Multiplier event in Bulgaria

National seminar “Avtobiografichen metod za migranti i maltsinstva”

The seminar aimed to promote the project and first three intellectual outputs in Bulgaria.

Bulgarian partner paid a particular attention to the selection of participants in order to obtain a “snowball effect” – each participant to the seminar was able to share the information to at least 5 other persons. So there were a proper mixture of representatives from public and private structures dealing with adults’ education – particularly for low skilled-qualified adults, minorities’ and migrants’ issues and social inclusion.

From the central government we had:

• Mrs Ivayla Pesheva – Regional Employment Service Directorate – Employment Agency – Expert Programs and Projects – National EURES Network,
• Mrs Veronika Milkova – Ministry of Labour and Social Politics of the Republic of Bulgaria – Case manager (Directorate of unemployment)
• Mrs. Snezhinka Dilova – Expert – CFP; MAF Directorate, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry.

The seminar has the following objectives:
1. inform participants about the project and the intellectual outputs IO1, IO2 and IO3
2. make participants more familiar with using autobiography in social inclusion of different vulnerable groups – particularly low skilled/qualified adults from migrants/minorities
3. identify possible follow-up activities at local, regional and national level

The schedule was also structured in 4 working sessions (90 minutes each) – first focused on presentations related to national state of art, second focused on project description, intellectual outputs presentation and using autobiography in vulnerable adults’ (particularly low skilled/qualified migrants/minorities) education and social inclusion and last two sessions focused mainly on working groups (moderated by the 4 Bulgarian participants to C1) aiming to support participants in deeper understand the using of autobiographical method and, in the last part, to collect ideas and proposals for learning activities based on O1.

BASD created an email list and Whatsapp group with participants’ contact details – in order to disseminate the project and follow up activities. Three days after the seminar they sent to participants them an e-mail to thank for their participation and kindly ask them to fill the evaluation questionnaire.

There were very interesting ideas about future projects and activities and BASD started a cooperation with Regional Employment Service Directorate in order to develop educational activities based on autobiographical method for unemployed persons
Processing the evaluation questionnaire BASD concluded that all of them appreciated the events in terms of content (topics, covered, speakers, the quality of intellectual outputs, logistic etc.) – al participants gave scores ”excellent” or ”very good”. Some participants (18%) considered the report between presentations and practical activities as ”good”, the others gave also ”excellent” or ”very good”. Also all participants agree (21 participants ”strongly” agreed) that the stories of migrants and minorities represents important life lessons for anyone and could be used as a tool for diminish racism and xenophobia and also for increasing inclusion of these groups.