A ToolBox for practices of collective action and organizational development that will soon be available also in Romanian due to our collaboration with the Gutenberg Association and MitOst.
APPROACH
The toolkit and framework of activities are made for actors facilitating organizational development from within organizations, initiatives, and teams and in external support roles in civil society. It is based on shared values that relate to working culture and a vision of overall social development. Core values are self-organization, participatory and inclusive process, continuous learning & self-development, and collaboration on eye level. The Toolbox is accessible and shared on a free basis, both online and by printed materials. Content and approach are continuously co-developed in various languages and regional versions.
The Toolbox is a Toolkit for capacity building. It aims to support actors who are facilitating organizational development in initiatives, civil society organizations, or informal groups who want to develop their working structures to act, collaborate and create impact in times of complexity and uncertainty. It is made to work with a team of an organization, initiative, or an informal group and gives the possibility to explore and work on a real capacity-building need of your organization or group.
There are a million different challenges organizations may face. The Toolbox focuses on 13 selected themes, which deal with some of the most frequent challenges of civil society organizations globally. In order to prioritize which theme(s) to work on, teams can use the Toolbox to find their specific capacity-building need. It includes 13 workshops, 59 methods, 29 background papers, 46 worksheets, and a facilitator’s guide covering the topics:
COMMUNITY
A community of practitioners is built continuously by meetings and training on an international level as well as in various local contexts hosted by a committed international partnership of organizations active in support of civil society within a growing number of local user communities.
The Toolbox is developed by MitOst e.V., supported by the Robert Bosch Stiftung and operated in cooperation with Socius, Anadolu Kültür, COMM’ON and Art of Hosting Athina with the consultancy of Laden Yurttagüler and Yörük Kurtaran and the contribution of HIGGS and Impact Hub Athens.
It is currently translated into Arabic, Bulgarian, French, Greek, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Turkish, and Ukrainian.
TEAM
Adela Rusu, M.A.
Adriana Cârnu
Alexandra Ioan Ph.D.
Ana Marica
Ana-Maria Chirila, M.A.
Carmen Greab M.A.
Ioana Hașu-Georgiev M.A.
Ștefan Cibian, Ph.D.
Adela Rusu, M.A.
Adela is an independent expert on development cooperation, management and organizational development of networks in the non-profit sector, with particular interest in sustainability, non-governmental diplomacy and empowering leadership. Adela Rusu holds a BA in Political Science and an MA in European Studies, both from the Faculty of Political Science, University of Bucharest, Romania and was awarded a scholarship at the University of Verona (Italy). Between 2008 and early 2020, Adela was the executive director at the Romanian NGDO Platform – FOND, being actively involved in monitoring the national and European development policies, ensuring representation at national and European level (both in the NGO community and different institutional settings), fostering regional cooperation among NGOs in the Black Sea region (with focus on enabling environment and building resilience of civil society) and strengthening the capacity of Romanian NGOs in this field.
Adriana Cârnu
Adriana Cârnu – is a Consultant for the World Bank office in Romania, expert in facilitation of community development processes. After pursuing a leadership destiny in AIESEC, the world’s largest student organization, Adriana Cârnu has been investing energy and passion in the field of community development and education since 2004. In 2010 she founded Sigma Association together with her team, a platform that emerged from the intention of having an impact on the social architecture of the rural communities in the South East of Romania. The NGO has initiated and implemented projects and activities that revolved around community development innovation, as well as in the social inclusion policies and education, enriching the area with an absorption of 2,5 million euros for the growth and development of the local region. She has initiated and invested her energy in steering volunteering projects, youth workers development and education, but also research and piloting in the field of education, developing non-formal education enabling instruments for teachers. Her overall experience revolves around project management, grant writing and implementation, learning and development. In terms of processes, her main community mantra is that the well-being of the community should be decided by the entity itself with the agents of change holding space for the dynamics. That is why her passions revolve around process designing, coaching groups, hosting and harvesting group transformation.
