The coordinator of the Association of Finnish Children’s Cultural Centers participated in ENCC’s capacity building program Incubator+ in Novi Sad, Serbia in October with an initial plan for a European cooperation project. Here are three souvenirs from the trip for building a successful project plan.
- Thinking big gets you started.
Incubator+ focuses on giving tools for developing project ideas and applying for European funding. As a pre-assignment all participants were instructed to create a 10-minute pitch about their project idea. Luckily, before the pitches we got to meet our wonderful trainers and practice our pitches. Trainers’ instruction were clear – drop the EU jargon and tell the audience why they should get excited about your project idea. Think big, there are plenty of phases to scale down ahead.
- Sharpening focus requires conversations.
Throughout the week the participants from all over Europe discussed their ideas, asked each other questions about target groups, deliverables and communication plans. During those conversations you often question your fixed ideas on how the project should be executed and learn new ways from others. Pitching and explaining the idea helps clarify its main goal, and also the things that have to be thought through again.
- Partnerships are the key to success.
Partnerships can make or break a project, so gathering together the best possible team is essential. Every partner has to have their own expertise to share with others to strengthen the consortium. In Novi Sad discussions about geographical diversification and bringing in different types of organizations (governmental, non-governmental, big, small..) as a way to insure capacity building on a European level were active.
