After all, it is really a collective effort
Marta Gutierrez Benet
DG Education and Culture ()
Everyone responded very positively to the new tasks, bringing in new ideas and good spirit.
When the SALTO network was reshaped in 2021, back then there was a lot of expectation for SALTO resource centres to reach other sectors like higher, school, adult and vocational education and training. Colleagues in these fields were aware of the support that was available in the field of youth and had a lot of ideas how this could be transferred to the other sectors. At the same time, the expansion was important in terms of themes covered: while we already had SALTOs in the field of youth for inclusion and diversity and participation, the topics of green transition and digital transformation were totally new for the network and opened-up real opportunities to develop the knowledge and competences around these two key topics. Of course, it was challenging to set up new centres from scratch for the new topics, but it did help a lot to have the SALTO network, where colleagues were always ready to share their expertise and help each other.
In terms of emotions, I was grateful to find myself always working with very motivated people. One of the sweet memories I keep from the setting-up period was the first time we brough together the newly established network of green contact points in the National Agencies – the first event organised by SALTO Green Transition, and the enormous enthusiasm you could feel in the room to work together on it and to learn something new.
But I must say that the transformation did not only happen at the level of SALTOs and National Agencies; it was also for us in the Commission an internal process of coordinating a group of colleagues that would follow up closely these priorities and these new resource centres. Everyone responded very positively to the new tasks, bringing in new ideas and good spirit.
As a result, with the current programme generation we began to set up other SALTOs to cover all fields of the Programme.
When the SALTO network expanded, we were basing ourselves on the positive experience working with the existing SALTOs for thematic and regional cooperation in the field of youth and recognising how these centres help to coordinate efforts and raise the quality of programme implementation. The first non-youth SALTO that was established in 2018 for education and training was the one supporting training and cooperation activities (SALTO Training and Cooperation for education and training). We were convinced that the type of support that SALTOs provide would also be helpful for the sectors in education and training, and this was also the message we were getting from the network of National Agencies.
As a result, with the current programme generation (which started in 2021) we began to set up other SALTOs to cover all fields of the Programme, focusing on the horizontal priorities in Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps: inclusion and diversity, green transition, digital transformation and participation and civic engagement. These are all topics of importance across all spheres of life, but how do they relate to the educational activities we finance with our programmes? This is something that we wanted SALTOs to help with and to support the National Agencies and beneficiaries in making these priorities more visible in their projects.
An opportunity to discuss together the future of the SALTO network, how to work together in the most efficient ways and which topics have to be taken up in the next decade.
SALTO Resources Centres provide very valuable support, be it when it comes to thematic work, regional cooperation or support to training. At the same time, the work of a SALTO resource centres require a team of engaged people to run it, and also demands attention from the staff of National Agencies and from us in the Commission. The collaboration goes both ways – National Agencies benefit from the support, the materials and guidance that SALTO offer them, but SALTOs also need an active involvement of colleagues in the National Agencies and the Commission to feed their research work, better adapt their deliverables, and certainly to help spreading the word and making use of the resources produced. After all, it is really a collective effort.
Looking ahead, and as we are already preparing for a new programme generation beyond 2027, it will also be an opportunity to discuss together the future of the SALTO network, how to work together in the most efficient ways and which topics have to be taken up in the next decade.
I’m coordinating a meeting of all SALTO Resources Centres, when we all come together in the same place.
My name is Marta Gutierrez Benet. I have been working in DG Education and Culture since 2012. Before, I was myself active in youth organisations experiencing how it feels to run European projects. That was a great preparation to move to the other side of the story.
When it comes to SALTOs, I had been closely working over the last years with the centres in the field of youth, especially with the SALTO on inclusion and diversity. My role in the establishment resource centres after 2021 was to run the selection process for interested National Agencies to host the new SALTOs (designing the calls, organising the selection procedures, etc) and to support the kick off of the operations of these SALTOs. I remember embarking in a very exciting period when we started working with each new SALTO, learning to work together, building up the cooperation, organising the first events and producing the first materials related to each topic. Since 2022, I am also coordinating a meeting of all SALTO Resources Centres with colleagues from the European Commission – this is a moment of the year which I very much enjoy, when we all come together in the same place!