Alexandra Ioan Ph.D.
Dr. Alexandra Ioan is a young professional and researcher focusing on the development of effective civil society organizations and governance processes. She completed her PhD in Governance at the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin in 2018 and leads the Learning and Action Center at Ashoka Europe. Originally from Bucharest, Romania, Alexandra has extensive experience in program and organization development in civil society and focuses on translating research findings into concrete policy action. She holds degrees from the Hertie School of Governance, the University of Bucharest and the National School of Public Administration and Political Studies in Romania. She also conducted research at the Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society, Stanford University.
FRI PublicationsExpert CommentsNews and mass-mediaOther publicationsTab titleEvents
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2020). Want to help fight the Covid-19 pandemic long-term?Support Solutions from Social entrepreneurs. Here’s how. (Online) Availabe at: https://changemakersunited.ashoka.org/930-2/
- Mair, J., Wolf, M. and Ioan, A. (2020) Governance in Social Enterprises. In H.K. Anheier and T. Baums (Eds.), Handbook on Advances in Corporate Governance; Comparative Perspectives. Oxford University Press: Oxford. In Press.
- Ioan, Alexandra, Mühlenbein, Odin and Shirobokova, Olga. (2020) Systemic and empowering. Social entrepreneurship in the time of philanthrocapitalism. (Online) Availabe at: https://lac.ashoka.org/story/systemic-and-empowering
- Wolf, Miriam and Ioan, Alexandra. (2020). Social Purpose Organizations and Digitalization: Towards an Inclusive and Sustainable Transformation. Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society. (Online) Availabe at: https://www.hiig.de/en/social-purpose-organizations-and-digitalization-towards-an-inclusive-and-sustainable-transformation/
- Ioan, Alexandra and Serta, Ana Luisa. (2019). Doing Democracy: How Social Entrepreneurs Bridge Divides, Fight Apathy and Strengthen Civil Liberties. Ashoka Learning and Action Center. (Online) Available at: https://lac.ashoka.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/Doing%20Democracy%20Full%20Study_2.pdf
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2019). Romania’s election is more about the people than the candidates. Blog article. The German Marshall Fund of the United States. (Online) Availabe at: http://www.gmfus.org/blog/2019/11/21/romanias-election-more-about-people-candidates
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2019). Country chapter – Romania. In More-Hollerweger, E., Bogorin, F. Litofcenko, J., Meyer M. (eds). Civil Society in Central and Eastern Europe: Monitoring 2019. ERSTE Foundation, Vienna. (Online) Available at: http://www.erstestiftung.org/en/publication/civil-society-in-central-and-eastern-europe-monitoring-2019/
- Ioan, Alexandra, Serta, Ana Luisa, Cary, Tatiana, Eimterbäumer, Marlene. (2019). Creative solutions for changing times. The approaches of social entrepreneurs to Europe’s most pressing challenges. Ashoka Learning and Action Center. (Online) Available at: https://lac.ashoka.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/Creative%20Solutions%20for%20Changing%20Times_0.pdf
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2019). The Solution Abroad: Hungarian, Polish and Romanian Diasporas Engage for Democracy Back Home. Blog article. The German Marshall Fund of the United States. (Online) Availabe at: http://www.gmfus.org/blog/2019/02/14/solution-abroad-hungarian-polish-and-romanian-diasporas-engage-democracy-back-home?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2019). Civic Engagement For Democracy From Abroad: Hungarian, Polish, and Romanian Diasporas. Policy paper. The German Marshall Fund of the United States. (Online) Availabe at: http://www.gmfus.org/sites/default/files/publications/pdf/Civic%20Engagement%20for%20Democracy%20From%20Abroad.pdf
