Partner Organisations

There is a long history of student and staff activism at the National University of Ireland Maynooth, a key centre for popular education and research on social movements. A Masters in Community Education, Equality and Social Activism ran for five years, working with experienced activists across a very wide range of movements and social groups. The Maynooth members of MLC are experienced movement researchers and adult educators as well as activists themselves.

European Alternatives works to promote democracy, equality and culture beyond the nation-state and imagine, demand and enact alternatives for a viable future for Europe. They: articulate a radical, long-term vision of democratic, just and culturally-open politics, society and culture beyond the nation-state for Europe and for the world; experiment with forms of action that contribute to transformative change in political institutions, society, the economy and imagination; build the capacity, the mutual-awareness and connection of members, activists and organisations working in line with our values; and advance and defend human, fundamental, civic, democratic and social rights across borders.

ECON is a hub for the community organizing movement and supports organizers to build an effective counterbalance to the rise of right-wing extremism, racism, and nationalism in Europe.  ECON serves as a hub for the community organizing movement across Europe with a focus on developing the craft of organizing through training and mentorship, technical assistance, and by creating a space for organizers from different countries to collectively develop their strategic practice.

The Community Action Training programme (CAT) is a civil society project building capacity of young activists and leaders from the Eastern Partnership region and beyond in advocacy and campaigning for nonviolent social transformation.  They focus on social transformation and nonviolent action with the aim of strengthening the competences of young leaders and activists in designing nonviolent campaigns for social change and creating accessible and inclusion participatory processes and structures. They provide trainings which explore theoretical understanding of grass-root transformative processes and mechanisms of nonviolent change, as well as practical tools and tips for designing nonviolent initiatives and campaigns.

The Landworkers Alliance is a union of farmers, growers, foresters and land-based workers with a mission to improve the livelihoods of our members and create a better food and land-use system for everyone. We work for a future where producers can work with dignity to earn a decent living and everyone can access local, healthy and affordable food, fuel and fibre – a food and land-use system based on agroecology and food sovereignty that furthers social and environmental justice.  We are the UK branch of Via Campesina, the international Peasant’s movement which represents over 200 million peasants, farmers and land-based workers through 182 members organisations.

The Rosa Luxemburg Foundation named in recognition of Rosa Luxemburg, occasionally referred to as Rosa-Lux, is a transnational alternative policy group and educational institution, centered in Germany and affiliated to the democratic socialist Left Party. The foundation was established in Berlin in 1990.

The Guerrilla Foundation helps activists and grassroots movements across Europe build pockets of resistance, that will contribute to larger societal transformations toward a living, circular economy with a deeply democratic society that prioritises social & ecological wellbeing. They support advocacy, campaigns and diverse activism structures as well as crazy, creative ideas that radically shift the distorted narratives of today into a more humane and sustainable system.

Tripod: Training for Social Action is a UK workers’ cooperative committed to strengthening social, economic and ecological justice movements. They work with grassroots collectives, campaigning groups, co-operatives, community groups and charities to help them become more effective and sustainable, and offer training, meeting facilitation and conflict mediation to support groups to work in better alignment with their visions and values.

Zelena Akcija (Green Action) a non-governmental, non-partisan, non-profit and voluntary association of citizens for environmental protection founded in Zagreb in 1990. Zelena Akcija is actively involved in environmental issues at the local, national and global levels, and encourages change through projects, campaigns and non-violent direct actions.  Zelena Akcija is a member of the largest network of environmental associations in the world – Friends of the Earth and a partner of the World Nature Organization (WWF) in Croatia .

Civil Kollégium Alapítvány (Civil College Foundation) (CKA) is a nationwide adult education organization for community development, community work and citizen studies, founded in 1994. In the last 20 years CKA became a leading organization in civil society development in Hungary, having intensive connection and network with several hundreds of civil society organizations and local communities.

Reboot the Roots is a charity that promotes social inclusion through the arts. It uses theatre, music and workshops to support people who are denied their rights to full, happy and active participation in society. They believe that creative tools for social transformation can enable people to participate fully and equally in society.

Climáximo is a horizontal collective from Portugal that fights for climate justice, human rights and the distribution of wealth and power in the world.

Saplinq, o.z (SQ) is a civic association founded in 2012, dedicated to the professional and personal development, support and protection of human rights of LGBT+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) people in the Slovak Republic. SQ provides training and educational activities that support LGBT+ initiatives, builds and expands networks of mutual support for LGBT+ adult educators in Slovakia, and connects them with wider networks within the EU. They educate and empower LGBT+ community leaders, tackling issues including social exclusion, discrimination, and violence based on homophobia, transphobia or gender expression.

Narrativ was established in 2011 by mental health professionals and social workers, in order to share best practices across the Czech Republic. They are cooperatively run by staff on both a volunteer and paid basis and deliver formal & informal adult education across a wide range of sectors: from active citizenship to social work, therapy & research. They offer adult learning interventions, nationally & internationally, which develop intercultural understanding and tolerance. Their mission is to develop collaboration and dialogue through education in diverse fields of social practice particularly working with people at risk of exclusion and discrimination.

