ICSW EUROPE NEWSLETTER Winter 2016 ISSN 2411-9709
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ICSW EUROPE NEWSLETTER Winter 2016 ISSN 2411-9709 Contents ICSW Europe Board meeting and Russian partners meeting ............................................................................. 2 Social Platform .................................................................................................................................................... 2 ENSACT ............................................................................................................................................................... 3 SDG Watch Europe ............................................................................................................................................. 4 AGE Platform Europe .......................................................................................................................................... 6 Global Partnership for Universal Social Protection ............................................................................................ 7 Democracy Dialogues ......................................................................................................................................... 8 Conferences/Expert meetings ..........................................................................................................................10 Useful Links .......................................................................................................................................................11 Colophon ..........................................................................................................................................................11 Page 1 ICSW Europe Newsletter Winter 2016 ntation_Moscow.pdf) with the support of the Department of Labour and Social Protection of ICSW Europe Board meeting Population of Moscow and contributions from and Russian partners meeting ICSW Europe (which will be held on May 18-19, 2017). Russian delegation was presented by Evdokiya Ivanovna Kholostova, Irina Vladimirovna Mkrtumova, Kulikov Igor Valerievich, Olga Evgenievna Gracheva, and Natalia Rigina. Details of the conference programme, organisation and financial issues were the topic of The fourth term of office ICSW Europe Board discussion. meeting took place in Vienna (Austria) on November 12, 2016 in Österreichisches Komitee The updated information of Moscow conference für Soziale Arbeit – ÖKSA premises. will be published in the next ICSW Europe Newsletters. ICSW Europe Board met to discuss the following points: ICSW Europe thanks ÖKSA for hosting the venue. 1) Board Meeting Agenda (by ICSW Europe editor) 2) Approval of ICSW Europe Board Minutes of 7/11/2016 3) First exchange about organisation of 2017 GA 4) Reactions on the 2nd draft version of Moscow Conference 5) Global NL; ICSW Europe Winter NL Social Platform 6) A. O. B. 7) Question of Presidency and Treasurer 8) Next Board meeting The second meeting in the same day were ICSW Europe Board and Russian partnersˈ negotiations regarding the preparations and organisation of the Social Platform responds to the European next year Moscow conference organised by the Commission’s consultation on a European Pillar Institute for Additional Professional Education of of Social Rights Workers for Social Services (http://skts.sk/clanky/konferencia_moskva/prese Page 2 ICSW Europe Newsletter Winter 2016 In his State of the European Union address in http://ec.europa.eu/priorities/deeper-and-fairer- September 2015, European Commission President economic-and-monetary-union/towards- Jean-Claude Juncker had announced the european-pillar-social-rights_en development of a ‘European Pillar of Social Rights’ to help achieve a social ‘Triple A’ for the EU. Social Platform’s response to the public On 8 March 2016, the European Commission consultation on the public consultation on the initiated a ‘Consultation on a European Pillar of European Pillar of Social Rights: Social Rights’ and also presented a ‘First http://www.socialplatform.org/wp- preliminary outline of a European Pillar of Social content/uploads/2016/11/Social-Platform- Rights’. According the proposal, the Pillar should response-to-the-public-consultation-on-the- be founded on ‘a number of essential principles to European-Pillar-of-Social-Rights-November- support well-functioning and fair labour markets 2016.pdf and welfare systems. Once established, the Pillar should become a reference framework to screen ICSW Germany’s response to the consultation: the employment and social performance of https://www.deutscher- participating Member States, to drive reforms at verein.de/en/uploads/dateien-stab- national level and, more specifically, to serve as a internationales/dv-21-16-opinion-consultation- compass for renewed convergence within the epsr.pdf euro area.’ On completion of the consultation process (deadline: end of December 2016) the (by Britta Spilker, ICSW Europe) European Commission will make a ‘final proposal’ for the Pillar in the spring of 2017. Social Platform shaped its response to the consultation through intensive exchange between member organisations, using its ‘Task Force on Social Standards’ (ICSW Europe was represented ENSACT in the Task Force by Britta Spilker from ICSW Germany). In November 2016, Social Platform sent its response to the European Commission, welcoming the initiative for greater upwards ENSACT and the Global convergence, stressing the importance of the fight Observatory of Social against poverty and social exclusion in all member Work and Social states and drawing attention to the high levels of Development inequalities and unemployment or underemployment. It calls for the future ‘European Pillar of Social Rights’ to allow for civil ICSW Europe is actively involved in ENSACT: the dialogue and the meaningful involvement of European Network for Social Action. It is one of people and to have effective links to already the seven partners in ENSACT. Together these existing instruments and policies. partners contributed to the Global Observatory by preparing a report on Europe focusing on the European Commission information on the promotion of dignity and worth of people. This consultation process: was the second theme of the global agenda prepared jointly by IASSW, IFSW and ICSW. Page 3 ICSW Europe Newsletter Winter 2016 For our European Observatory report we invited The key words are respect, awareness, the members of all our organisations to contribute perspectives, facilitation, and partnership. good examples on how to promote dignity and worth of people in social work and social Of course, such a rather random selection of development. We received more than 30 projects and good examples cannot really be examples from 16 countries in Europe. More called representative. We noticed however that organisations and countries were involved in the mainly new and innovative projects were activities contributed. The examples were submitted as good practices. Perhaps social collected and analysed by dr. Kerstin Svensson, of workers see their day-to-day work as ‘nothing Lund University in Sweden, and resulted in a special’? It will be our challenge in the future to European observatory report. also uncover more of the ‘hidden’ treasures and discourses in the field. For the next theme on the The report was presented in Seoul in June 2016 as global agenda, ‘Promoting sustainable part of the global report, but it is also available as communities and environmentally sensitive a stand-alone version online with links to all the development’, we will invite social workers and all good examples. Interested? Have a look at others who contribute to this topic, to share their http://www.ensact.com/ and go to ‘Report 2016 thoughts and ideas with us to provide a strong of the European observatory’. basis for the next European Observatory report. The aim of the European Observatory is to make (by Thea Meinema, President ENSACT, the examples accessible and to start a reflective [email protected]) discussion on the possibilities and difficulties in social work where it concerns promoting the dignity and worth of people. The report focused on three areas: policy, practice, and education. In the field of policy, we see that the work for promoting the dignity and worth of people puts SDG Watch Europe respect in central position, both when raising awareness and when creating policies. Policies created together with the people they concern make them more meaningful and effective, as the SDG Watch Europe keeps an examples illustrate. eye on EU’s action on Sustainable Development In looking at practice, we also found that the tools Goals and methods all focus on involving the people concerned and in this way underline the importance of partnership and mutual respect and The civil society is now getting organized to give a understanding. And finally, the projects ranged push to the global and local Sustainable under education all enhance awareness through Development Goals. A New Civil Society an exchange of perspectives in non-traditional Organizations’ alliance, SDG Watch Europe was ways and the introduction of new themes in established in October 2016 for the purpose of education. The projects all endeavour to bring real keeping the EU accountable for its commitments people into education and students into real life. towards realizing the SDGs. It is a civil society alliance of over 90 EU non-governmental Page 4 ICSW Europe Newsletter Winter 2016 organizations representing a wide range of sectors The work of the SDG Watch Europe – alliance is and missions. ICSW Europe