- Ioan, Alexandra and Bibu, Teodora. (2018). Diaspora față în față cu parlamentari – o analiză. (Online) Availabe at: https://diasporacivica.com/diaspora-fata-in-fata-cu-parlamentari-analiza/
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2018). Strategizing in highly institutionalized environments. Social enterprises in Germany. PhD Dissertation (Online) Availabe at: https://opus4.kobv.de/opus4-hsog/frontdoor/index/index/docId/2530
- Ioan, Alexandra and Dragoș, Ioana. (2018). Protestul diasporei din 10 august – un moment bun de reflecție. (Online) Availabe at: https://diasporacivica.com/protest-diaspora/
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2018). Accountability in social enterprises around the world. (Online) Availabe at: https://accountablenow.org/accountability-in-social-enterprises-around-the-world/
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2018). Singura soluție pentru maturizarea societății civile românești este perseverența. Interview by Vladimir Adrian Costea, Europunkt.ro Blog (Online) Availabe at: http://europunkt.ro/2018/01/31/interviu-alexandra-ioan-doctorand-in-guvernanta-la-hertie-school-of-governance-berlin-singura-solutie-pentru-maturizarea-societatii-civile-romanesti-este-perseverenta/
- Ioan. Alexandra. (2017). Social enterprises – a manifestation of ethical capitalism? Interview by Jessi McNeill, Young Leaders for Health Conference Blog (Online) Available at: https://www.youngleadersforhealth.org/single-post/2017/10/11/Social-enterprises-a-manifestation-of-ethical-capitalism---an-interview-with-Alexandra-Ioan?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_profile_view_base%3B8cCQ4qoMQ%2B2ly%2FKVpVj1QQ%3D%3D
- Ioan, Alexandra and Boța-Moisin, Monica. (2017). Romanian civil society abroad: perspectives from Berlin. In Ana Adi and Darren G. Lilleker (eds). #rezist: Romania’s 2017 anti-corruption protests: causes, development and implications. (Online) Available at: http://www.romanianprotests.info/?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_profile_view_base%3B8cCQ4qoMQ%2B2ly%2FKVpVj1QQ%3D%3D
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2017). Diaspora Civică Berlin: La început am fost 4 oameni cu o pancartă pe care scria un singur cuvânt. (Online) Available at : https://republica.ro/diaspora-civica-berlin-la-inceput-am-fost-4-oameni-cu-o-pancarta-pe-care-scria-un-singur-cuvant?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_profile_view_base%3B8cCQ4qoMQ%2B2ly%2FKVpVj1QQ%3D%3D
- Ioan, Alexandra, Wolf, Miriam and Mair, Johanna. (2016). Study finds that German social enterprises lead in collaboration and innovation. (Online). Avaiable at: https://www.tbd.community/en/a/study-finds-german-social-enterprises-lead-collaboration-and?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_profile_view_base%3B8cCQ4qoMQ%2B2ly/KVpVj1QQ%3D%3D
- Wolf, Miriam and Ioan, Alexandra. (2016). Social enterprises in Germany and the refugee crisis: What role do they take? (Online) Available at: http://www.seforis.eu/news/social-enterprises-in-germany-and-the-refugee-crisis-what-role-do-they-take?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_profile_view_base%3B8cCQ4qoMQ%2B2ly%2FKVpVj1QQ%3D%3D
- Wolf, Miriam and Ioan, Alexandra. (2015). Facing unexpected challenges – social entrepreneurs and the refugee crisis in Germany. (Online) Available at: http://www.seforis.eu/news/2016/6/22/facing-unexpected-challenges-social-entrepreneurs-and-the-refugee-crisis-in-germany?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_profile_view_base%3B8cCQ4qoMQ%2B2ly%2FKVpVj1QQ%3D%3D
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2016). Social entrepreneurship in Central Eastern Europe – are we making the best of it? (Online) Available on the Hertie Innovationskolleg Blog (registration required).
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2009). The impact of Expedition Inside Culture. In Mazurkiewicz, G., Fischer, J. (red.). Designing authentic education for democracy. Expedition Inside Culture, Center for Innovative and Transformative Education, Bowling Green State University, Kraków, Poland/ Bowling Green, Ohio, USA.
