Setting sail: Guide to international adult education work

Development of a practical guide for international project work at adult education centers

A super exciting project with the German Adult Education Association (DVV) – this time in a primarily advisory and moderating role to create a very practical guide for international project cooperation between adult education centers.

We were particularly impressed by the very collegial and productive collaboration with our colleagues at DVV International and the partner organization Welt:Stadt:Quartier, which was responsible for the actual writing and design of the guide.

What is it about?

Germany has an impressive 850 adult education centers offering a wide range of adult education courses. However, only a few of these adult education centers have ever implemented an international project with a partner organization abroad. In times of increasing social polarization and a lack of understanding, it is particularly important that citizens seek dialogue and build bridges across borders in line with the concept of “citizen diplomacy.”

The practical interkommunALE guide addresses precisely this issue by showing step by step how international partnerships can be established, developed, and successfully managed—from initial contact to project management and evaluation. Particularly exciting are the experience reports from five adult education centers, which provide insights into their international projects and report on the opportunities, challenges, and effects of international cooperation. The guide is particularly practical thanks to its numerous checklists, templates, and methods.

What was our role in this project? We designed and moderated the kick-off workshop and subsequently moderated all project meetings and regularly commented on draft texts and provided feedback. We were also responsible for developing a teaser video. At the end of the project, we presented the finished guide at two events to interested multipliers from adult education centers throughout Germany.

The teaser and film are available for free download on the DVV International website (in German). It's worth a look for anyone interested in international project collaboration—even beyond the world of adult education centers—as inspiration! Meanwhile, we hope for many more projects of this kind, and we would love to work with these partners again!

Aim of the Project

Encouraging people in adult education centers to network internationally and providing them with the necessary tools to do so.

Target Group

Our colleagues at DVV and Welt:Stadt:Quartier (project), employees of adult education centers in Germany (guide)

Initiator(s)

The Special

We were not responsible for the content, but rather for effective meetings, clear objectives, an overview of the project plan, feedback, and much more!

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