More than 80% of non-governmental organizations cooperate with local government. How can this cooperation look like? What are good practices, models, and solutions? How effective are the Councils for Public Benefit Work? How can local governments and NGOs contribute to the creation of social capital and inspire care for the common good? How to build mutual understanding between social activists and officials? What can be the role of local advisors connected with NGO networks in this?

We invite you to exchange experiences and good practices as well as proposals for changes that can improve the quality and effectiveness of the dialogue between NGOs and local government.

Recent difficult years for many civic organizations in Poland have shown that organizations can achieve more and be more effective by working together. The purpose of this session will be to try to learn from these experiences, especially in terms of influencing political decisions. During the discussion, we will look at what results can be achieved even under unfavorable political conditions by acting in informal coalitions and working with partners from other sectors. We will focus on examples of successful actions taken by selected coalitions of civic organizations, supported by the Central Europe Civic Engagement Program (CECEP), in areas such as education, urban space and access to green space. We will take the opportunity to introduce the activities undertaken in this initiative and consider how such support should be targeted in future years.

CECEP is a project from the end of 2022 that supports the involvement of citizens and women in public affairs through advocacy on socially relevant issues. It is implemented with the financial support of USAID (United States Agency for International Development). A partnership of organizations, led by the National Democratic Institute (NDI), in cooperation with DemNet in Hungary and the Institute of Public Affairs in Poland, is responsible for the activities.

Read more: https://www.isp.org.pl/pl/cecep.

The purpose is to discuss potential opportunities for institutional support for civic organizations. What kind of support is available, what is missing, what works, what does not work, what do we need, and what do we want?

During the session, representatives of grant-making organizations and institutions as well as organizations actively working on civil society development will begin a discussion on how to support civic organizations in carrying out their mission in a constantly changing reality, and how to help organizations build resilience and flexibility in responding to challenges.

We will discuss what kind of support civic organizations expect and what support grantors, including institutions that distribute public funds, can offer them. What is institutional support for grantees and what is it for grantmakers? What are the benefits and what are the risks of making institutional grants and accounting for their use based on the achieved results? We will consider whether civic organizations use and want to use non-financial forms of development support offered by grantors, including training, workshops, networking meetings, and study visits.

The discussion will include representatives of the consortia operating the Active Citizens - National Fund and Active Citizens - Regional Fund programs, funded by the EEA and Norwegian Funds, as well as: The Feminist Fund, the National Freedom Institute - Center for Civil Society Development, and civic organizations conducting advocacy activities for the development of civil society.

After the presentation and discussion among the panelists, participants of the session will be invited to join the conversation.

Why do we need regional, and local federations?

This is the question we want to discuss during a meeting with leaders of national, regional, and local federations. Sharing experiences and good practices, but also challenges and difficulties in joint action, we want to seek answers to the question of how to make organizations see the value in federalization and joint representation, which will translate into greater efficiency and independence of the third sector.

We invite those involved in federations to exchange experiences and network so that our voices can be better heard and our actions can be even more effective.

A session dedicated to organizations and activists originating from other countries but registered or operating in Poland. While many of them work for their countries of origin - especially if they can't return there - they are still operating in the local context. We are interested in determining whether they are an important part of Polish civil society and whether there is a relationship between them and Polish organizations. What can we give to each other? How do we build a community? Also, do we bear responsibility for each other?

For the purpose of this panel, we understand civil society to be the non-governmental organizations and institutions that represent the interests and will of citizens, operating independently from the government and private sector to promote social values and accountability as well as address societal issues.

We propose a meeting combined with a panel discussion, during which the postulates collected among the creators and organizers of "small museums", i.e. private, community-based, non-public, informal, archival, collector, and museum activities will be discussed.

We propose an in-depth debate, finding strong, convincing arguments and viable solutions beneficial to all local, community-based "small" and "budget" museums and local governments.

The meeting will be summarized by a mini-report, included in a set of proposals for change regarding social and grassroots civic activity.

we want to honestly showcase our "lessons learnt" from the Election Without a Hoax campaign ahead of the October 2023 general election:
the mass participation of volunteers, the national dimension, the effectiveness of this campaign;
the high technological level of the project, often an educational and technological leap for first-time observers participating in a project that was entirely managed online;
difficulties (still unresolved) in finding district coordinators in places far from the big cities;
the risk of "paternalism" of big cities sending their "surplus" observers to small towns and villages.

we also want to:
hear from other organisations whether they have heard about our campaign and, if so, what their reception of our campaign has been;
talk to organisations in small towns and rural areas (or their umbrella organisations) about possible cooperation.