- SEE Change Magazine. (2020). Think slow, act fast: 5 tips for using research and knowledge to maximize impact. Available at: https://www.seechangemagazine.com/think-slow-act-fast-5-tips-for-using-research-and-knowledge-to-maximize-impact/
- CIVICA. (2020). Learning through practice and practice through learning: an interview on social science research with Alexandra Ioan. Available at: https://civica.eu/news-events/news/learning-through-practice-practice-through-learning-alexandra-ioan
- Hertie School. (2019). PhD profile: leveraging insights from social entrepreneurs. Available at: https://www.hertie-school.org/en/leveraging-insights-from-social-enrepreneurs/?fbclid=IwAR1Xf-wkRzDvEEjjpdqOOM6z0mVkh7371Pppqo_vVa3vOgq3A6HVH-eJpmU
- Impact Diaspora. (2019). Interview on diaspora civic engagement (in Romanian) Available at: http://impact-diaspora.com/impact-diaspora-impreuna-cu-gabriela-mirescu-si-alexandra-ioan/
- Ioan, Alexandra. (2018). Singura soluție pentru maturizarea societății civile românești este perseverența. Interview by Vladimir Adrian Costea, Europunkt.ro Blog (Online) Availabe at: http://europunkt.ro/2018/01/31/interviu-alexandra-ioan-doctorand-in-guvernanta-la-hertie-school-of-governance-berlin-singura-solutie-pentru-maturizarea-societatii-civile-romanesti-este-perseverenta/
- STARTx Conference organized by the START- Alumni e.V. (2018). Making a change back home – Diaspora Civică Berlin. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAjF5oO2Rmo&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR3nQv-BKJ382RrZZqHDd9x319kqgeM6vZSXdYqFsjsqNJDuNj3qPnOroqk
- SEFORÏS MOOC on Social Enterprises. (2017). Module 3: Organizational governance: between responsibility and opportunity. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hG3iz8ym-7o
Ana Marica
Ana's professional experience is located at the intersection of learning design, organizational development, and social impact. On a mission to understand how communities can change for the better when self-directed learning principles are introduced in the educational process, she has spent the last 8 years researching and connecting with projects and communities from around the world who actively contribute to reimagining educational paradigms.
During this time, she has co-founded Digital Romads, a human resources and organizational design consultancy whose purpose is to support teams and organizations to explore transparent, open, self-managed, and co-created ways of collaborating and communicating.
FRI PublicationsExpert CommentsNews and mass-mediaOther publicationsEvents
Ana-Maria Chirila, M.A.
Since the beginning of her career, she has been an active participant in the community while supporting the activity of the Institute and the Țara Făgărașului Community Foundation. She holds a BA in Biotechnical Systems Engineering and an MA in Environmental Engineering. Ana-Maria considers that community engagement is an important part of one’s life, therefore, it is important that we create and collaborate, as we are sharing life experiences every day. Ana-Maria is passionate about exploring new places and sports, such as endurance biking, swimming, and hiking.
FRI PublicationsExpert CommentsNews and mass-mediaOther publicationsEvents
Carmen Greab M.A.
Carmen Greab is a Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science at Babeș-Bolyai University and a researcher at the Făgăraș Research Institute. Carmen is also the executive director of the Center for the Study of Democracy and associated lecturer at BBU’s Department of Political Science. Recently she started her activity as CSR specialist with E.ON.
Her research interest revolves around education and, more specifically, around the impact of education on acquiring civic skills and democratic values. Carmen contributed to research projects in this area, focusing on adults, students, and even kindergarten kids.
Another research interest is related to good governance, in particular aspects connected to local governance or experiments that enhance citizen engagement in decision-making processes. She participated actively in the first participative budgeting experiment in Cluj-Napoca.
Since 2007 she is also associated with the Kettering Foundation from Dayton, OH, USA. As a consequence of that collaboration, Carmen became interested in the principles and practices of deliberative democracy with a focus on deliberative teaching. She took part in the development of support materials aimed at facilitating the use of deliberative teaching.
