Peers to Peace
December 2016 - August 2018
The idea
The project explored peer learning as a tool to share expertise and strengthen the SCI branches worldwide mainly in the fields of volunteers’ management, project management, knowledge management, financial management and fundraising.
It worked towards the following aims:
1
Increase capacities of SCI Member Organizations internally and the movement as a whole, share the existing knowledge on key topics relevant such as project, volunteer and knowledge management, fundraising.
2
Foster (intercontinental) cooperation between organizations
3
Improve the quality of international volunteer and youth activities.
4
Enhance organizational management (innovative capacity and efficiency).
5
Increase peer-learning (knowledge transfer and exchange of best practice) and peer-supporting (identifying each other needs and methods and tools to fulfil them).
6
Support peer-learning online (foster cooperation and dialogue beyond events).
7
In Peers to Peace we aim to learn from each other and support each other (peer-learning and peer-support).
There is a lot of expertise within the SCI movement and the project aimed at sharing this expertise as much as possible in order to create mutual benefit for branches and by this strengthen the movement as a whole.
The activities
The project consisted of 8 key activities:
Preparatory Meeting
Gelsenkirchen (Germany), 5 – 8 January 2017
The Peers to Peace project steering-team met for four days to plan the launch and implementation of Peers to Peace: Peer learning and Peer support for Capacity Building in international volunteer work.
 Online Kick-Off Meetings
Online, February 2017
We organised 3 Kick-off meetings where we discussed Peers to Peace project with 20 branches. These online Skype meetings gave us a chance to collect and understand better partners’ expectations of Peers to Peace project, and we received positive feedback.
Online Focus Group
Online, 16 March 2017
A small Focus group with different key SCI representatives to ask feedback on the Olives Platform – an online tool that was used during the Peers to Peace project. The aims of this platform were to facilitate knowledge flow in SCI, to speed up the learning curve of new people, to retain the experience of old members and to stimulate cooperation between organizations.
 Peer University
Mikoszewo (Poland), 27 May – 2 June 2017
The event gathered key-representatives of SCI branches who were motivated to share their experience and learn from others: experienced SCI volunteers, board members, office coordinators, staff members and activists.
Learning Seminar
Penang (Malaysia), 13 – 20 July 2017
The learning seminar brought together 26 participants of SCI branches, networks and current members of the IEC to exchange good practices in the topics of knowledge management and fundraising.
Tech meeting
Edinburgh (United Kingdom), 16 – 19 November 2017
The tech meeting gathered the Peers to Peace handbook team and the tech team of SCI in order to stream the results and outcomes of the training in terms of peer-learning and peer-support into an online platform tool. The team discussed the results collected from the survey on the peer learning platform and suggested possible improvements.
Peers to peace seminar on project management
Kryoneri (Greece), 10 – 17 March 2018
The seminar brought together 24 participants from different SCI branches from all over the world.
Final Event
Belgium, 6 – 9 June 2018
The final event of Peers to Peace focused on dissemination of the project outcomes and evaluation of the whole project. The team also took some time to discuss ideas for the next capacity building project.
Resources
SCI Moving Forward
The handbook is addressed mainly to volunteers and staff members in SCI Branches and Groups who are interested in (re)discovering the international level of SCI. This book will make it easier for you to understand how SCI works internationally, in what ways you can get involved, have a say, and shape our Movement from within.
Tips and tricks for a successful crowdfunding campaign
An inspiring and easy read for everyone who is considering to run a crowdfunding campaign.
Tips and tricks for a successful crowdfunding – Article [719 KB]
Peace run
Read fundraising tips and tricks from an example of best practice by SCI Malaysia. Peace Run is a charity run organized in the last 30 years by SCI Malaysia in Penang. It attracts 1500 – 2000 runners (and walkers) every year. Next to promotion of peace and solidarity, the purpose is to raise funds for the organization to support other voluntary activities.
Peace run – Case study [455 KB]
Fundraising workshop
A presentation summarizing three session outlines for a day-long fundraising workshop run by SCI at the Project Management Seminar in Greece.
Fundraising workshop – Presentation [939 KB]
Results
The Handbook SCI Moving Forward, The online peer learning platform better integrated in the existing SCI’s Members Area, improved by new features that support interaction and engagement of users, an article on tips and tricks for a successful crowdfunding campaign.
Read all the results in the project results report.
Supporters
Partners
The main actors are the 26 partners within the project worldwide.
In Asia: IVPI Indonesia, SCI Bangladesh, SCI India, SCI Sri Lanka, SCI Malaysia, SCI Hong Kong, SCI Nepal and NVDA (Vietnam).
