ZEB Stephansstift
Germany
ZEB Stephansstift is a training and education organisation dedicated to professional and voluntary activities in the field of social work, guided by protestant (belief and) values.
ZEB Stephansstift organised an open meeting with politicians, experts and the general public, to present research on residential colleges for adult education in Niedersachsen, Germany. The meeting took place in Hannover, Germany on the 26th of April 2013. In Germany, adult education is regulated by laws constituted by the “Länder level”. ZEB Stephansstift´s main focus is the Land “Niedersachsen”. 22 residential colleges are located In this area. 25 %-30 % of their budget is state funded. There are always discussions about the necessity of these funds and what they are used for. Every four to five years there is a budget vote – so we always have to show and underline how our work is important and useful. In order to prove the necessity of the residential colleges, and to create an overview of the current state of activities, we asked an external researcher to conduct research on the matter. We financed the research.
What was achieved?
Through the meeting, we raised the interest of politicians from the main parties in the parliament of the state of Niedersachsen. Politicians from different parties were present.
Which were the key elements of success?
The amount of participants, and the fact that different political parties were present, was a big success. It means that they take adult education seriously. Also, we focused on the quality of the research. The researcher works for an editor that has a very good reputation and is well-known.
Media:
Articles in Newspapers, Journals, Film on youtube, Facebook (see: Landesverband der Heimvolkshochschulen Niedersachsen)