Co-funded by the Europe for Citizens Programme of the European Union

YEP!

YOUNG EUROPEANS PROMOTING SOCIAL ENTERPRISES Official publication Index

Presentation of the YEP Partners and Guests

- Partners p. 3

- Guests p. 7

YEP aims, objectives and achievements p. 8

YEP activities p. 10

YEP Results p. 12

YEP – Policies and Best Practices Exchange p. 13

YEP – Follow-up and future planning p. 17

Introduction to the “Europe for Citizens” Programme 2014-2020 p. 18

Impaginazione: Basili Umberto Presentation of the YEP Partners 3 MUNICIPALITY OF CELLENO (ITALY) Celleno, project applicant, is a town in the Province of Viterbo (Lazio region) and is twinned with Serock since 1998. It is ANCI Lazio member and thanks to important experiences it had in the past as leader in European Projects (e.g. in 2008 for the Town Twinning Citizen's Meeting with Serock) and as partner in ProYoungPeople, ANCI Lazio project, it is committed in promoting European policies and debates at local level and local interests at regional and national level as well. Key activities related to the domain covered by the YEP project: • Promote local interests to the national government; • Distribute information, consultancies and assistance to the citizenship; • Plan cultural activities (seminars, workshops, conferences etc...) on matters related to local administration activities; • Promote and encourage initiatives for civic education and volunteering to increase knowledge on EU policies; • Encourage measures and social services to stimulate democratic participation to local non-profit activities and civic engagement; • Carry out innovative activities with other near and European towns; • Participate with its own members in institutional debates where decisions on local autonomies interests are discussed.

MUNICIPALITY OF SEROCK (POLAND) Serock is a urban-rural administrative district in Legionowo County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. Its seat is the town of Serock, which lies approximately 17 kilometres north-east of Legionowo and 34 kilometres north of Warsaw. Serock covers an area of 108.96 square kilometres and its total population is 11,236 (out of which the population of Serock amounts to 3,721 and the population of the rural part is 7,515). It is twinned with Celleno since 1998 and took part in several European projects (e.g. www.proyoungpeople.eu, www.idea-twinning.eu, www.eschools.eu, www.willproject.eu). Serock is a recreational and relaxation site and also a center of culture and sport. There are a lot of cultural events, including the International Folklore Review Kupalnocka and the Serock Summer Music Festival. Key activities related to the domain covered by the YEP project: • Stimulate new forms of local civic participation while reinforcing those existing; • Promote local interests to the national government; • Give information and assistance to citizens; • Encourage initiatives for the civic education of citizens to increase their knowledge on EU policies. YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP Presentation of the YEP Partners 4 MUNICIPALITY OF CASTIGLIONE IN TEVERINA (ITALY) Castiglione in Teverina is one of the 378 Towns that are ANCI Lazio members. Thanks to experiences in Eu projects (e.g. www.proyoungpeople.eu, www.idea-twinning.eu, www.eschools.eu, www.willproject.eu). it fostered its commitment in European policies and debates at local level, as well as local interests at regional and national level. Key activities related to the domain covered by the YEP project: • Promote local interests to national government; • Distribute information to its citizens; • Organize cultural and training events on matters related to local and European administration policies; • Promote and encourage initiatives for the civic education to increase knowledge on European policies; • Encourage measures and services to stimulate citizens' participation to local non-profit activities and civil life; • Carry out actions with other near and European towns; • Participate with own representatives in institutional debates where decisions about local autonomies interests are discussed. Castiglione in Teverina istwinned with the Municipality of Lanškroun since1996 and with the Municipality of Herrera del Duque since 2014.

MUNICIPALITY OF LANŠKROUN (CZECH REPUBLIC) Lanškroun is a town in the Ústí nad Orlicí District (Pardubice Region), Czech Republic, on the border between Bohemia and Moravia. In 2002 the town became an accredited municipality with extended competence for 21 villages. With its 10,000 inhabitants it is a dynamic industrial town (electronics, engineering, paper industry) and a town of secondary schools and key cultural institutions. Many successful local entrepreneurs and managers have supported the town economic development and the current secondary schools continue in the tradition of the Grammar School of Lanškroun and the local Trade School. The Cultural Centre, the Municipal Museum and the Municipal Library support both cultural and social life. In 1995 cooperation started between Lanškroun and Castiglione and in 1996 a twinning agreement was signed. Lanškroun took part in the following European projects: www.proyoungpeople.eu, www.idea-twinning.eu, www.eschools.eu, www.willproject.eu. Key activities related to the domain covered by the YEP project: • Stimulate local civic active participation; • Promote local interests to the national and European governments; • Give information and assistance to its citizens; • Boost civic education initiatives to increase know-how on EU policies. YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP Presentation of the YEP Partners 5 MUNICIPALITY OF HERRERA DEL DUQUE (SPAIN) Herrera del Duque is a municipality located in the province of Badajoz, Extremadura, Spain. As of 2010, the municipality has a population of 3681 inhabitants and is active to boost policies aimed at fostering debates on entrepreneurial strategies and on the participation of disadvantaged groups in civil society. It is twinned with the Municipality of Castiglione in Teverina since 2014. Key activities related to the domain covered by the YEP project: • Stimulate new forms of local civic participation, while reinforcing those existing; • Promote local interests to the national government; • Give information and assistance to the locals; • Encourage initiatives for the civic education of citizens to increase their knowledge on EU policies.