Building coalitions and alliances by minority groups in the context of respecting the principle of non-discrimination in the disbursement of EU funds - does it make sense and is it effective? Using the example of the informal Equality Watch coalition and its participation in monitoring committees, we want to show how to thoughtfully build alliances to monitor and influence key actors in the context of respecting the Charter of Fundamental Rights. We will share tips on how to coordinate the work of informal groups and organizations scattered across the country, and reveal our know how on how to influence local administration and what tools we have used.

We will share our success stories - there will be two examples:
- a positive one from the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, where a dual approach was successfully implemented,
- a negative one from the Lublin Voivodeship - the Radzyń Podlaski municipality, which lost the chance to benefit from EU funds due to the Local Government Charter on Family Rights.

At the end of the session, we will present the checklist created by the Coalition - how to start, who to speak to, and what tools to use to get started.

The session aims to raise awareness among CSOs that, regardless of the topic they deal with, climate change affects their beneficiaries and activities.

During the meeting, we will discuss the consequences of a changing climate for different beneficiary groups of civil society organizations. We will present the Declaration of Civil Society Organisations for Climate, which we developed in a workshop among 40 organizations. The Declaration is a set of 7 points, accompanied by an extensive guide with tips on how to implement each of them. At https://klimat.forumdarczyncow.pl/, organizations will also find a collection of good practices and reliable sources of information. It will enable even organizations that have not yet considered the climate in their work to start taking action to protect it.

In the last part of the session, two civil society organizations that are signatories to the Declaration will share their experiences and good practices in implementing the Declaration.

The model of intersectoral co-management is an opportunity to improve the quality of Polish public spaces. There is still a lack of a comprehensive legal and administrative mechanism for placing some responsibility for the immediate environment in the hands of local social organizations, companies, and public institutions.

Even if guaranteeing the fundamental qualities of public spaces - safety, functionality and egalitarian character - is expected first and foremost from municipal public authorities, in practice, the complete ceding of such responsibility to the apparatus of municipal administration is neither fully effective, nor sustainable, nor compatible with a civil society culture based on the principle of subsidiarity. As long as the citizen remains in public space only a user or, at most, a casual stakeholder, it will be difficult to overcome the deep crisis in the quality of Polish public spaces.

At the session, we will talk about the needs of Local Hosts from Warsaw, but we are more interested in listening to you - mapping the experiences of organizations and models of co-management from other cities. We will open a discussion about the possibilities of changes in the practice and law of cooperation with local governments, which would enable a cross-sectoral formula of cooperation dedicated to public space. We invite you to participate in the discussion and join the nationwide Network of Local Hosts!

"Volunteers do not make money because they are worthless, but because they are invaluable" - Sherry Anderson

Volunteers are one of the most important assets of NGOs and civil society. Without their commitment and dedication, it would not be possible to achieve many social goals and support the activities of NGOs and public institutions long-term. Volunteers engage and donate their time without financial benefits. So how does the state repay volunteers and show how much it values their commitment? If state input is not impressive, which may be the reason for the still low involvement of Poles in volunteering, shouldn't the existing methods of reward be reviewed and new, attractive forms of support for volunteers be thought of?

Is the experience and knowledge of organizing volunteering in Poland sufficient to propose an entirely new approach for rewarding the work and showing appreciation to volunteers? Should social benefits for volunteers be introduced to support their social activity, and to create favorable conditions for allowing them to deploy their potential, knowledge, experience, and competence? This is a vital question, as these contributions feed into social capital.

During the session, we will talk about, among other things, conditions necessary to build a "system" of public/government support for volunteers, which does not boil down to handing out diplomas and thank you notes. We will discuss what possible benefits and perks, e.g. under the Volunteer Charter, should be offered to volunteers. What are the challenges of public/government administration in the organization of volunteering in Poland? Do we need new solutions to effectively manage the potential of volunteer activities that active citizens bring to the table? What stands in the way of social involvement, and what can unleash this engagement?

While it is crucial to our well-being, the topic of stress and mental health is often a taboo subject. It's easier for us to take care of our physical appearance, healthy eating, and exercise than it is for us to take care of what we feel and how we think. Stress is born in our heads, but it has a huge impact on our bodies. Long-term bombardment with adrenaline and cortisol causes chronic tensions in our bodies. And so, we have difficulty sleeping, we overeat, it's hard for us to focus, and we often experience emotional outbursts. We want to share with you how to deal with stress, how to express and release emotions, relax effectively, set boundaries, and thus feel more joy and energy at work and in private life.

We worked with trainers, psychologists, therapists, conscious employers and employees of leading companies. We have also carried out projects co-financed by NIW, the City of Lodz, the City of Warsaw, and the Wolomin District.