Milieudefensie is a Dutch environmental organisation, founded in 1971, by a group of scientists. It still performs research but has also developed into an action group, often operating together with other organisations, such as the political party GreenLeft, and is the Dutch branch of Friends of the Earth. Milieudefensie is part of the 30 national organisations that Friends of the Earth Europe represents and unites at the European level and focuses on five main themes: Globalisation, Transportation, Climate and energy, Landscape and Agriculture and food.

Since 2009 Ideen hoch drei (Ideas³) has supported local adult education communities across Germany to co-create thriving learning contexts within the social/environmental justice sector. Over the last nine years they have worked to empower hundreds of adult learners to develop social businesses ideas from conception to sustainability and successfully created intercultural education settings in response to the more than 1.2 million displaced people arriving in Germany since 2015, empowering learners to work on a wide range of projects including diversity, community engagement and cohesion.

ATTAC is an international organization involved in the alter-globalization movement. They oppose neo-liberal globalization and develop social, ecological, and democratic alternatives so as to guarantee fundamental rights for all. Specifically, they fight for the regulation of financial markets, the closure of tax havens, the introduction of global taxes to finance global public goods, the cancellation of the debt of developing countries, fair trade, and the implementation of limits to free trade and capital flows. ATTAC is active in some 40 countries, with over a thousand local groups and hundreds of organizations supporting the network.

Since 1982, Global 2000 has been working on controversial social themes to uncover potential hazards for humans and the environment, closely monitoring the development of environmental policy in Austria. With 55,000 members, Global 2000 is the largest and most well-known Austrian environmental protection organization and is a member of Friends of the Earth Europe network. Committed to ecological fairness and a future worth living both locally and around the globe, Global 2000 cooperate on campaigns with other environmental organizations, citizens’ initiatives, independent action groups and selected corporate entities. They use a mix of campaigning political lobbying, strategic media work, non-violent direct action, mobilising public participation and awareness raising.

Klinika is an autonomous social centre which began as a squatted community in Prague in November 2014. The centre is run on a solidarity basis, mutual aid, horizontality and equality and holds regular events, discussions and spaces for workshops, lectures, concerts, films, a radical-alternative library, community garden, community supporting agriculture, family club-alternative kindergarten, free-shop, Food not bombs and language courses. Klinika has become an important space for alternative-left milieu and during the migration crisis of 2015 Klinika were involved in providing substantial support for refugees across several countries.

The Public Interest Research Centre (PIRC) works to help our movements — for equality, anti-oppression, and environmental justice — to tell better stories for a different world. They support others in framing for social change connecting diverse groups, in participatory spaces, to share knowledge, develop strategies and strengthen movements. They carry out strategic research to support this work and create and openly share resources and tools for developing better strategy and communications.Their team has experience in participatory facilitation, networks and community-building, qualitative and quantitative research and the production of accessible and practical resources. They have been exploring how language and lived experience shape human motivation since 2010.

Steps works to support the rights of vulnerable people who experience social exclusion. This includes homeless people who may be jobless, immigrants, refugees, victims of human trafficking and unaccompanied minors. Steps offer counseling, skills development and an education programme which aims to support people to stand autonomous and independent. Through a range of targeted actions and hospitality programs  – Night Stop, Safe Passage, My Home – Steps enable homeless people to regain the fundamental right to privacy.

Friends of the Earth Scotland (FoES) is a Scottish charity and an independent member of the Friends of the Earth international network, the world’s largest grassroots environmental network. It includes 33 national organizations and thousands of local groups. There is a membership of around 3,000 people in Scotland. Major campaign issues of Friends of the Earth Scotland include: Fossil free Scotland – the phasing out the use of fossil fuels, promoting the use of renewable energy; Access to environmental justice – supporting individuals, communities and NGOs having the right to be involved in planning decisions that affect their environment; Fracking – FoES have spoken about the environmental dangers of hydraulic fracturing and the pollutants involved.

Founded in 2006 TENI is a non-profit organisation supporting the trans community in Ireland. TENI seeks to improve the situation and advance the rights and equality of trans people and their families. Their Vision is an Ireland where trans people are understood, accepted and respected, and can participate fully in all aspects of Irish society. Ireland remains a place where it can be difficult for trans people to lead safe, healthy and full lives. TENI is dedicated to ending transphobia, including stigma, discrimination and inequality and continues in the struggle for social, political and legal recognition of trans people in Ireland. They work nationally in four main areas: healthcare, employment, education and legislation.

Founded in 2013, StreetGäris is an intersectional movement for women and non-binary people who support, teach and inspire each other through empowerment, solidarity and community. Their mission is to be a democratically-advocating, people-and opinion-making movement that acts to challenge and redistribute power in society.  StreetGäris focus on intersectional feminism and anti-racism advocating that our differences are our strengths, and aim to be seen and heard in public spaces that lack cross-sectional feminist, and anti-racial analyzes and perspectives.  With a network of over 3,000 members StreetGäris’ mission is to be a democratically-advocating, people- and opinion-making movement that acts to challenge and redistribute power in society.

