Cross-sectoral cooperation for societal change? Perspectives from Georgian youth

On 5 December 2022, 18:30 Uhr @Landeszentrale für politische Bildung in Berlin, with Cultural Attachée to the Georgian Ambassy Dudana Mazmanishvili, Armin Piálek (DSEE) & Elisabed Abralava (BBE).

We live in a world of complex and multi-layered challenges. Mastering these will require long- term strategies and coordinated efforts across societies – on a global, national, and local scale. At the same time, finding answers to the pressing problems of our time is a shared responsibility of multiple stakeholders , from political actors and state institutions to science, education and academia, civil society, private businesses, charities, technology, media, the financial sector, artists, and cultural institutes. Given that none of these alone can provide comprehensive solutions, the aim of cross-sectoral cooperation is creating spaces for collaboration and exchange, and learning from each other to work together for change.

Accepting this complex reality and abandoning supposed certainties requires foresight and courage, flexibility and entrepreneurship. Informed by international experts, research and practical experience in Georgia and Germany, our project #GEONext – Partnerships for Youth Engagement in collaboration with the Georgian Institute of Politics supported 8 project groups across Georgia to tackle specific challenges in their communities with the help of mentors from international business and organizations.

Our project participants will present their results and experiences live from Georgia via Zoom. Together with international experts, we will afterwards open the discussion and encourage everyone to share their experiences, recommendations and doubts! The discussion will be followed by an informal reception with Georgian food and drinks. Participation is free of charge.

On the panel

Armin Piálek is responsible for the areas of innovation and digitalisation at the German Foundation for Engagement and Volunteering (DSEE). Previously, he was both a freelance and community organiser at the International Alumni Center of the Robert Bosch Stiftung with a focus on social impact. Since his long experience as a project manager at the BMW Foundation Herbert Quandt, his vision is to make professional pro bono services a reliable and high-quality resource for non-profit organisations around the world. His infectious energy and sense of community have supported countless associations and NGOs at home and abroad, including Polis180.

Elisabed Abralava is a project officer at the National Network for Civil Society (BBE). BBE is a pioneer in German cross-sector cooperation engaging diverse actors to tackle societal challenges. The project „Shaping a Self-Efficacious Society – STAEpolSel*“ aims to facilitate access to engagement in the migrant community and to promote engagement, especially among young people. In addition, Elisabed supports the project „Committed to Climate Protection“ where new spaces are created for discourse and the professional, political and organisational further development of the topic of climate protection in the network and beyond. For cooperation, alliances and exchange between actors who may not yet have been close to each other, but who want to „tackle“ climate together. And for innovative ideas and projects that contribute to the development and strengthening of climate protection in civil society organisations.

Dudana Mazmanishvili, world-renowned pianist and Cultural Attachée to the Georgian Embassy in Berlin will extend a welcome address and join our discussion.

This event is a cooperation between Polis180 and Berliner Landeszentrale für Politische Bildung in the framework of the European Year of Youth and the project #GEONext – Partnerships for Youth Engagement, funded by the German Federal Foreign Office in the framework of the programme “Expanding Cooperation with Civil Society in the Eastern Partnership Countries and Russia”.

#civilsocietycooperation

For questions and comments, please contact anna.kiknadze@polis180.org!