthening their abilities to organise, articulate their demands to public authorities and carry out their own projects

6. Second scenario • Documentation and systematisation of experiences of national and local associations of inhabitants, including the collection of data, regional/international conferences, publications on key issues/experiences, on-line databases, etc.

7. third scenario • on-line (free software - GPL) courses, documentation, mapping, conference and forum tools and databases to facilitate a framework for face-to-face exchanges and courses as well as proper distance learning

8. methodological approach ten key feature of research and learning activities: • are grounded in participants' experience and builds on their expectations and ideas • develop confidence and self-esteem • transfer control and responsibility to participants • are participatory and active rather than passive • group-based, promote co-operative learning and working • facilitate interaction and discussion to generate increased awareness and critical enquiry • build group identity and cohesion • encourage creative expression • develop problem solving, decision making and planning abilities • provide effective communication means.

9. next steps • Internal IAI consultation (July 24 - September 24 2004) • External consultation aimed at academic and international co-operation, sponsoring and fund-raising (July 24 - December 24 2004) • Setting-up of a steering group and project proposal(s) (September 24 2004- April 30 2005) • Pilot phase (June 2005 - May 2006)