MUNICIPALITY OF GRAFFIGNANO (ITALY) Graffignano is in the Province of Viterbo (Lazio region), 80 kms to Rome and 20 kms to Viterbo. It has a population of 2273 inhabitants and is twinned with Wieliszew since 2012. As ANCI Lazio member it had many experiences in regional and European projects and fostered its commitment in debates at local and European level. Key activities related to the domain covered by the YEP project: • Promote local interests to the national government; • Distribute information, consultancies and assistance to citizens; • Organize workshops on matters related to local administration activities; • Promote initiatives for the civic education of citizens to increase their knowledge on EU policies; • Encourage the adoption of measures and services to stimulate citizens' participation to local non-profit activities; • Carry out actions with other near and European towns; • Participate with own representatives in institutional debates where decisions about local autonomies interests are discussed.

MUNICIPALITY OF WIELISZEW (POLAND) Wieliszew is an administrative district in Legionowo County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. Its seat is the village of Wieliszew, which lies 7 kms to Legionowo and 26 kms to Warsaw. The gmina covers an area of 102.23 square km and its total population is 8483. The village and commune with its large forests, numerous natural monuments and ponds (located within the zone of the Warsaw Protected Area) near the capital, provides excellent holiday and recreation conditions. Key activities related to the domain covered by the YEP project: • Promote local interests to the national government; YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP Presentation of the YEP Partners 6 • Give information and assistance to citizens; • Organize workshops on matters related to local administration activities; • Promote initiatives for the civic education of citizens to increase know-how on European policies; • Encourage the adoption of measures and services to stimulate participation to local non-profit activities; • Carry out actions with near and European towns; • Participate with own representatives in institutional debates where decisions about local autonomies interests are discussed.

MUNICIPALITY OF DIONYSOS (GREECE) The Municipality of Dionysos is a suburb with 40.193 inhabitants in the North-East Attica Region, just about 23 km away from Athens. Dionysos displays a culture of openness to experimentation and acknowledges the importance of creating space for institutional and socio-technological innovations to emerge. It has taken part in many international networks promoting local sustainable development (e.g. Covenant of Mayors, ICLEI etc...) and other development projects encouraging the creation of social enterprises (e.g. Local Employment Plans, Local Action for Socially Vulnerable Groups, European Social Fund) and also hosts a Time Bank which is an new form of community currency. Key activities related to the domain covered by the YEP project: Dionysos participates in international programs and global voluntary campaigns and enhances citizens’ participatory skills, active citizenship, intercultural exchange, solidarity, social economy and volunteering.

YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP Presentation of the YEP Guests 7 MUNICIPALITY OF DALI (CYPRUS) The Municipality of Idalion (Dali) is a rural municipality in the central part of Cyprus-Nicosia district. It was founded in 1996 and has a population of 9500 inhabitants. Its economy is based on agriculture, farming and various cultivations due to the productive ground. Idalion has a long experience in working on European projects, mainly in the field of citizenship (e.g. www.willproject.eu). Key activities related to the domain covered by the YEP project: • Promote local interests to the national government; • Distribute information, consultancies and assistance; • Plan workshops on matters related to local administration activities; • Promote and encourage initiatives for civic education to increase the knowledge on European policies; • Encourage measures and services to stimulate participation to local non-profit activities and civil life; • Carry out activities with other towns; • Participate with own members in institutional debates where decisions on local autonomies interests are discussed. Dali is twinned with Orte since 2013.

