At the 7th World Congress of Education International in Ottawa, the week started with the Open Forum of the Education and Solidarity Network, on the theme “health for the educational community”. The proposals which emerged during the Open Forum were then able to be looked at in more depth the following day, during various collaborative thematic workshops which were held in the Network’s permanent room.
OPEN FORUM
An Open Forum follows a conference format that enables the active and constructive collaboration of its participants. Four distinguished guests introduced the Open Forum of the Education and Solidarity Network, respectively:
- David EDWARDS, Deputy Secretary General of Education International (EI)
- Alain COHEUR, representing the International Association of Mutual Benefit Societies (AIM)
- Thierry BEAUDET, President of the Mutuelle Générale de l’Education Nationale (MGEN) in France
- Jean-Philippe HUCHET, outgoing President of the Education and Solidarity Network.
Following the presentation of the rules, the participants very quickly became the key players of the Open Forum. At first glance, the ambiance could have seemed chaotic… but each person knows that out of chaos stars are born!
For four hours, participants were able to discuss what they held close to their hearts. Brought together in original coalitions of stakeholders from the four corners of the world, they formulated concrete action plans: mechanisms for health and well-being in schools; means for detecting suffering; conditions for developing a mutual benefit movement; tools and partners to strengthen the network; building a culture of social protection; mental health, anxiety in the workplace and occupational illnesses, etc. The ideas were plentiful and diverse!
COLLABORATIVE WORKSHOPS
The proposals which emerged during the Open Forum were then able to be looked at in more depth throughout the week, during the various collaborative thematic workshops and bilateral meetings, which were held in the Education and Solidarity Network’s permanent room.
The collaborative workshops tackled the following themes:
- Occupational health of education professionals
- Well-being for the educational community
- Development of the mutual benefit movement
- Education in solidarity-based social protection
As part of these collaborative workshops, the CIESS (Inter-American Center for Social Security Studies) developed and proposed a working programme regarding the issues surrounding education in social protection, a programme which was officially signed with the Network during the meeting of the Board of Administration at the end of the week.
See all of the pictures of the Open Forum and of the workshops on the Network’s Facebook page!
