CALL FOR SESSION PROPOSALS 2018 EFC AGA and Conference: “Culture matters: Connecting citizens, uniting communities”
29-31 May 2018 – Square, Brussels Meeting Centre
Culture is one of the most valuable yet often least appreciated commodities we have. It’s about shared experiences, bringing different people together to share a common interest. Culture creates personal connections – to societies, communities, identities and, most importantly, to other people. At its strongest, it provokes a feeling of belonging.
Culture can be seen, heard, tasted and experienced; it can be passed on visually or orally from one generation to the next. As such, our cultural heritage is a bridge from where we have come from to where we are going, a legacy we don’t own but rather borrow from future generations. This is where the unique nature of philanthropy has a major role to play, to ensure that culture is both an asset to be enjoyed in the now and a legacy to be appreciated in the future.
In short, culture matters.
But what are foundations doing to support it? And what role do they play in the relationship between culture, citizens and communities? The Conference Committee is looking for session proposals that will stimulate debate on the topics of foundations and
- Cultural heritage (tangible/intangible, natural/built environment…)
- Cultural identity in times of superdiversity
- New funding trends/tools for arts and culture
- Impact of digitalisation and new technologies on culture
- Democracy and culture (culture as an a tool to promote democracy, but also “democratisation” of culture/inclusive culture for all)
- Science, education and cultural innovation
- Leadership culture within the sector
- Culture as an instrument to change behaviours
This call is an opportunity for all members to share their interests and expectations, as well as to contribute first-hand to the design of the Conference. Its success depends on you too!
Submission Criteria
Session proposals:
- Must fall into one of the categories suggested by the committee
- Cannot be self-promoting or focus on only one organisation or project – on the contrary, they should focus on raising issues and taking advantage of the audience to stimulate discussion and interaction among conference delegates
- Must be submitted by a minimum of three organisations, ideally of different types and/or geographic location, one of which must be a member of the EFC
- Must interest (and be relevant to) a wide range of foundations, regardless of their field of activity. If several proposals on the same theme are received, priority will be given to the proposal sent from active groups/networks of EFC members
- Need to have varied and interactive formats
- Must engage attendees and invite debate
General information
Before completing and returning your session proposal form to the AGA Secretariat at , please keep in mind:
· Deadline for submission is THURSDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2017
· Only information supplied in the form will be considered. Please do not send other papers or cover letters.
· Proposals that do not fully meet the submission criteria will not be taken into account.
· The Committee will take into consideration the coherence with the theme and the overall fit of each session within the broader context of the Conference. For this reason, they may eventually suggest changes regarding the proposed format, speakers/moderators, timing, specific session content, etc.
· The Committee’s decision is final.
Next steps
· The results of the selection will be shared in December.
· Organisers of selected sessions will be required to start finalising their session content (including title and description) and confirming suggested speakers as soon as possible after that. Costs for speakers travel/accommodation/registrations and special AV/IT requests are to be covered by the organizers.
· Draft session proposals will be posted online in January, when the online registrations open.
CALL FOR SESSION PROPOSALS – FORM
Deadline for submissions: THURSDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2017
1. Proposed session title (max 80 characters)
______
Session description (max 500 characters)
______
Should this session be accepted, the title and description will be published online if no changes are sent to the AGA Secretariat by 10 January 2018.
2. What are the key questions this session aims to address?
______
Why this session - What will make Conference delegates choose to attend this session and what will they get out of it? How will you make it relevant to a wide range of grantmaking/operating foundations?
______
Context for your session – Against what socio-political-economical backdrop will the conversation take place?
______
3. Session format and timing – How will this session be structured and run?
Please be specific: the 2018 Programme Committee is looking for creative sessions which will evolve around dynamic interaction and stimulate debate in the room (and beyond). No lectures, endless power-point presentations or self-promotion!
______
4. Facilitators/moderators – Initial ideas
Please include a variety of geographic, ethnic, gender and otherwise diverse backgrounds in the team that will facilitate the session. The Committee reserves the right to send suggestions to increase these perspectives. As far as possible, indicate how likely it is that these speakers will participate. ______
By submitting this form, you confirm that you have read, understood and agreed to the aforementioned guidelines.
3