Statements from national project managers, June 2008 What is the added value of the PATHE project?
Ivano Maiorella, UISP, Italy
In 2005, when statistical data and news about obesity and sedentary started to be edited, UISP decided to analyse this phenomenon in order to see which kind of actions a Sport For All organisation could carry out. Statistical data were specifically related to children obesity and sedentary. As social promotion body, the concept of “Sport For All” UISP promotes is based to the quality of the ideas. It is not possible to promote social changes without widely consider all the components existing in the referring social context. So, UISP decided to carry out a pilot project in the schools involving children, families, teachers, other educational institutions and public authorities.
3 years after and, most of all, children and families involved we UISP is ready to start the third year of activities. The problem remains the same, but the context is changed.
Magazine and newspaper keep on editing statistical data testifying how the phenomenon is increasing (not just in Italy but all over Europe) so the number of bodies involved in the topic is increased, from public authorities to profit bodies.
In this context, Sport For All challenge is to deal with the topic on the basis of its own nature. PATHE is the tool identified at European level to strengthen Sport For All in the development of its own health and physical activity promotion actions in order to actively promote and implement people participation and help them to take responsibility of their own health.
In this framework, the big challenge is to put together organisations which are so different with each other in terms of history, culture, referring contexts as well as methodologies, competences and skills in an unique project in order to reach common goals.
Pascale Portenart and Jean-Claude Arnaud, USEP, France
USEP worries about the educational aspects of sport and its benefits for health and general balance of children from 3 to 11 years old. Within its limits, USEP can provide answers to international preoccupations in this field, particularly concerning the fight against physical inactivity in conjunction with nutrition and healthy lifestyle (sleep, hygiene , rhythm of life, prevention and safety).
USEP school associations meet around physical activities and sports and get this opportunity to express the educational and social values of a practice healthy and balanced. The meeting is the preferred support of sports , educational, accessible and fun activities.
By promoting physical activity and sports, the goal is to try to develop the taste and culture of a balanced physical practice through the pleasure and help the child become an actor of his health.
For over 10 years, USEP develop international meetings as part of ISCA and is aware of the development of new European territories including European regions. The success of our recent USEP European meetings at Cayeux and Port Leucate commits us to pursue this track.
Exchanging our practices, comparing our experiences will promote mutual enrichment, which is why USEP wished to participate in the project PATHE carried by ISCA
Anders Kragh Jespersen, DGI, Denmark
When you have build up knowledge and experience in planning, managing and developing an area within a Sport for All activity, it is challenge to keep yourself in a continues developing mode and stay in the market in the future. I see PATHE as a platform to handle this challenge.
When you have to show and explain your own projects and activities to other organisations you learn about yourself and your work. In the discussions with other organisations and when you have to answer questions asked by others you learn about yourself. At the same time you get new ideas for your own work, see things in new ways and find new solutions for your own work.
When working together and helping each other, you find solutions and new ways of thinking, that gives you a result much faster than if you had to learn everything from the a-z. It is impressing and persuasive to experience the good examples and to get help with strategies and politics, organisationally and technical subjects.
In striving for giving every single person the opportunity to be an active human being in a strong social context with a high quality in all aspects - and do this in well organised and easy accessible conditions we need to help each other by sharing knowledge and experience. P.A.T.H.E. is an investment in development and comes back as added value for all the participants.
IZTOK RETAR, SUS, Slovenia
Sport management includes the planning, managing and controlling of business processes as well as managing all the main resources that are important for achieving the business and sports goals that a sports organization sets itself. It can be seen as a process of dynamic acquisition, organization and management of resources during which decisions are made and responsibility is taken for them.
Sport actually never was only a personal good nor it is – as some social regimes claimed – an exclusive public good. Since it is becoming a more and more complicated and sensitive social and economic issue, there is always more to learn about how to manage a sports organization and the sport projects. Sport is also an important component of the culture and heritage of an individual and society, so it is even more important to know the motives and relations of the individual who becomes a member of a sports organization and of the society which exercises influence over it.
Managing a sports organization is therefore, becoming an ever more increasingly demanding task. Reason more for exchanging the good practice and experiences and this is from my point of view the most important added value of P.A.T.H project wich I manage in Slovenia.
Newsupdate April 2008
PATHE Associate Partners; Slovenian Sports Union (SUS), Unione Italiana sport per tutti (UISP), Union Sportive de l'Enseignement du Premier degré (USEP) and Danish Gymnastics and Sports Association are developing the PATHE main activities for 2008: twinning and consultations with Collaborting Partners.
The twinning meetings are designed to engage project partners and stakeholders in a bi-lateral exchange of knowledge and information on the promotion of health and physical activity. Partners have been preliminarily ‘matched’ according to existing relations and differing situations and approaches to promoting health and physical activity. As well as twinning between associate and collaborating partners, ISCA will be twinning with the stakeholders, and share the benefits of these with all partners.
The outcome of twinning will be greater understanding of what other organizations are doing that may be different or complementary to own work in the field ‘promotion of health and physical activity’.
Associate partner managers will provide consultation and inspiration to Collaborating partners via presentations, seminars, project idea analysis and feedback. This service is to be coordinated by ISCA and will assist Collaborating partners in building capacity for new project development and cross-border cooperation.
If your organisation has a specific interes in health activities, we encourage you to join contact us.