MUNICIPALITY OF SIRET (ROMANIA) Siret is a town in Suceava County, north-eastern Romania. It is situated n the historical region of Bukovina. Siret is the eleventh largest urban settlement in the county, with a population of 7,721 inhabitants, according to the 2011 census. It is one of the oldest towns in Romania and it was the capital of the former principality of Moldavia, in the late 14th century. The town administers two villages: Mănăstioara and Pădureni. Siret is a member of the Douzelage, a unique town twinning association of 24 towns across the European Union. This active town twinning began in 1991 and there are regular events, such as a produce market from each of the other countries and festivals. Discussions regarding membership are also in hand with three further towns (Agros in Cyprus, Škofja Loka in Slovenia and Tryavna in Bulgaria).

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Few years ago the concept of Social Enterprises and social entrepreneurship was rarely discussed in Europe, yet it is now making amazing breakthroughs in EU countries. Within this context, the purpose of YEP is to focus, address and promote the concept of Social Enterprises. YEP involved 339 people coming from Italy, Poland, Czech Republic, Greece and Spain linked by an active background in EU policies, a key experience in project planning and a strong will to promote common topics that are vital for their respective communities. Young Europeans can play a crucial role in promoting Social Enterprises, facing evolutions, key challenges and concentrating on the concept of innovative social entrepreneurial strategies able to contrast unemployment, foster a sustainable and inclusive society and set a long term commitment from stakeholders and governing bodies. The Project aimed at:

• Foster Project Partners ability to boost Social Enterprises as source of employment especially for disadvantaged groups, the young, women and as means to stimulate quality, inclusive and sustainable employment;

• Allow best practices exchange as Project Partners learn from each others’ experience;

• Support stakeholders and policy makers to get together and exchange know-how on policy issues and processes to create strategies for a better public policy management at local, national and European level;

• Foster European citizenship and improve conditions for civic and democratic participation, mainly in those who haven't been involved so far or reject the Union outright or put in question its achievements;

• Promote societal and intercultural engagement and volunteering;

• Signature of the Friendship and Cooperation Agreement among Project Partners and the guest towns in order to keep the network active in the future;

• Foster the knowledge on the Union policy making-process, twinning policies and European funds.

These aims where all oriented towards the main objective to foster European citizenship and to improve conditions for civic and democratic participation at Union level, with the specific intention to encourage democratic and civic participation of citizens at Union level, by developing citizens' understanding of the Union policy making-process and promoting opportunities for societal and intercultural engagement and volunteering. Finally the Project wanted to target the Annual Priority of the Europe for Citizens Programme to “Debate the Future of Europe”, through confrontation and practical activities in the social field.

YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP aims, objectives and achievements 9 These aims and objectives where supported by well constructed general features, such as equal access, to make the Project accessible to all citizens without discrimination and to promote equal opportunities for all and non-discrimination for hard-to-reach groups, and a balanced integration and participation of citizens in multilingual activities, including the underrepresented groups. Great importance has been given to transnationality, expressed by the European and local perspective of the YEP theme, to the cooperation of different countries, to the targeted public reached in different nations and to the dissemination of results across borders. The local dimension of the Project has been reached bridging the gap between the European Union and its citizens, planning actions that could reach people in their daily lives and facing issues relevant for them. The features of the Project were also oriented to foster integration and civic involvement, on one side favouring intercultural dialogue in order to help the development of a dynamic, respectful and multifaceted European identity, and on the other side supporting volunteering as an expression of active citizenship and a means to develop a sense of belonging and commitment to society and political life. During the planning phase, the Partners chose six main themes to be discussed during the implementation of the Project:

1. to face the economic crisis developing concrete social entrepreneurial strategies;

2. to involve Social Enterprises for a sustainable and inclusive society able to create quality social services and local development;

3. to promote European Citizenship and participatory democracy, mainly in those who haven't been involved so far or reject the Union outright or put in question its achievements; 4. to boost social engagement, intercultural dialogue, equal opportunities and non-discrimination;

5. to inspire volunteering as a form of active citizenship;

6. to boost knowledge on EU policy making-process (twinning policies, European funds and the Europe 2020 strategy);

7. to favour the debate on the future of Europe.

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The implementation of the Project project has been led following a work programme divided in two main steps: • STEP 1: one Local Meeting in each of the involved Countries lasting one day and involving 35 people each, that implemented social entrepreneurial strategies, identified problems, goals, actions, solutions at local and European level. The Meetings had the same setting in each country and the Lead and Local Coordinators guaranteed high quality actions. These meetings were aimed at presenting to the citizens YEP goals and action planning, selecting local problems and criticalities through a consultation with local stakeholders, choosing case studies and best practices in local Social Enterprises to be exchanged and selecting proposals and social impact strategies for the debates. • STEP 2: one Multilateral Meeting held in Italy (Celleno, Castiglione in Teverina and Graffignano) from the 14th to the 25th of September 2015; the meeting involved 339 people in official events (seminars, debates, round tables, brainstorming sessions, workshops, meetings, signature of the Friendship and Cooperation Agreement) and convivial ones (tours, shows, cuisine competition, sport match and concerts). The activities were planned to lead a constructive discussion over: YEP themes and goals to be reached; Europe 2020 growth and job strategy and the Entrepreneurship 2020 strategy; exchange and confrontation of the best practices selected during the Local Meetings. Also workshops and seminars have been held over: social enterprises status of the art, social responsible businesses, social enterprises and social innovation, social enterprises and future scenarios, access to European funds, how to facilitate the link work and family.