Working in NGOs, we often experience working under pressure and struggle with great challenges and resistance. Skillful management of stress and burnout is crucial to act long-term and not to lose enthusiasm and passion at work.

The slogan 'capacity building' for civil society organisations has been bandied about in recent years - both by those working in the third sector and by officials involved in the programming of the processes involving European funds, and finally by foreign donors.

It is not without reason as the experience of recent years - war, pandemics, but also the rule of law crisis - show how important it is for organisations to be ready to operate in often unfavorable conditions.

We will not go into the definition itself - there have already been many discussions and a lot of research in the sector about what it means to be a civil society organisation with capacity. We know that what is needed are: financial stability, a well-maintained team, a sense of mission and a reliance on values, a strategy, and the list goes on. In this session we want to take it a step further - if we know what we need, how can we achieve it?

We will start by looking for good advocacy arguments - why do we need civil society organisations with capacity? And how does this help the public sphere as a whole? Then we will move on to the essence of the conversation - how can we achieve the desired vision in which civil society organisations are a stable partner for public administration, can respond to crises, and support the building of civil society? What capacity support programs do we need at the national and regional levels? Where do the political system and laws need to change to serve our stability? Who needs this support or is most deserving? The conversation will not be easy, but we feel this is also the right time for tackling difficult questions.

Which institutions already support 'capacity' and how does this relate to the needs of the organisations? How do we find the pieces, stick them together, and make a national, thoughtful, comprehensive strategy for the whole sector? Which institutions have not been dealing with capacity issues but should be? Most importantly- why is it worth avoiding the trap of silos and talking about 'capacity', viewing it only through the lens of one's experience and familiar agendas? We will make an effort to sketch the 'bigger picture' and thus take the first step in thinking about capacity building of civil society organisations holistically.

Do you advise, support, work with NGOs? Would you like to hear the perspective of others in the field? Join our World Cafe*, talk to us, share your experience and learn from others

The session will cover 3 sub-topics:
1 The future of consultancy in Poland
2 Challenges and difficulties for NGO consultants
3 Professionalization of consultancy services for NGOs

*World Cafe is a method of working in groups to share knowledge and gather creative ideas.

We invite people who are looking for answers to the question "How to make changes for a real change?". The theme of the workshop is the clenched fist. Any social change has to be fought for, and the clenched fist is perfect as a symbol of such a struggle.

During the workshop, you will be provided with the basic knowledge related to civic campaigning.

A citizens' campaign fulfils three conditions at the same time: 1. it is a series of actions aimed at social change serving the common good. 2. it bases its power on the mobilisation of citizens for action. 3. It challenges power (political or economic) and changes the balance of power.

Three months have passed since the local elections. The beginning of a new term of local government is a good time to reflect on the state of local democracy and the need for changes in relations between authorities and residents. The panelist will tackle the following questions: What is the reason for the lack of readiness for dialogue and cooperation between the authorities and residents in solving local problems? Is it due to a lack of activity on the part of the authorities or a lack of willingness on the part of residents and organisations to get involved in "politics"? Even though the law foresees participatory tools, such as, for example, the legislative initiative or the local initiative, they do not seem to be effective. What is the reason? How to build partnerships with organisations and community groups, but keep in mind the needs of 'silent' residents?

We will reflect on these issues together with experts and practitioners representing both sides of the local community - authorities and residents. An important element of the conversation will be the experiences gathered in the Batory Foundation's publications: "Everyday Democracy" and "Tools for Local Participation in Poland in 2023".

Rationale: Populist movements are currently one of the greatest challenges in Europe, both to civil liberties and to the process of European integration itself. They often accurately diagnose the concerns and needs of citizens of the European Union. However, the solutions they propose usually do not lead to solving problems, but instead create many new ones.

Different countries of the Union are currently at varying stages in their dealings with populists and political leaders using authoritarian methods of governance. In some countries they have succeeded in seizing almost full power (e.g. Hungary), in others, they are attempting to do so (e.g. Slovakia) or are on the ascending wave (Germany). Elsewhere, however, they are currently in retreat (e.g. Poland).

During the session, we will diagnose the situation in individual countries, focusing on Central Europe, and consider which experiences in dealing with authoritarian regimes are worth drawing on.

The workshop will focus on working on change and resistance in an organisation implementing standards for the protection of minors: how to convince the team not only to adopt the standards, but to actually implement them? How will this process affect the culture of the organisation and should this change be feared? What might be the fears and anxieties of the team? How do we see this process as an opportunity for the organisation and show this perspective to others?

During the workshop we will lean into the above questions, sharing our experience of leading an organisation through change.