International Conference of the Task Force Group 8-9.12.2022
We are preparing the next stage of the Task Force Group, as part of the Sztum Circular Economy project. On December 8 and 9, we are organizing an international conference for domestic and foreign specialists from the Baltic Sea countries, which will be held in Olsztyn at the Omega Hotel. The conference aims to strengthen the process of internationalization of activities and cross-sectoral dialogue in the area of the Baltic Sea in the field of the circular economy. It will also be an opportunity to establish new international contacts in the field of ecology and green and blue activities.
The registration link can be found below, and those who want to stay for two days of the event, please contact us to arrange accommodation.
Diagnostic meetings in municipalities - Green UP Braniewo 22.11.2022
The first diagnostic meeting in Braniewo, which was opened by the Mayor of the city, Mr. Tomasz Sielicki, is behind us. The meeting was also attended by employees of the City Hall dealing with investments and issues related to ecology in the city, as well as young people with teachers.
The diagnostic meeting was conducted by the project leader, the Association for the Development of Cooperative and Local Entrepreneurship WAMA-COOP, who also presented the assumptions of the project and current activities. The Elbląg Technology Park and the Association of Polish Communities Euroregion Baltic as partners of the project presented their organizations and activities that they will implement.
The aim of the meeting was to get to know the resources of the City of Braniewo and to create a SWOT analysis in terms of environmental resources. The workshop part was conducted by Mrs. Gabriela Klimowicz from the Drzewice Forest Education Foundation from Olsztyn. Definitely, the participants mentioned more Strengths and Opportunities that the city has in terms of environmental resources. However, the participants also mentioned several Weaknesses and Threats that need to be worked on. Among other things, we learned that the city has beautiful green areas, is located on the Pasłęka River and on the Vistula Lagoon. Young people in ZHP and members of the beekeeping group for pro-environmental activities are active there. The city, on the other hand, must work on developing the inhabitants' awareness of respect for the common good.
Activity implemented as part of the Green UP 2022-2024 project, financed by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway from the EEA and Norwegian Funds under the Active Citizens - Regional Fund Programme.
Task Force Group - Sztum Circular Economy 14.11.2022
We would like to thank all the participants of the conference initiating the operation of the Task Force Working Group for their participation and involvement in both the part of inspirational presentations, the discussion panel and the working group workshops. During the meeting, new ideas for initiatives were born that could be developed and implemented by working groups. The meeting began with the welcome of the guests by the Project Leader, the Mayor of the City and Commune of Sztum, Mr. Leszek Tabor, and the representative of the City of Elbląg, Mr. Adam Jocz. In order to introduce the subject of the project, the representative of the project leader, Mrs. Ewa Ruczyńska, presented the project's activities, both those that have already taken place and those that are planned. The Director of the Association, Marcin Żuchowski, as the partner responsible for the activities related to the creation of the Task Force, presented the plan and assumptions of the action.
Participants of the event had the opportunity to listen to inspirational presentations presented by specialists on various topics related to:
possibilities of financing activities,
energy,
running a social shop,
waste,
circular economy.
The next part of the meeting concerned the discussion panel, which was attended by representatives of the Marshal's Offices from the Warmian-Masurian and Pomeranian Voivodships, scientific representatives from the Gdańsk University of Technology and the Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery of the Polish Academy of Sciences and a partner from Norway (International Development Norway).
The last part of the conference was devoted to a workshop, where the participants, divided into groups, talked about problematic topics in their regions / organizations and how they can be counteracted. Two task forces were created on Energy and Water, Waste and Production)
During the meeting, new ideas for initiatives were born that could be developed and implemented by working groups.
Activity implemented as part of the project "Sztum Circular Economy - A response to contemporary climate challenges". The project is co-financed under the EEA Financial Mechanism 2014-2021 under the "Environment, Energy, Climate Change" Program and from the state budget.
The second workshop of the Think Global, Act Local project - Greece
A delegation consisting of representatives of the Association's member municipalities: City of Puck, Town and Municipality of Tolkmicko and Municipality of Górowo Iławeckie visited the Partner in Greece, Municipality of Agii Anargiri Kamaterow as part of the Think Global, Act Local project, where the second workshop devoted to the preparation of a survey on the involvement of residents in local activities was held. The event was combined with a study visit and workshop, took place on 8-9.11.2022. There was attended representatives from local government officials and NGOs from Greece, Spain, Romania, Italy and Poland.