The activities where all planned following these themes: young people promoting Social Enterprises; how to face the economic crisis developing concrete social entrepreneurial strategies to contrast unemployment, mainly for disadvantaged groups, the young and women; foster a sustainable and inclusive society to create quality social services and local development; how to set a long term commitment from stakeholders and governing bodies; foster European citizenship and participatory democracy mainly in those who haven't been involved so far or reject the European Union outright; encourage societal engagement, intercultural dialogue, equal opportunities, non-discrimination; inspire volunteering as a form of active citizenship; boost knowledge on European Union policy making-process (twinnings, funds and the Europe 2020 strategy); foster the debate on the future of Europe. The conclusion of the Multilateral Meeting led to the signature of a Friendship and Cooperation Agreement among the partners and the guests, to underline the strength of the partnership and to create opportunities for new collaborations, not only on the social field but also on other themes such as culture, education, sports and music. Local participants, in particular, were directly involved in the proposed activities and arranged the welcome phase and accomodations; they also cooperated with local organisations (volunteers, experts with relational and communication skills, near towns) to share skills and bring added value,

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participating actively in constructing a close European Union. Coordinators, partners and volunteers had an active role during the Multilateral Meeting in the following actions: proper local management, choice of themes, respect of timetables and actions, objectives, work methods and strategies set for the implementation and planning of the dissemination tools. At the end of YEP the selected volunteers with relational and communication skills, supported by experts in project management, gathered ideas, identified new themes and target group and started working to enlarge the network, with the support of regional and national organisations and NGOs. YEP implementation saw a percentage of 45% made by participants that were never involved within NGOs, Institutional or social activities before their participation in YEP. Friendship and integration have been a constant interest during the Project's implementation and the shedule foresaw many moments for the aggregation of the participants and the consolidation of new relations, with a spirit of equality, non-discrimination and comprehension. During the Multilateral Meeting and after its conclusion the Coordinators implemented other work packages regarding the communication and dissemination of the Project, to enlarge its audience and promote its results, such as: production and implementation of communication tools (web platform, publication, DVD, social networks); preparation of final report; future action planning. All the actions resulted fully appropriate to the needs and objectives of YEP and led to a correct implementation of the program.

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At the conclusion of the Project, these final results have been generated through the implementation of the following activities: • Best practices exchange and debate over entrepreneurial strategies in the social area, draft of future proposals of cooperation and support to social enterprises; • Active cooperation with other organisations, favouring cross-fertilisation and creating added value; • Sharing of skills and know-how among the participants by the direct observation of best practices and exchange of volunteers; • Involvement of other organisations not directly engaged in the partnership as: economic development departments, NGOs developing social services, chambers of commerce, service companies, university, national and regional associations of towns, to make them aware of the Project themes and bring new and wider perspectives to the project; • Involvement of key actors (polititians, stakeholders and policy-makers) in the examination of topics, favouring their support to local action and transnational exchange and also bringing them recommendations and needs selected in the debates; • Creation of a new European perspective when facing social themes; • Promotion of new forms of social services; • Strengthening of European citizenship, democratic engagement and civic participation; • Debate over the Future of Europe. The results had a great and wide impact both at local and European level, with the involvement of 339 citizens from 8 towns and 5 nations, with the addition of guests from Municipalities of Dali (Cyprus), Ceresara (Italy) and Siret (Romania). This impact led to: enrichment of participants experience with the sharing and transferring of best practices; draft of concrete social entrepreneurship strategies; capacity building support; empowering of democratic and civic participation and European citizenship. In addition to the directly involved participants from the delegations, YEP indirectly reached about 20000 people thanks to planning of local and European multimedial actions and through the collaboration of other associations and volunteers as Coordinators and staff members. Considering this general outcome, a favourable judgement has been given to the activities by the involved participants and, looking to the future, these middle and long term effects are expected: Ccreation of an inclusive channel to actively participate in social development and twinning policies; • Quality employment and facilitation of job creation to set up an inclusive and sustainable economy; • Support innovative solutions in times of economic crisis, combining impact creation with entrepreneurship and sharing of knowledge, methods and skills; • Enhancement of employment policies for hard-to-reach groups; • Improvement of the quality of social services and local and European policies; • Participation in impact creation by intercultural engagement and volunteering; • Long term cooperation among partners and with other towns such as Dali (Cyprus), Siret (Romania) and Ceresara (Italy). YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP – Policies and Best Practices Exchange 13

The overal subject of the YEP Project was to discuss the theme of Social Enterprises from a European perspective, exchanging best practices and state-of-arts so to offer an occasion of confrontation and debate, opening new chances of development in the social area. The concept of "social enterprise" first appeared in Europe, and more precisely in Italy, in the early 90's. The concept was introduced at the time to designate the pioneering initiatives for which the Italian Parliament created the legal form of "social cooperative" one year later. Since then, various other European countries have passed new laws to promote Social Enterprises, although the concept itself has not gained the same recognition in all European countries and is even still poorly understood in several of them. This kind of enterprises is born to respond to unmet needs, especially in the field of work integration, as some groups were increasingly excluded from the labour market, as well as in the field of personal services, in a context of rapid aging of the population and changes in family structures. The general confrontation over the history and roles of social enterprises in the involved countries led to underline the fact that the key field of activity for them in Europe is the so-called "Work Integration Social Enterprises" (WISEs), which main objective is to help low qualified unemployed people who are at risk of permanent exclusion from the labour market. Some basic differences have been addressed in the involved countries, as follows: • In Italy Social Enterprises are part of the third sector and they are defined by their social purpose and by the limitation on the distribution of profit. For them the Italian laws stress a specific governance model, as the obligation to involve various stakeholders; • In Spain, a national law established the "social initiative co-operative" (cooperativa de iniciativa social) in 1999; any type of co-operative providing social services or developing an economic activity aiming at the work integration of socially excluded persons can use this label. Spanish social initiative co-operatives cannot distribute any profit and their organizational forms are less oriented to a multi-stakeholder structure; • In Greece, a status of "limited liability social co-operative" (Κοινωνικός Συνεταιρισµός Περιορισµ ένης Ευθύνης Κοι.Σ.Π.Ε or Koinonikos Syneterismos Periorismenis Eufthinis, KoiSPE) has been established in 1999 for organizations targeting groups of individuals with psycho-social disabilities and aiming at the socio-professional integration, in a multi-stakeholder strategy; • In Poland the concept of Social Enterprise is an emerging notion and the specificity of Social Enterprises lies in the fact that they are profit–makers, although not profit–maximizers, and that they focus more on general interest/community interests, and not only on mutual interest goals. Most Social Enterprises in Poland operate within the legal framework of associations or other voluntary organizations, foundations or cooperatives; beside these forms, a new one, specifically intended for work integration, the Act on Social Cooperatives, was established on April 2006, allowing selected needy groups (such as ex-convicts, long-term unemployed, disabled persons and former alcohol or drug addicts) to set up a social cooperative; • In Czech Republic there are currently around 100 Social Enterprises doing business in just about every area of the economy. In this Country it is interesting to note a differentiate regional distribution of Social Enterprises: besides Prague, the largest number of active Social Enterprises is found in the Ústí, Moravian-Silesian and Zlín regions, while the South Moravian, South Bohemian and Vysočina regions see a lack of activities in this field. The majority of existing Social Enterprises in the Czech

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Republic employ people with disabilities. Here there does not exist any specific legal form for Social Enterprises and there are not any specific tax advantages, thus Social Enterprises in the Czech Republic take various legal forms.

Some common points have been addressed in the general idea of “social enterprise”, as they are considered central in characterizing an enterprise that works in the social area:

• Social responsibility: the principal aims of Social Enterprises is to serve the community or a specific group of people. A chief desire of Social Enterprises is to promote the sense of social responsibility at the local level; • “One man, one vote” decision-making policy: Social Enterprises have a democratic and participatory nature, voting power is not distributed according to capital share, but the decision-making rights are generally shared with the other stakeholders; • Participation: the influence of various stakeholders in the decision-making process and the participative management of activities are important characteristics of Social Enterprises; • Authonomy: Social Enterprises are founded on the basis of an autonomous project and they are governed by the people that founded them. They may depend on public subsidies, but they are not managed by public authorities or other organisations.

