The need for and interest in organisational resilience has grown in recent years. It is now an organisational priority for youth organisations as they pursue new strategies for becoming sustainable in a rapidly changing world and a turbulent social environment. In addition to reduced resources, there are increased regulatory requirements and greater competition to remain operationally viable and socially relevant. Resilient youth organisations have the capacity to adapt and more easily stay relevant and responsive to societal trends and changes.
The European Scout Region’s current work plan aims to ensure youth organisations in general, and Scout Associations in particular, thrive in shifting realities and support organisational resilience through change, crisis, and risk management. The purpose of the study session is to build upon youth organisations’ related efforts and to encourage young people who are, or will become, members of the national board in their associations to gather to strengthen their capacity, to equip them with skills for leading a resilient organisation as part of national leadership. Participants will then serve as advocates for change in their associations and as multipliers, actively contributing to strengthening organisational resilience and active and sustainable youth engagement in youth organisations in their countries.
Aim/Objectives
In line with Council of Europe Recommendation CM/Rec(2017)4 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on youth work, the International study session aims at empowering young people and their organisations to create resilient youth work and youth spaces in order to stay relevant and responsive to societal trends and changes in times of crises.
Specific objectives of the study session are:
- To encourage the use of new frameworks and tools to strengthen the organisational resilience of youth organisations in general and Scout Associations in particular through reinforced networking among youth organisations.
- To strengthen the capacity of youth representatives of Scout Associations in Europe and of other youth organisations and sectors to be active players in their associations’ national boards and decision-making processes.
- To provide participants with a networking space where they can share best practices regarding youth participation and resilience measures in their country.
We would like to engage participants from across Europe in developing the first Resilience Framework for Youth Work as a concrete output of the study session. Using existing dissemination platforms, the Resilience Framework will encourage youth organisations within and outside the Scout Movement to strengthen their capacities in developing and applying organisational resilience.
Within the Scout Movement, the study session aims to contribute to reaching the following objectives:
- At least twenty National Organisational Resilience Plans, adopted as such or as part of wider National Strategies will have been developed over the next three years.
- There will be an increase in the number of young candidates for elections to national board positions.
- There will be an increase in the number of young candidates for the election to the European Scout Committee (the governance body of the European Scout Region comprising Scout Associations of 46 countries in Europe).
Dates and Venue
The Organisation Resilience Forum on “Strengthening Resilience of Youth Spaces in Europe”, organised as an international study session in partnership with the Council of Europe’s Youth Department, is scheduled to take place as a five-day event at the European Youth Centre in Strasbourg, France, from 9 to 13 October 2024. Travel dates for selected participants are 8 October (for arrivals) and 14 October 2024 (for departures).
Participants’ Profile
The study session will host 35 participants from WOSM or outside. To qualify as a participant, you will:
- Be 18 to 30 years old
- Have interests in topics such as youth policies, organisational development, governance, and resilience, and expressed interest in leadership roles in your organisation or the European Scout Region.
- Be an active youth leader in a Scout Association of the European Scout Region of the World Organization of the Scout Movement or in another youth organisation.
- Be involved in the European Scout Region or in the sending youth organisation as a youth worker, educator, trainer or facilitator, study session manager and coordinator, organisational decision-maker, or otherwise involved in organisational development and resilience at a local, regional or national level.
- Have knowledge of organisational development and resilience as practised by the sending youth organisation or the ambition to introduce this aspect of youth work in the sending youth organisation.
- Be willing to share best practices and experiences with participants from different countries.
- Have a sufficient level of English allowing following and contributing to oral and written exchanges of complex matters in that language and be at ease doing so.
- Be able to attend the study session in person and in its entirety.
- Be committed and able to contribute to strengthening your organisation’s resilience by disseminating acquired knowledge, skills and learning insights with your peers and relevant stakeholders of your organisation.
Language
The working language of the Organisational Resilience Forum is English to facilitate all exchanges among participants. Being able to communicate in that language effectively is essential to participate.
Participation Fee
Travel and accommodation costs for this study session are covered by the Council of Europe. The Participation Fee of EUR 50.00 per participant will be deducted from the travel reimbursement.
Registration
Anyone who meets the above criteria is eligible to apply, from Scout Associations of WOSM as well as from other youth organisations or sectors. Please signal your interest by completing the online registration form by 31 August 2024.
Candidates selected for participation will be informed in early August 2024 and are expected to attend an online preparatory session at the beginning of September 2024.
Visa and Travel Arrangements
Information regarding travel arrangements for the International Study Session 2024 on Strengthening Resilience of Youth Spaces in Europe will be communicated to candidates selected for participation. Please let us know in the event’s online registration form if you need a visa to travel to and enter France.
Insurance
The European Scout Region of WOSM does not cover participants' risks during the event or travel to or from the venue. Please note that it is the exclusive responsibility of the participant’s national association to check and be sure that the risks of participants are covered by insurance (illness, accidents, repatriation, etc).
More Information and Contact
If you have any questions or require further information about the event, please contact Celia Papachristodoulou ([email protected]), from the Organisational Development Team, and Rupert Schildböck ([email protected]), World Scout Bureau Europe Support Centre.