Act4Change is a Belgian NGO that empowers young pioneers with a passion for change.  They offer a network of connection, capacity building skills and events,  and experiment ‘labs’ where learning opportunities are offered.  Through their Generation T programme they aim to create a continuing and self-sustaining network of young changemakers who take the next step of collectively challenging current companies, organisations, structures. 

The Society of Anti-Discrimination Education (TEA) (Polish: Towarzystwa Edukacji Antydyskryminacyjnej), was founded in 2009 by people involved in anti-discrimination education in Poland. The Society brings together dozens of people who specialise in this area, including coaches, trainers and creators of projects which promote equality and diversity, as well as working to support groups and individuals who are vulnerable to discrimination. They develop and disseminate anti-discrimination educational activities so that everyone can co-create a world free of discrimination and violence.

European Village is a not-profit non-governmental youth organization established in Athens, Greece, in 2006.  Their focus is towards promoting and offering mobility learning opportunities to young adult learners, which sensitise young people towards social and environmental issues.  Through training programmes they help young people with personal development opportunities which encourage active participation in shaping a better world.  

Women’s Fund in Georgia supports women’s groups, activities and initiatives for social change in Georgia. They work with women to provide them with proper knowledge and information about women’s human rights, organizational development and related issues, and to improve their leadership skills. They run capacity building programmes which empower women’s groups working in all regions of Georgia through awareness building, helping to increase the level of gender conscience and civic participation amongst women

LABO vzw is a non-profit educational organisation that strives as a movement towards a strong civil society that collectively work to create social change and a commitment to social justice. LABO vzw believes in the power of communities to facilitate radical transformation of the current model of society. A crucial condition is the sustainability and democratization of community associations that have come under pressure. LABO vzw advocates for the extension of a creative community of discerning global citizens who transform our society. The acronym LABO literally stands for “Learning, Acting, Movement and Organizing.”

SPINA are a training collective for grassroots groups specialising in burn-out prevention and sustainable activism courses.

Transgender Europe envisions a Europe free from discrimination, where each person can live according to their gender identity and gender expression without interference and where trans people and their families are respected and valued.

EYFA is a European network of individuals, grassroots organisations and collectives working to transform communities in their approach to environmental, social, political and economic positions. EYFA’s main aim is to encourage young people’s initiative and autonomy, serving as a catalyst for action on local and international levels. A special focus is put on providing access for groups to take part in international grassroots social movements.

Seeds For Change work with groups and organisations fighting to defend their communities, stopping environmental devastation and creating socially just and sustainable alternatives. They offer training, meeting facilitation and online resources on collective organising and consensus decision making, developing strategy, campaign and action skills, setting up groups and co-ops, co-operative governance and training for trainers.

CELL is a non-profit organisation that provides an experimental space for thinking, researching, disseminating and practising post-carbon lifestyles and regenerative culture. Taking nature and evolution as their primary source of inspiration they use the patterns and forms found in nature to create living, evolving and resilient systems and organisations. In this process, other cells are coming to take part in a complex and interconnected organism.

Transition Bristol is a volunteer-led initiative that acts as a support and enabler for city-level resilience projects in Bristol. It incorporates a variety of groups, projects and organisations who design and deliver activities supporting and promoting learning around the creation of resilient communities and social and ecological renewal.

Transition Netzwerk e.V. represents and connects a variety of groups, projects and organisations who design and deliver activities supporting and promoting learning and project management around the creation of resilient communities and social and ecological renewal.

Transition Brixton incorporates a variety of groups, projects and organisations who design and deliver activities supporting and promoting learning around the creation of resilient communities and social and ecological renewal. Transition Brixton’s educational work over the last five years has been extremely broad, including workshops and trainings on, for example: permaculture, well-being courses, practical skills for sustainable communities, food growing and sustainable land use.

Coexist CIC is a social enterprise, set up as a Community Interest Company, which is based on a philosophy of active learning and engagement. Founded in 2008, we are committed to supporting local communities to share, learn skills and co-create a thriving and progressive learning context, which promotes a healthier world for all.

The Ecodharma training collective is a non-profit, post-capitalist team who have innovated and delivered programmes across 20 countries for close to a decade, collaborating with diverse organisations and trainers, to support hundreds of activists from across Europe. They’ve developed a renowned training programme that has supported a culture of sustainable activism.

The Cooperativa Integral Catalana is a transition initiative for social transformation through self-management, self-organization and networking. The CIC’s objective is to generate a self-managed free society outside law, State control, and the rules of the capitalist market.

We are currently in conversation with NEON about about developing training for trainers across Europe. NEON is an independent network of activists working to replace neoliberalism with an economy and politics based on social and economic justice. Members collaborate on campaigns, discuss issues and work together. NEON also run trainings which helping to build leadership and the strength of organisations in the movement.