On the light of these points addressed during the best practices exchange activities, a debate arose among the YEP delegations on which could be the recommendations to give to the policy-makers, both at National and European level. They came out with seven points:

1. Governments should recognise the social added value of Social Enterprises by promoting their visibility so to encourage good practices; 2. The development of new legal forms of Social Enterprise should be supported and more effective fiscal measures should support the social added value of their activities; 3. A more effective start-up support should be provided. Business advisers should be capable of giving initial advice to direct potential social entrepreneurs with a specialist support infrastructure linked to existing support bodies of the social economy; 4. Custom support should be provided not only in the start-up phase, but also in the growth period, in a differentiate mode, so to ease stronger relationships with conventional enterprises; 5. The training of social entrepreneurs should be more effective and focus on peer learning, with a perspective of opening up the social entrepreneurship world to as many people as possible, widening the opportunities of access to the know-how; 6. Since Social Enterprises are vehicles of social innovation, financial support should be of different types (grant, loan, guarantee etc...) to meet different needs. Also the sources of the fundings should differentiate and be gathered from multiple sources, not only public, but also from private and social economy financial institutions; 7. Financial support for new Social Enterprises should be accompanied by business support; 8. Confrontation and exchange at European level is needed to develop consistent methodologies and statistics on Social Enterprises.

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- COOPERATIVA SOCIALE ALICE Alice is a Social Enterprise born in 1990 and operating in the Viterbo Province. Today the cooperative involves 100 workers, of which 79 are partners in the enterprise, all oriented towards the aims to: favour social inclusion; social and economic wealth growth; building collective and inclusive work paths; promote the professional and educational growth of the partners; partake in the development of the territory; incentivize new forms of welfare development. The enterprise is founded on the values of work rights, equal opportunities, freedom of speech, democracy, solidarity, mutuality, that inspire all the work done by the partners in the different areas of intervention, together all oriented towards the development of a social network where the human being could be central and involved in the community. Fields of work: • Personal services: the services offered are varied and are programmed and customized to meet the needs of the individual user. The services comprehend: service and support to carry out rehabilitation activities and for medical examinations, diagnostic checks, entries in healthcare and resign from them; minibuses with 9 seats for transportation of persons with physical disabilities; psychological consultation, educational interventions, speech therapy and physiotherapy at home; supply of qualified personnel or team comprehensive multi-professional or semi-residential projects; • Social farming: the Cooperative Alice, together with the Social Cooperative Farms Solidarity (spin-off of the agricultural sector -social Alice) operates in two social-run organic farms: "Fattoria di Alice" in Viterbo and "Fattoria Ortostorto " in Montalto di Castro. The purpose of the cooperative is to use the activities of cultivation, animal breeding, related activities as privileged means to promote employment and social integration of persons belonging to vulnerable groups (persons with disabilities, psychological problems, pathological addictions, etc...) and the provision of community services within companies managed, already emerging in the statutory objectives and inserting in its specificity the Social Agriculture; • Planning and development: this sector was created in 2013 to design and manage innovative interventions of national, regional and provincial level in the social sector. The area of social services had on the one hand a progressive restriction of public resources of local and regional institutions to invest in social interventions and on the other hand a sudden change of social needs, with the need to experiment new initiatives. In this scenario, the Cooperative Alice has professionals able to mobilize, through the design and processing of ad hoc projects, resources to meet the increasing demands for aid and social service, mastering the methods of writing and research funding sources (Structural Funds, national and regional), construction of networks of partners, promoters and actuators of experimental initiatives, making the sector a strategic asset of the Cooperative.

- ASSOCIATION VITERSPORT VITERSPORT is a voluntary association that works thanks to volunteers operators and technicians. The association has about 100 members and 70 athletes with physical, sensory, intellectual and relational difficulties; it is affiliated to the CIP, FCI, FIWH, Fisdir, FINP, EPS Libertas sport organisation and it offers the opportunity to practice: YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP – Policies and Best Practices Exchange 16 • Swimming at pools in Sarvam (Aeronautic School for Marshals) 2 times a week for a total of 3 hours, for 52 people with physical, mental, relational and sensory, ten of them also play competitive sports; • Hockey in the electric wheelchair at the ITIS highschool gym for workouts and Verità gym for the matches. A1 series championship with transfers in the center south, including Sicily. 14 people with severely disabling diseases play this sport; • Handbike, 10 athletes at different levels, from amateur to the Giro d'Italia; • Table football; • Engagement area volunteers (about twenty young people and adults) and events (at least every 2 years). Playing a sport is considered important in the social inclusion of disabled people and could help to improve these points: self gratification, rehabilitation, authonomy improvement, growth of self esteem, anger management, regeneration of affectivity, overcome of self or social isolation. Poland

- ASSOCIATION EMKA Strongly oriented towards the development of young people capabilities and skills, the association EMKA has been carrying out activities for more than twelwe years. The aims of the volunteers are to help gather fundings to support school activities and scholarships. The association also opened a club called “Club of young explorers – EUREKA” for the involvement of children in science and historical activities. Another field of work is the collection and distribution of foods and goods for disadvantaged people and families in economic disease.

