ERASMUS+

Partners reflect on impact and successes as Erasmus+ project draws to a close

Sage Advocacy and its partners, Bagso (Germany), Tulip Foundation (Bulgaria) and Pro Senectute (Austria), are currently finalising their project submission to Erasmus+, following a productive engagement that began in 2021 and encompassed international events for teaching, training and learning; position papers; multilingual resources and communications tools; and a Handbook for Good Practice developed by Dr Michael Browne

Director of Bulgaria’s Tulip Foundation, Maria Petkova, reflected on the experience of participating in the project, supported by Erasmus+ and Léargas and entitled Safeguarding the Human Rights of Older People Through an Intergenerational Solidarity and Active Citizenship Approach, saying that the training events and bilateral talks with partners and other organisations had given her organisation much to think about and to take forward.

She said: “We have come across a few practices that we would like to possibly introduce in our country. Some preliminary conversations have taken place. The Tulip Foundation team is currently in discussions with a number of other Bulgarian organisations about how we might initiate some further trainings and exchanges.”

Ms Petkova added: “Together we learned about innovative policies and practices across European countries relating to implementing older persons’ human and legal rights. A huge variety of different local and national policies and practices in the partners’ countries were presented during the teaching, training and learning events. These have provoked questions and discussions.

“At the same time, new problematic issues and areas of life for older people were raised and discussed, such as the digital inclusion of older people and the limited opportunities to access digital / online trainings; their vulnerability to fake news; and difficult access / lack of services in rural areas.”

Bibiana Savin, Sage Advocacy’s Assistant CEO Case Management and Support, commended each of the partners for their contribution to the success of the project and said that the experience had been enriching and rewarding, with great scope for further work in partnership towards the betterment of older people’s human rights across Europe.

She said: “The connections we have made; the best practice we have witnessed; and the knowledge and learning that has been generated through the events, exchanges and outputs of this project have been invaluable and will have a lasting impact on our work. We are looking forward to the publication of our interactive PDF, which will be a valuable repository of the work completed, and which includes the Handbook of Good Practice, which in itself is an excellent achievement by Dr Michael Browne, and a practical resource that we hope might be put into use across Europe.”

In a foreword commending the Handbook, David Byrne SC, the Former Attorney General of Ireland and Former European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection, wrote: “The Handbook provides a comprehensive and detailed set of guidance across multiple areas which, based on a human rights perspective, outlines ways in which society should and can treat its older members. It sets out a range of measures that can be taken by older people themselves, by communities, by public services and by Governments to give effect to a human rights approach.”

He added: “The concept of intergenerational solidarity in protecting the human and legal rights of older persons is a recurring and important theme in the Handbook. Safeguarding the human rights of older people is an intergenerational matter in terms of supporting people who require services, ensuring they retain connectedness with their communities and, very importantly, that adequate resources are available to provide high quality care for the relatively small proportion of older people in any country who need long-term care at any given time.”

Keep an eye on this section of the website for publication of the Erasmus+ project report before the end of this year.