Simon Koolwijk

On the 18th December 2008, Simon Koolwijk conducted a training on Youth Participation at Hogeschool Utrecht - Social Department . One of the students, interviewed by another student, and the tutors are sharing their experiences about the training. Hogeschool Utrecht - Social Department is already working more than 10 years with Facili2transform . One of the students sharing his experience about the training Youth Participation. One of the tutors sharing his experiences about his work with Simon Koolwijk. Interested in a training about Youth Participation, contact Simon Koolwijk, e-mail. faccom@xs4all.nl

A very inspirational training. My toolbox has been filled, I am ready to go for the hands-on experience in the field. I am definetly going to use the workshop method and the caroussel for some multi-stakeholder interventions . Three international advisors, who will be working for ICCO in Honduras and Peru, and Stichting Stephanos , shared their enthousiasm at the end of the training facilitation methods. The training was conducted by Simon Koolwijk . The training was focused at sharing and learning theoretical principles of facilitation with the help of the caroussel method. Participants practised with two basic methods of the Technology of Participation (ToP), the Basic Conversation Method and the Brainstorm Workshop method. ToP has been developped by the Institute of Cultural Affairs - USA and is now actively being used in more than 50 countries around the world in development work, governments, companies, schools, universities and other public institutes. The methods are ve...

Great course! The discussion method is a great tool for reflections and evaluations. The course was very useful and interactive. We were involved the whole day, and did not get time to loose attention. A nice and involving way of teaching. I am inspired to use the methods at my work. Students from the University of Social Work - De Horst in Amersfoort (Hogeschool Utrecht) had a great experience on the 18th December 2008. Community Youth Development was the topic of the course. Students learned new methods for involving and engaging youth. Focus during this course were on the Technology of Participation Methods which have been developed by the Institute of Cultural Affairs in the USA. The future youth workers learned to practise with the basic conversation method. Through this tool participants are able to share their observations, feelings, meanings and decisions. It is a powerful tool in getting groups focused and involved. The other method was the brainstorm workshop method. Foc...

"We have set priorities! It was a good day to share and to reflect. We have done a lot of good work in raising funds with our partners at the Balkan for the Green Agenda project. We did not recognise that we had a facilitator today! Simon was behind the screens, but still he was there...." These were some of the comments of the staff of MilieuKontakt International at the Balkan Fundraising strategy meeting, where information was shared on how many local funds were raised for the Green Agenda project. The Green Agenda project focuses on conducting multistakeholder processes on environmental pracises with citizens in 6 countries at the Balkan; Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo. In each country 3 pilots projects are conducted in 3 communities where improvement of cultural and natural values are the key. Some communities are already busy implementing some projects such as the promotion of bicycles in Banja Luka in Bosnia & Herzegov...

Inspiring, variation, let go, ah hah, authenticity, challenging, deepening, the future of our LEF facilitation team! These were some of the comments of the 18 LEF Facilitators, who are part of the facilitation team of LEF and participated in their third team exchange meeting. The meeting was facilitated by Jet Proost, Hannie Vonk and Simon Koolwijk . LEF is one of the centres and departments of Rijkswaterstaat. Rijkswaterstaat is an organisation of the Dutch Government which ensures the mobility and safety of the roads, water ways and air in The Netherlands. The LEF Future Centre assists the Dutch government in dealing with complex issues in the area of water-, road and air infrastructure. For example how to deal with the rising sea level? How to deal with the traffic jams? In order to find solutions for these difficult problems creativity and imagination is a must. LEF Future Centre plays an assisting role in dealing with these issues. Unique Value Points of LEF are the combinat...

At the end of the web 2.0 training on the 3rd December 2008 one of the participants interviewed the trainers Joitske Hulsebosch, Elmine Wijnia and Simon Koolwijk. It is simple and practical way on how to involve the participants in applying modern techniques for knowledge transfer. The web 2.0 training is a joined initiative of Joitske Hulsebosch , Sibrenne Wagenaar , Elmine Wijnia and Simon Koolwijk . They have a joined website at werkenmetweb2 .

"I am very much inspired, but now the challenge to do it at home..." "A very useful course to get acquainted with all the electronic tools, you can use for learning processes", "Lets first start myself and master the tools a bit, before I start to encourage my colleagues". Comments which came from the participants at the end of the training working with web 2.0 tools held in Utrecht on the 3rd December 2008. Most of the time of the training was focused on practising and playing with the web 2.0 tools (see photos and impressions). Participants got acquainted with social bookmarking , forum discussions , wiki's and on how to load down rss feeds . During the exercises Joitske Hulsebosch , Elmine Wijnia and Simon Koolwijk were available for assistance. The training provided a lot of eye openers. Social bookmarking gives you an opportunity to list and store all literature and resources, and you can check the bookmarkes of your colleagues. It provides you...