- ASSOCIATION FRIENDS OF MICHAŁÓW-REGINÓW The organisation was established in 2012 by the initiative of a group of residents from the village of Michałów-Reginów, in the town of Wieliszew, whose main objective is social activities for the benefit of citizens in all fields. Right now 40 members take part in the volunteering activities, from 16 to 80 years old. The main activities of the association are: after-schools activities for children; social, cultural and sport activities; turistic promotion; youth sport club for disadvantaged children; inclusive educational programmes in schools for disabled children; contacts and cooperation with local authorities. Spain

- ASOCIACION JAMAL The Jamal Association is a non-profit association founded in the region of Siberia (Badajoz) in 2014. Its objectives include the development of sustainable tourism, public awareness of environmental resources, rational use and conservation, the promotion of entrepreneurship in green economies, the recovery of old crafts and the enhancement of endogenous natural resources. Jamal is an association open to the participation of those interested in promoting and defending these values in the region. The association organises courses to promote the preservation of the environment and the active involvement of citizens, as a Soil Management Course for the right use and fertilisation of the plots for specific cultivations, or an Organic Farming Course for the promotion of the natural farming techniques. YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP – Follow-up and future planning 17

The Project activities led to the bonding of friendship relations among the partners and from this new friendships a Ffriendship and Cooperation Agreement has ben signed by the representatives of the different Municipalities: Celleno, Castiglione in Teverina, Graffignano (Italy), Herrera del Duque (Spain), Lanškroun (Czech Republic), Serock and Wieliszew (Poland), Dionysos (Greece), and the guests from Siret (Romania), Ceresara (Italy) and Dali (Cyprus). The aim of the agreement is to promote the exchanges of best practices and experiences among the Cities, in order to strenghten existing links in different spheres of common interest and to improve city management for the benefit of all citizens. The Agreement will have a four year validity and will be automatically renewed. The Municipalities will focus on implementing cooperation projects in the following priority areas:

• European citizenship, civic and democratic participation and volunteering at Union level; • Remembrance, common history and values and Union's aim to promote peace, its values and the well-being of its peoples by stimulating debate, reflection and development of networks; • Economic development and tourism, in particular measures to encourage the sharing of experiences and know-how among local development agencies, chambers of commerce and industry, economic and tourism institution in the field of tourism, city marketing and economic activities; • Culture, in particular projects which aim to promote municipal institutions, mobility of intellectuals, artists and works, social enterprises, creative industries, cultural centers of “alternative culture” as well as exchange of expertise and best practices; • Sustainable development, including the control of energy consumption, air quality and the use of renewable energy; • Transport and urban mobility, in particular measures to encourage the use of urban public transport, other environmental friendly and soft modes of transport.

The delegations and representative of the Municipalities also set out the stategy through which these future collaborations could be made effective: • Continuous exchange of knowledge and experiences; • Exchange of information among Partners; • Technical consultation; • Exchange of experts among Municipalities; • Organisation of seminars, meetings, conferences, workshop, symposia, classes, etc... The Cities are committed to promote the establishment of exchanges in other areas of common interest that may occur during the term of the Agreement. At the European and international level, the Cities will reinforce their consultation and develop, as appropriate, joint proposals regarding European and international matters.

YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP Introduction to the “Europe for Citizens” Programme 2014-2020 18 The European Union is made of its citizens and for its citizens! Encouraging and facilitating citizens' wider involvement in the European Union and what it stands for is of great importance. This ranges from the need to increase their participation in current affairs to the need of ensuring a broader understanding of the history of the European Union (hereinafter “Union”) and its origins in the aftermath of two world wars. With decisions and policies needed on issues ranging from economic growth, security and Europe’s role in the world, it is now more important than ever for citizens to take part in discussions and help shape policies. In this context, the Europe for Citizens Programme adopted for the period 2014-2020 is an important instrument aimed at getting the Union’s 500 million inhabitants to play a greater part in the development of the Union. By funding schemes and activities in which citizens can participate, the Programme is promoting Europe’s shared history and values, and fostering a sense of ownership for how the Union develops. Under the overall aim of bringing the Union closer to citizens the general objectives are to: • Contribute to citizens' understanding of the Union, its history and diversity; • Foster European citizenship and to improve conditions for civic and democratic participation at Union level. Specific objectives shall be pursued on a transnational level or with a European dimension: • Raise awareness of remembrance, common history and values and the Union's aim that is to promote peace, its values and the well-being of its peoples by stimulating debate, reflection and development of networks; • Encourage democratic and civic participation of citizens at Union level, by developing citizens' understanding of the Union policy making-process and promoting opportunities for societal and intercultural engagement and volunteering at Union level. Annual priorities of the "Europe for Citizens" Programme: In line with the general objectives of the Programme, annual priorities are defined by the European Commission after consultation of the Programme Committee. Applicants are encouraged to develop projects in line with the objectives of the Programme and targeting the annual priorities. The annual priority for the year 2015 is the Debate on the Future of Europe.

