FIERE Project Conference

Thursday 12th November 2015, 9.15am – 1.15pm, Brú Ború Cultural Centre, Cashel, Co. Tipperary

To Register Attendance – There is no fee for attending. Email Angela Sheehan, Tipperary County Council atangela.sheehan@tipperarycoco.ie

Tipperary County Council (TCC) is the co-ordinator of the EU Lifelong Learning GRUNDTVIG part-funded project called FIERE (‘Furthering Innovative Entrepreneurial Regions of Europe’). There are a further six European organisations involved as project partners in FIERE – CESIE, Sicily; Waterford Institute of Technology, Ireland; Institute for Postgraduate Studies, Bulgaria; Allweb Solutions SA, Greece; Associacao Comercial e Industrial de Barcelos, Portugal; and EinurðLimited, Iceland. FIERE aims to enhance local and regional organisations in the public and community/voluntary sectors with innovative entrepreneurship skills that can facilitate bottom-up local/regional development and tie-in with top-down development policies, across the six participating regions. Since January 2014, the partners have been managing the project’s local and international activities and exploring the role of innovative entrepreneurship in their respective regions, culminating in development of a short-form Entrepreneurial & Innovative Skills Training Programme. Information and documentation published by the project can be viewed at www.fiereproject.eu.

This half-day conference will appeal to research institutions, public agencies and community/voluntary organisations and individuals. It will be attended by representatives from the projects’ EU partners. Participants will learn about current practice in the area of public and community sectors adapting to change through innovation. Case studies will be presented showcasing how organisations have successfully implemented “innovative” and “entrepreneurial” ways for improving their impact. Participants will also have the opportunity to network as well as engage in some creativity/innovation exercises.

Programme

09.15 – 10.00     Registration (and early morning brain teasers!)

10.00 – 10.10     Welcome by Cllr. Seamus Hanafin, Cathaoirleach, Tipperary County Council

10.10 – 10.30     Address by Mr. Alan Kelly, Minister for the Environment, Community & Local Government(to be confirmed)

10.30 – 10.45     Prof. Bill O’Gorman, Research Manager, Centre for Enterprise Development & Regional Economy, Waterford Institute of Technology – The FIERE Project, what it has delivered

10.45 – 11.15     Case Study Session (8-10 min. presentations followed by Q&A)

o    Mr. Stephen Plunkett, CEO, U-Casadh Social Inclusion Project

o    Mr. Seán Keating, Director of Services, Tipperary County Council

11.15 – 12.00     Break (and networking over some creativity/innovation exercises!)

12.00 – 12.15    Ms. Clíodhna O’Callaghan & Ms. Déirdre O’Byrne, Centre for Adult Continuing Education (ACE), University College Cork – Partnership between ACE & the Voluntary and Community Sector: Fostering Innovation, Resilience, Leadership and Critical Thinking within Social Enterprises

12.15 – 12.30     Ms. Stefanía G. Kristinsdóttir, MD, Einurð ehf. – “Fragile Communities”, an initiative in Iceland to tackle communities suffering economic decline

12.30 – 13.00     Case Study Session (8-10 min. presentations followed by Q&A)

o    Ms. Mary Fogarty, Founder, Loughmore Community Shop & Tea Rooms

o    To be confirmed

13.00                   Closing Remarks & Light Lunch