"The flow was perfect" "I enjoyed every moment" "A very useful course, which supports me to plan my capacity development efforts" "A dynamic course with a lot of variation in exercises". These were the comments of three development advisors who will be working the next two years for ICCO and Stichting Stephanos in Malawi, Peru and Honduras. One advisor will be supporting touristic initiatives in Peru, one will work as a creative therapy consultant with youth in Honduras, and one will be working as an educational co-ordinator supporting local schools and orphans in Malawi. The course was organised by the Hendrik Kraemer Institute in Utrecht. The institute is preparing development advisors for consultancies and missions in the south. Simon Koolwijk was conducting the 3-day training. Capacity development, strengthening local partners to make their service delivery more sustainable and effective, is one of their main tasks. Assisting local staf...

"It has changed my perspective on how to communicate on a different way with partner organisations!" "Most of the theory was not new, but now I can link it to my own work situation and understand the value of organisational assessment tools..." Ten (Assistent) Desk Officers from the international development organisation ICCO received on the 18th & 19th November 2008 a two-day training on theories and tools for capacity development. Main purpose of the training was to widen and deepen the perspectives of the participants on how to communicate differently with their partners in Asia, Africa, Latin-America and Eastern Europe in regards to developing organisational capacities. Participants got acquainted with organisational assessment tools such as the IC-scan , the Integrated Organisational Model and the ECDPM scan . Planning exercises were done with the HRD/OD/ID model of PSO . Gertrud Wagemans, currently Desk Officer with ICCO, shared her experiences ...

Practical tools! It will help to focus my work as community worker! Very efficient to mobilize people and make people to move on issues they consider as important. Students from the University of Social Work of Hogeschool Utrecht - Amersfoort shared their experiences at the end of a two day training on methods for citizens' participation. On the 29th October and 5th November 2008 thirteen students got acquainted with basic facilitation methods on how to stimulate citizen's participation. Students got acquainted with the theory and principles of citizen's participation, and got acquainted with a number of basic facilitation methods for engaging and activating groups, called the Technology of Participation . The Technology of Participation methods have been developed by the Institute of Cultural Affairs . From the early 50's up to late 60's a lot of experiments and pilots were done with a number of community development based methods. One of the most successfull p...

"I personally discovered some aspects of my personality on which I will have to work (want to)"; "I have learned that COACHING is a process!"; "I understand causes of some misunderstandings.." "It's a new way of staff development!" Trainers and NGO representatives coming from Albania, Bosnia, Serbia, Kosovo, Macedonia and Montenegro sensed a new way of learning and received new perspectives on how to do their work. The training - organized by Milieukontakt International - in coaching principles & methodologies, was conducted by Chris van de Sanden and Simon Koolwijk. The three-day training explored new ways of working. The training focused on the basics of verbal and non-verbal communication. How to establish rapport = "meaningful contact". Through role plays participants learned in which phases to ask in-depth questions related to issues which kept the coachees awake at night. Transactional analysis (TA) was another im...

One of the participants, Frank Hulsbos working with Kessels & Smit shares his experiences and new perspectives after participating in the NVO2 Web 2.0 workshop at the Baak in Driebergen, Zeist. This training was a joint initiative of NVO2 , Joitske Hulsebosch , Sibrenne Wagenaar , Elmine Wijnia and Simon Koolwijk . For more information at the Werkenmetweb site .

Very practical! I am able now to explain the advantages of Web 2.0 tools for learning processes. I feel enthousiastic on applying web 2.0 tools at my work! These were some of the comments from 15 participants, members of NVO2 and active in learning processes within profit and non-profit organisations. On the 10th September 2008 a workshop was organized by NVO2 , where Joitske Hulsebosch , Sibrenne Wagenaar , Elminia Wijne , and Simon Koolwijk explained more on how to experiment and apply web 2.0 tools for knowledge transfer, exchange and learning processes. Elminia Wijne presented the changes which have been taking place at internet during the last 10 years. It seems very normal now, but Youtube only exists since 2005, LinkIn since 2004, blogspots have just become popular since 2002..... A whole new world is developping and everybody is "sharing their shit", or is it something useful we can learn from?! Anyway, if you don't give, you will not receive! After the...

This training was like a hot vegetable soup! A clear training; it helps you to come step-by-step towards a workplan! Very practical! Sometimes the course was like a heavy meal, but it was very interesting! These were some of the comments from 6 starters and volunteers who will be working through Togetthere (an organisation linked to ICCO ) which sends out volunteers and starters for a period of 5 - 10 months in a development country. Main topics of the training were: How to make a workplan when you are going to work for a development organisation in the South? How can I contribute towards strengthening the local capacity? and how to deal with cultural but also workrelated dilemma's when I work there? On the first day Simon Koolwijk took the participants through the steps of problem, goal formulation and assisted the participants in planning their outputs (accomplished products) and workactivities. One of the participants who will be working Israel, will focus on producing an...