L4D Learning for Democracy

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Objectives

JRC-IPTS and DG CONNECT are conducting the MIREIA project, which aims to better understand the role of e-Inclusion intermediary actors and to create adequate instruments to show how they contribute to the achievement of European e-Inclusion policy goals. In concrete, the objectives of the study are to:

1. Characterise and map eInclusion intermediary actors in Europe in order to know better what eInclusion intermediary actors are, which services they provide, to which targets groups, how they operate and innovate, and how they can be classified
2. Build and test an impact assessment framework that will allow to systematically collect end-users micro-data through grassroots organisations and aggregate it at various levels, in order to facilitate the measurement of outcomes and the estimation of the impact of those actors on employment, education and social inclusion.

Map eInclusion intermediary actors in Europe

Activities

Within the framework of MIREIA, the JRC-IPTS appointed three experts to carry out analyses to provide a detailed picture of the e-Inclusion Intermediaries local landscape (Exhaustive Locality Mapping) in three areas selected for their diversity and possible representativeness of the European context: El Raval-Barcelona (Spain), Zemgale (Latvia) and Sunderland (United Kindgom). The findings of the studies were discussed in a dedicated workshop with relevant stakeholders at the Telecentre-Europe Summit in Warsaw on 17-18 October 2012.

The results of the Locality mapping also served as an input to conduct the Mapping of Telecentres in Europe. For this purpose, the JRC-IPTS has commissioned Telecentre-Europe to implement an online survey that aims to provide a 'map' of eInclusion actors operating in the 27 EU Member States  (eIMAP). Relevant data and documentation will be gathered to illustrate the diverse typologies and role of key eInclusion intermediaries and the socio-economic impact of their activities at European level. This exercise and its outcomes will help the eInclusion sector to leverage its resources and provide vital insights for policy makers to understand the importance of eInclusion organisations that are on the forefront of digital inclusion and empowerment. The eIMAP survey will be conducted between 1st January and 15th February 2013 and it is available at: http://www.telecentre-europe.org/?p=5699

Outcome

The main outcome of this component of MIREIA will be a comprehensive report on the characterization of the role, structure and activities of e-Inclusion Intermediaries, including the description and quantification of their typologies and an analysis of the contextual factors identified in different areas in Europe and how these may affect the composition and typology of the e-Inclusion Intermediaries. The report will provide evidence on how intermediaries address eInclusion challenges and what are their impacts, also discussing research and policy implications.

Key Dates and Milestones

• Exhaustive Locality Mapping in 3 selected areas: August- November 2012 (joint report will be soon available). The working documents of the three reports on the selected areas are available now:
  • Mapping eInclusion Intermediaries in El Raval-Barcelona (Spain)
  • Mapping eInclusion Intermediaries in Zemgale (Latvia)
  • Mapping eInclusion Intermediaries in Sunderland (UK)
• Launch of the eIMAP Online Survey by Telecentre Europe at the Digital Champions Meeting in Brussels on 18 December 2012
• eIMAP Online Survey in EU27:  2 January to 15 February 2013
• Final report on the Mapping and characterization of eInclusion Intermediary Actors: April 2013

Build and test an impact assessment framework for eInclusion

The MIREIA eInclusion Impact Assessment Framework (MIREIA eI2-IAF) aims at measuring the outputs, outcome and impact of eInclusion Intermediary actors in Europe. It will include both a theoretical model and operational guidelines for evaluation of practices, as well as attempting to link these to policy goals and the way these are measured in terms of socio-economic impact.

The preliminary draft of the MIREIA eI2-IAF was presented for discussion with experts and practitioners in the second Experts' and Stakeholders' Workshop on Measuring the impact of e-Inclusion actors held in Seville on 6th September 2012. The framework will be further validated through applying it to five case study interventions in order to 'test' and refine the methodology.

The interventions selected as 'case studies' to implement the MIREIA eI2-IAF are the following:

1. Community Hubs Project, Online Centres Foundation, United Kingdom - https://www.ukonlinecentres.com/
2. eSkills and your future profession, Library Development Programme/Information Society Development Foundation (FRSI), Poland - http://www.biblioteki.org / http://frsi.org.pl
3. ICT-Skills training and accompanying interventions to address sustained long term unemployment, Fast Track to IT (FIT), Ireland - http://www.fit.ie/
4. 'Pane & Internet' activities with specific focus on ICT training and Internet for job searching, in collaboration with Local Employment Services, Regione Emilia-Romagna, Italy - http://www.paneeinternet.it
5. Social Innovation for employability and entrepreneurship, Guadalinfo, Consorcio Fernando de los Rios/Junta de Andalusia, Spain - http://www.guadalinfo.es/

In parallel to the analysis of the case studies, the JRC-IPTS will conduct the test of MIREIA eI2-IAF in collaboration with Tech4i2 Ltd. UK, which has been awarded the contract for Methodological support to the testing of the MIREIA eI2-IAF. The objective of this activity is to test the conceptual and methodological framework underpinning the MIREIA eI2-IAF, allowing to make corrective changes with regard to the procedures for data gathering, suggesting adjustments to the overall MIREIA eI2-IAF and developing more specific and appropriate tools, instruments and guidelines that could help generalise the application of the MIREIA eI2-IAF in other contexts and thus support eInclusion intermediary actors across Europe to set up and conduct their own impacts assessment.

Main Dates and Milestones

• Preliminary draft of the MIREIA eI2-IAF: September 2012
• Revised draft of the MIREIA eI2-IAF: January 2013
• Test of the MIREIA eI2-IAF: January - July 2013
• Final version of the MIREIA eI2-IAF: October 2013

 

Publications

• Literature Review of how Telecentres operate and have an Impact on eInclusion - http://ipts.jrc.ec.europa.eu/publications/pub.cfm?id=5479
• Methods to measure the Impact of eInclusion Actors - http://ipts.jrc.ec.europa.eu/publications/pub.cfm?id=5439

Upcoming events

• MIREIA presentation and workshop at the 4th Global Forum on Telecentres: 28-29 May 2012 (Granada, Spain)
• Final Stakeholders’ Dissemination Event in conjunction with the Telecentre Europe 2013 Summit: October 2013
• Final Report of MIREIA eI2-IAF: December 2013

Past events

• 1st Experts’ Workshop: 3-4 May 2012 (JRC-IPTS, Seville, Spain). For more information go to the workshop page.
• 2nd Experts’ Workshops: 6th September 2012 (JRC-IPTS, Seville, Spain)
• MIREIA presentation and workshop at the Telecentre-Europe Summit: 17-18 October 2012 (Warsaw, Poland)"