Multiplier event in Portugal

National Seminar ”Empreendedorismo de alta tecnologia para artesãos”

The multiplier event took place on 18th July in Gondomar with the support of CINDOR (Professional Training Center for the Goldsmith and Jewellery Industry), one of the best partners of ASRCBFVA (also visited by participants in the second staff mobility and blended mobility for learners)

It represented the project Portuguese Info Day, aiming to:

• promote the project, its website and intellectual outputs in Portugal
• receive feedback on the criteria, indicators and use of the ”arITsan” framework and tools and on the structure, content and possible impact of the intellectual outputs
• involve local and national entities interested in development of crafts sector at local, national and European level and in adults’ education (particularly lifelong learning and  seniors’ non-formal education – mainly for improving their entrepreneurial and ICT competencies and fostering their European identity and awareness) in project dissemination and exploitation of its results
• foster networking with stakeholders, to achieve a multiplier effect, motivating target groups to get involved in the ”arITsan Products” – Digital Archive (O3)

The multiplier event gathered 30 participants from 15 different public and private structures interested in the topic of the project or connected topics as crafts sector development, small business, culture and traditions etc. We had representative of public authorities (Employment Center De Gondomar, União das Freguesias de Fânzeres e S. Pedro da Cova, instituto de segurança social) and organisations and companies from Gondomar and Porto. 

The event took 6 hours (4 sessions of 90 min. each, 2 coffee breaks and one lunch break) according to the agenda available here

First session (after participants’ registration) started with a speech of Mr. Fernando Duarte, the president of ASRCBFVA, who welcomed participants, overviewed the agenda and set up the goals of the event. Then Mrs Inês Oliveira, the project manager of ArITsan in Portugal, had a key note speech related to the project and the need to update senior artisans’ artistic skills with upskilling pathways for increasing their entrepreneurial and ICT skills, also on fostering their European identity and awareness. The session ended with a presentation of IO1 – quantitative and qualitative statistics, with an emphasise on Portuguese state of art, by Mr. Cosme Oliveira, from the project team.

After a coffee break there was a session dedicated to representatives of the project beneficiaries. First there were participants to C1 – Inês Oliveira, C2 – Teresa Oliveira  and C3 – Cosme Oliveira, who shared personal insights of their transnational experience. Then there were 1 professional in adult’s education and 4 senior artisans who took part in the local piloting activities who told about their learning experienced and their impressions related to IO2 and IO3.

After lunch it continues with presenting the IO2 – particularly the long path of change after each piloting activity – and IO3, with a demonstration of how to create an account.

The fourth session actively involved all participants split in 3 working groups – moderated by Inês Oliveira, Teresa Oliveira and Cosme Oliveira, who tried to find possible applications of the project results, follow up activities and future projects (40 min. working groups, 20 min. presenting the results). Last 30 minutes were dedicated to conclusions and future plans, most important being a proposal of cooperation between ASRCBFVA, União das Freguesias de Fânzeres e S. Pedro da Cova and CINDOR, to encourage participants in different educational activities of CINDOR to create profiles on IO3 and to promote the digitall archhive as wide as possible in Portugal.

After the event participants had the opportunity to visit the exhibition of jewelries (with working demonstrations) organised by CINDOR

3 days after the event ASRCBFVA sent to all participants an e-mail to thank for their participation and kindly ask them to fill the evaluation questionnaire. Processing these  Nkey concluded that all of them appreciated the events in terms of content (topics, covered, speakers, the IOs quality, logistic etc.) – al participants scored ”excellent” or ”very good”. Some participants (12 persons) considered the report between presentations and practical activities as ”good”, the others gave also ”excellent” or ”very good”. Also all participants agreed (21 participants ”strongly” agreed) that the project is a successful one. Also all participants agreed that the artisans (and anyone who creates hand made products) are an important part of national heritage and should be more promoted and encouraged, also that both public an private structures should work together to ensure that traditional crafts continue to thrive in the digital age.