Research topics: Education, Transition and Democratization, Processes of Deliberative Democracy, Good Governance, Civil Society, Migration and Development.
Ioana Hașu-Georgiev M.A.
Ioana Hașu-Georgiev is interested in Romania’s recent past, researching aspects related to the armed anti-communist resistance. She holds an M.A. from the Central European University (2015) and is an accredited independent researcher at the National Council for the Study of the Securitate Archives (2011). She explores in her research the less known aspects of the anti-communist struggle, such as the role of women in the resistance, postmemory and trans-generational trauma, traumatic amnesia, the relation between forgetting, remembering, and healing.
In 2012 she created an interactive workshop for children, Grandparents’ Times, focusing on the early communist period and repression. The workshop is offered in schools, high schools, and camps. In 2018 she launched an exposition at the Țara Făgărașului Museum entitled The Women in the Resistance, invisible actors of the anti-communist struggle.
In the last 10 years, Ioana gave public lectures and participated in conferences organized by the Institute for the Investigation of Crimes committed by the Communist Regime.
Ioana has over 15 years of experience in mass-media, among others, working for BBC Romania and Radio France Internationale.
FRI PublicationsExpert CommentsNews and mass-mediaOther publicationsEvents
Ștefan Cibian, Ph.D.
Dr. Ștefan Cibian is a member of the Board and the executive director of the Făgăraș Research Institute.
Stefan teaches courses related to international relations, international development, international organizations, peacebuilding, and postcolonial Africa at the M.A. in International Development at the Political Science Department, Babeș-Bolyai University and the M.A. in International Public Affairs at the Political Science Department, University of Bucharest.
Previously, Stefan worked as an Academy Fellow at Chatham House – The Royal Institute of International Affairs, Africa Programme and Queen Elizabeth II Academy for Leadership in International Affairs, the World Bank Group, the European Commission, the Association for Community Relations, and Central European University.
His research interests include international development, community development, Africa-CEE-EU relations, development policy, international relations theory, peacebuilding, fragile states, the link between research, policy, and practice, higher education policy, and global affairs. Regarding his geographic focus, Stefan is primarily concerned with Sub-Saharan Africa, Central and Eastern Europe and the Black Sea Region, the European Union, and transatlantic relations.
Stefan is an Executive Committee member of the European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI) and is a member of the International Studies Association, European International Studies Association, Central and Eastern Europe International Studies Association, and UACES. Stefan also focuses on civil society development in CEE. He is the President of ARCADIA – The Romanian Association for International Cooperation and Development and GRASP, and a Board Member with Țara Făgărașului Community Foundation (FCTF), UiPath Foundation, the Association for the Practice of Transformation, and the Romanian Federation of Community Foundations. Stefan is a member of the following networks: Bosch Alumni Network, BMW Responsible Leaders’ Network, and Mercator Foundation TEFF Alumni Network.
Stefan received his Ph.D. in political science and international relations (2012) and his M.A. in public policy (2006) from Central European University. He holds a B.A. in political science (2004) from Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, and a B.A. in law (2005) from the 1st of December 1918 University, Alba Iulia, Romania. Stefan also studied or conducted research at Salzburg University, the University of Ljubljana, and UCLA.
FRI PublicationsExpert CommentsNews and mass-mediaOther publicationsEvents
Central & Eastern Europe and EU-Africa Relations after 2020 (Chatham House Research Paper, 2020)
Central and Eastern Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa: Prospects for Sustained Re-engagement (Chatham House Research Paper, 2017)
Analyzing the European Development Fund: An English School Account of How Presumed Statehood Undermines (Development in) Sub-Saharan Africa (Ph.D. Thesis, Central European University, 2012)
Departments/units: Policy Analysis and Outreach Department, Research Department, Center on Global Affairs and Post Development
Regions: Romania, Europe, Global
Topics: Philanthropy and Community Development, Civil Society, European Union