The Europe for Citizens Programme is founded over some general features, that focus on its main objective that is to promote an active and inclusive European Citizenship: • Equal access: the Europe for Citizens Programme should be accessible to all European citizens without any form of discrimination on grounds of sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age and sexual orientation. Particular attention should be given to hard-to-reach groups and special attention should be paid to the balanced integration and participation of citizens and civil society into transnational projects and activities taking into account the multilingual character of the Union and the need to include underrepresented groups; • Transnationality and local dimension: European Citizenship can best be experienced in an environment which goes beyond a national vision. Transnationality can be expressed in different ways: by tackling an issue from a European perspective or by critically comparing different national points of view; the project can be developed and implemented through the cooperation of a number of partner organisations coming from different participating countries; by ensuring that the project is targeted directly to a public from different countries or by disseminating the results of the project across borders; • Intercultural dialogue: The European Commission committed itself to promoting intercultural YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP Introduction to the “Europe for Citizens” Programme 2014-2020 19 dialogue by bringing European citizens of different nationalities and different languages together and by giving them the opportunity to participate in common activities, so to: raise awareness on the richness of the cultural and linguistic environment in Europe; promote mutual understanding and tolerance; develop a respectful, dynamic and multifaceted European identity; • Volunteering: Volunteering is an essential element in active citizenship: by giving one’s time for the benefit of others, volunteers service their community and play an active role in society and is therefore a particularly powerful means to develop citizens’ commitment to their society and to its political life. Civil society organisations, associations of a European general interest, town twinning associations and other participating organisations often rely on volunteer work to carry out and to develop their activities. The Programme is implemented through two Strands and a horizontal Action: • Strand 1 - European remembrance: Raise awareness of remembrance, common history and values and the Union's aim. This Strand will support activities that invite to reflection on European cultural diversity and on common values in the broadest sense. In this context, it aims to finance projects reflecting on causes of totalitarian regimes in Europe's modern history (specially but not exclusively Nazism that led to the Holocaust, Fascism, Stalinism and totalitarian communist regimes) and to commemorate the victims of their crimes. The Strand also encompasses activities concerning other defining moments and reference points in recent European history. In particular, it will give preference to actions which encourage tolerance, mutual understanding, intercultural dialogue and reconciliation. • Strand 2 - Democratic engagement and civic participation: Encourage democratic and civic participation of citizens at Union level. This strand will support activities that cover civic participation in the broadest sense with a particular focus on activities directly linked to Union policies, with a view to concretely participate in the Union policy-making process in areas related to the objectives of the Programme. These measures are part of this Strand: • Town Twinning: aims at supporting projects bringing together a wide range of citizens from twinned towns around topics in line with the objectives of the Programme; • Networks of Towns: Municipalities and associations working together on a common theme in a long-term perspective may wish to develop networks of towns to make their cooperation more sustainable. Networking between municipalities on issues of common interest appears to be an important means for enabling the exchange of good practices. Networks of Towns are expected to integrate a range of activities around subjects of common interest and to have defined target groups for which the selected themes are particularly relevant, involving community members active in the subject area. The Networks must also serve as a basis for future initiatives and actions between the towns involved; • Civil Society Projects: this measure aims at supporting projects promoted by transnational partnerships and networks directly involving citizens. Those projects gather citizens from different horizons, in activities directly linked to Union policies, with a view to give them an opportunity to concretely participate in the Union policy-making process in areas related to the objectives of the Programme. It must include these kind of activities: promotion of societal engagement and solidarity, making the link to the European political agenda and policy making process; gathering of opinions of the citizens on a specific topic to be yearly defined; volunteering activities promoting solidarity among Union citizens and beyond. YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP YEP THIS PROJECT HAS BEEN FUNDED WITH THE SUPPORT FROM THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION. THIS PUBLICATION REFLECTS THE VIEWS ONLY OF THE AUTHOR, AND THE COMMISSION CANNOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY USE WHICH MAY BE MADE OF THE INFORMATION CONTAINED THEREIN.

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