In Europe: SCI Italy, SCI Hellas, OWA Poland, Utilapu Hungary, CVS Bulgaria, SCI Slovenia, IAL Sweden, SCI Germany, VCZ Croatia, IVS Great Britain, SCI France, SCI Catalonia and CCIVS (France).
Others: VWAN Nigeria, SVI Mauritius and IVP Australia.
Teams and peers
The team
The project was managed by a steering team and coordinated by Alena, project officer at the International Secretariat.
The team included the following members: Alena, International Secretariat; Bhupender, SCI-India; Paolo, IVS Great Britain; Steffi, SCI Germany; Sky, International Secretariat; Rita, IEC; Vera, CVS-Bulgaria; Wojtek, OWA-Poland; Wilbert, IVPI Indonesia.
Peers
See how SCI impacted our participants’ lives and what they think of volunteering in the 21st century.
Supporter
The Peers to Peace project was supported by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.
Peer University
Mikoszewo (Poland), 27 May – 2 June 2017
The Peer University activity welcomed SCI’s representatives from Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mauritius, Nigeria, Poland, Slovenia, Sri Lanka…a very diverse group of motivated volunteers.
The event aimed at collecting and sharing existing knowledge and materials on key topics: volunteer management, knowledge management and fundraising. It also had the goals of assessing our strengths, mapping learning needs, exchanging good practice on the project’s topics, laying the foundation for a peer-support system for the whole duration of the project and providing feedback for the online peer learning platform.
Learning Seminar
Penang (Malaysia), 13 – 20 July 2017
The seminar allowed participants to exchange good practices in the topics of knowledge management and fundraising, and pursued the following goals:
- To collect and share existing knowledge and materials on the key topics relevant, mainly knowledge management and fundraising
- To build upon existing skills/tools in knowledge management and fundraising
- To assess our strengths and map learning needs in these topics
- To exchange good practice on the project’s topics
- To provide feedback for the upcoming peer-support system (OLIVES, support groups etc.) and to find ways to support its usage and promotion within the movement
After receiving feedback from the participants, we saw that 87.5% of them considered that they were highly satisfied with the seminar, and 12.5% were satisfied.
All of them said that the fundraising session during the seminar was very useful and a highly interesting topic. Meanwhile, most of them mentioned that the session brought new insight for them and they would like to share the information with their branches.
Quotes from participants:
I had an incredibly rewarding time and I learnt a lot of things beneficial for the organisation that I am part of.
We shared and learnt a lot from the seminar. The peer learning technique was a highly applicable tool for a very diverse group like us.
I felt super inspired throughout the seminar and I feel like others’ experiences really added value and shone a light on new things.
At the end of the seminar (18 July) the Asian Platform Meeting was organised in parallel, giving an opportunity to some participants from Asia to join, and to others to meet more delegates of Asian branches who will gather to discuss topics specifically relevant in the region.
Peers to peace seminar on project management
Kryoneri (Greece), 10 – 17 March 2018
The seminar on project management allowed participants to collect and share existing knowledge and materials on the key relevant topics, mainly project management and fundraising.
They could learn from each other how projects are managed, especially in terms of available human and financial resources. They exchanged good practice and tools on developed skills in the following topics: Engaging people/volunteers; Risk assessment of project ideas/ proposals; Monitoring and evaluating process; Human and financial resources; Improving visibility of projects and dissemination of outcomes.
Participants also contribute to providing further input and feedback to the peer support system within SCI, to develop ideas for bilateral and multilateral cooperation to the benefit of each organization, to provide feedback for the upcoming peer-support online learning system and to find ways to support its usage and promotion within the movement.
Story by Alpana Bhadra, a participant from SCI India:
When I got this opportunity to attend the Project Management seminar in Greece I was super anxious and super excited at the same time as I had never ever travelled alone in my life in such a different country, since I come from a patriarchal society so this was a new leap for me.
Everyone at the seminar were very nice, helpful and understanding people. Our trainer was also very innovative and creative as he got lots of things out from within us which were hidden beneath our belly.
We started understanding each other, the countries, the issues and started concentrating on new avenues. We learned how to plan the project aims and goals, fundraising for the project, selecting the funding organization and then how to measure the outcomes. While doing this, none of us realised how we ourselves evolved from zero to something concrete. Hats off to the team members who really gave us so many things to carry back home!
This seminar has given me many things – not only has my outlook towards life changed but willingly I will be starting a Women’s organization in India.
I genuinely would like to thank all the brains behind this project and whoever has contributed towards it.My special thanks to Alena, Wojtek, Steffi, Ika and Agnieszka – you understood me and groomed me unknowingly.