As part of the event, participants had the opportunity to participate in study visits to the Recycling and Environmental Awareness Park, a Primary School, a Municipal Gym and a sports hall where wheelchair basketball training took place. Participants learnt about some good practices, which inspired them and gave them the opportunity to reflect on the similarities as well as the differences in each country.
In addition, there were talks and discussions about partnerships and cooperation for the benefit of their local municipalities. For the participants, mainly local government officials, democracy was an interesting topic because of the place where it started. The mayor of AAK, Stavros Tsirbas, invited the members of the Association to cooperate together.
The workshop summarised the work carried out at the first workshop in Poland, where a pool of questions and a preliminary concept of how the survey should look like were prepared. Work then began on refining and finalising the questionnaire so that it can be used by cities and municipalities to collect information from residents on the basis of which cooperation between authorities and officials and residents will be adjusted.
Think Global, Act Local - project partner meeting
The next Think Global, Act Local project partners' meeting took place online on 25.10.2022.
The meeting was about discussing the four most relevant issues related to the project's activities. These included:
The current situation
Preparation for the meeting in Greece (7-10 November 2022)
Technical reporting requirements after event implementation
Other issues
The Association's representative Mr Marcin Żuchowski summarised the event organised by the Association in September. He thanked the participants for their participation and involvement during the workshop work on the questionnaire. The project leader also thanked the staff of the Association for the preparation of the meeting, which was the first physical meeting for the whole project consortium.
The Greek partner reminded the participants to register for the meeting in order to technically fine-tune the event.
The project leader discussed how to prepare the report after the organised event. He sent information to the partners regarding the Event Description Sheet, which is a mandatory document to be filled in for each partner after the in-country event. This document is a confirmation to the controlling bodies that the meeting took place as planned and any unforeseen situations were described in it.
The time spent on other issues concerned the preparation of the project website, for which the project leader is responsible. However, due to its extensive experience, the Association will support the project leader in developing the website. The website will present the project and programme highlights. In addition, it will contain information about the project partners and activities.
Open call in the Interreg Baltic Sea Region programme
Interreg Baltic Sea Region is opening another call for pto-project proposals for, among other things, the introduction of innovative, smart and climate-neutral water and climate solutions that benefit the population. The programme allows to develop and apply its solutions transnationally in the regions around the Baltic Sea, but above all it supports real action.
The Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme offers EU funding for organisations to connect and work as if there were no borders. In addition to funding, the Programme creates an environment for cooperation across borders so that solutions become common practice.
The programme is divided into two types of projects: major and minor, which have a different timetable for developing and submitting project applications
Core Projects
Core projects are an essential tool for bringing about the changes that the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme seeks to achieve. All core projects are required to prepare, pilot and transfer practical and sustainable solutions to the challenges faced by the beneficiaries. These challenges must correspond to one of the Programme objectives under the priorities Innovative societies, Water smart societies or Climate neutral societies.
The main results of the core project are the increased capacity of the target groups to deal with the defined challenges. The target groups are organisations that have the competence to influence the challenges and are interested in these solutions. Hence, reaching the target groups and involving them in the solution preparation, piloting and transfer are crucial for the success of the main projects.
The core projects focus on:
practical and sustainable results
solutions to key problems
pilots
The partnership must consist of at least three organisations from countries in the programme area. The project duration is a maximum of 36 months. The programme imposes no restrictions on the minimum and maximum budget of the project.
The call runs from 20 October 2022 to 14 February 2023 (PIF submission), while the call will close on 14 March 2023.
Small projects
Small projects are intended to facilitate access to the Programme, especially for those partners who have not previously participated in the Programme. Applying for and implementing a small project is much simpler compared to major projects. For example, the budget of a small project is smaller than that of a regular project. The work plan consists of one work package and can be implemented by small partnerships.
In small projects, partners are encouraged to develop practical and sustainable results and solutions to challenges in the region. These challenges must correspond to one of the objectives of the Programme. Small projects should increase the capacity of the target groups to deal with the identified challenges during and after the project. In small projects, the development of solutions is not mandatory. However, activities must go beyond pure networking and knowledge exchange.
Small projects focus on:
easier access to build trust, maintain networks, stay closer to residents, respond to unforeseen challenges For small projects, the partnership must be composed of a minimum of 3 countries from the Programme area. Projects can have a maximum duration of 24 months, with a maximum budget of EUR 500,000 per project.
The call runs from 20 October 2022 to 5 January 2023 (PIF submission), while the call will close on 26 February 2023.
More information about the programme and the call in the link below:
