Training Centre and Tailor-Made Services
ECAS provides tailor-made services to civil society organisations based on individual requests. These services include a large variety of activities ranging from research and analysis on EU issues to organising study tours, internships, and conferences to technical assistance and capacity-building.
As part of its capacity-building services, ECAS offers customised training modules on EU Fundraising, Project Management, EU Advocacy, Post-2020 EU Policy and Funding and EU Project Writing as well as biannual training workshops at our premises in Brussels.
If you are interested in benefiting from our services, please contact Huw Longton.
Huw.Longton@ecas.org
+32 2 548 02 92
Why choose ECAS?
ECAS has over 25 years’ experience providing capacity-building services to civil society organisations across Europe, including training and technical assistance, event organisation and advocacy advice. Our expertise in EU fundraising and projects, advocacy and events, among other things, derives from our many years working on projects and campaigns with partners throughout Europe, our close connections with the EU institutions and our pan-European network of members.
Meet the Trainers
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| Huw Longton
Training and Outreach Coordinator at ECAS. He specialises in EU funding and advocacy, co-authored the 2017 European Funding Guide for the Non-Profit Sector and monitors EU funding opportunities for CSOs |
Elisa Lironi
Digital Democracy Manager at ECAS. She has a strong track record campaigning and advocating at EU level for ECAS, the Union of European Federalists and the Party of European Socialists. |
Assya Kavrakova
Executive Director of ECAS. She has worked on fundraising, project management and advocacy for almost 20 years as Director of European Policies and the Civic Participation Program at Open Society Institute in Sofia, Bulgaria, from 2000 to 2012 and, since 2012, Executive Director of ECAS. |
Upcoming courses
EU Funding: Policies and Programmes (12 February 2019, Brussels)
EU Project Writing (13 February 2019, Brussels)
Post-2020 Multiannual Financial Framework: Policy Framework and Funding Programmes (14 February 2019, Brussels)
EU Advocacy: Shaping the Agenda at EU Level (19 February 2019, Brussels)
EU Project Cycle Management (20 February 2019, Brussels)
Register for one or more workshops here.
Past Experience and References
Training sessions
- Training workshop on EU funding and policy post-2020 for the Open Society Europe Policy Institute in Brussels. Reference: Violeta Naydenova (Violeta.Naydenova@opensocietyfoundations.org)
- Training workshop on the Ins and Outs of EU Funding and Project Management for the Salvation Army’s EU Funding Conference. Reference: Mike Stannett (MSTANNETT@armeedusalut.be)
- Tips & tricks to submit a project under the Europe for Citizens Programme for a group of Flemish organisations, as part of an information day organised by the Flemish Community Commission (VGC). References: Delphine Dumon (delphine.dumon@cjsm.vlaanderen.be)
- 2-day tailor-made training on EU public funding and Communication for Albanian CSOs in Tirana, Albania. References: Klodjan Seferaj, Open Society Albania (klodjan.seferaj@osfa.al)
- Training workshop on the EU budget cycle for Open Society Europe Policy Institute in Brussels. References: Violeta Naydenova (Violeta.Naydenova@opensocietyfoundations.org)
- 2-day advanced courses for non-profits on Strategic Communication and EU Fundraising offered at ECAS premises (see the agenda for both sessions here)
- Training workshop on EU fundraising in the field of youth beyond Erasmus+ at the European Youth Forum in the framework of the 2015 Secretary General’s Day. References: Alfonso Aliberti (aliberti@youthforum.org)
- Training workshop on effective political lobbying, in the framework of the Federalist Training Academy organised by the Union of European Federalists. References: Mana Livardjani (mana.livardjani@federalists.eu)
- Training on fostering digital participation at EU level to a group of civil society organisations (CSOs) from the Saxony Anhalt Lander
- Training session on EU funding opportunities and effective advocacy and lobbying to a group of Turkish CSOs, as part of a study visit to Brussels co-organised with the Association of Civil Society Development Centre of Ankara (STGM). References: Heval Simsek (heval@stgm.org.tr)
- Training on EU funding opportunities offered at the Directory of Social Change premises in London for UK-based charities and organisations working in the field of social inclusion, restorative justice and aid to the most deprived. References: Annette Lewis (alewis@dsc.org.uk)
- Training on EU funding to Romanian and Hungarian CSOs, as part of a study visit to Brussels organised by ECAS under the European Participation Initiatives for Citizens project (EPIC)
- Training on the European Citizens’ Initiative and on funding opportunities under Erasmus+ offered to a group of representatives from Italian Service Centres for Volunteering. References: Sara Fasoli (sara.fasoli@cev.be)
- Training on the European Citizens’ Initiative at Social Platform (in the framework of the ECI Support Centre coordinated by ECAS). References: Alison Coleman (acoleman@transparency.org)
Conferences & Events
- Alliance ELIANT – Towards a healthy digital ecosystem: Values, Competences & Responsibilities (Brussels, 28 November 2017)
- Alliance ELIANT – Freedom of Choice Under Threat: What Can European Citizens Do? (Brussels, 7 November 2016)
- AIRE Centre – “Invisible EU Migrants: Towards a European Policy Response”: http://invisibleeumigrants.org/. See here for more information
- University of G. Annunzio of Chieti, Pescara, Italy – “The Europeanisation of Everyday Life: Cross-Border Practices and Transnational Identities among EU and Third-Country Citizens” (EUCROSS final conference in Brussels)
- University of G. Annunzio of Chieti, Pescara, Italy – “Europe, it’s me: State of play on rights and political participation of EU mobile citizens”
Technical Assistance
- The IMPACT Office for Cross-sector Partnership and Civic Dialogue – Brussels Office (BO) established in October 2009 as a result of cooperation between the National Foundation for Civil Society Development (NFCSD) and ECAS provided tailor-made advice and support to CSOs in Croatia in order to sustain their capacity and enhance their skills and expertise in a Europe-wide context. Website: http://www.impact-center.eu/frontpage
- Technical assistance to the Open Society Foundation in Albania (Good Governance and EU Integration Program) on the methodology for conducting “Civic Monitoring of the Progress of Albania in the Implementation of the First Phase of the Stabilization and Association Agreement (2009-2014)”. This includes training the team of experts in Tirana, provision of feedback to the Monitoring Report and support to the outreach activities on the main findings.
Website: http://www.soros.al/
Contact
Interested in personalised services for your organisation? Fill in the form below stating your specific needs and we will get back to you soon with a proposal! Or contact us explaining us what you are looking for and see how we can accommodate your request.
Testimonials
Thank you for the motivation to keep going!
Looking forward to staying in touch and find out more about funding opportunities, and tips to write a successful international project.
ECAS has an outstanding experience in providing useful information on EU funding and how to increase your chances to get some of it for your work. Regular “call for proposal” alerts, an Annual Funding Guide plus a crisp and well-structured set of f2f training sessions related to EU funded project know-how do provide best value for money – highly recommended!
I followed ECAS’ training on advocacy, EU fundraising and project management and I would certainly recommend it!
Great format: perfect balance between theory, home assignment and feedback session
Great staff: competent and available
Great approach: useful tips/tools for our day-to-day work and a tailored feedback session for ready-to-use strategy
ECAS prepared a really insightful training on EU funding for our organisation divided into two sessions (an introduction on the different schemes that suited us and a hands-on follow up), both of which were completely tailored to our needs. The trainer did not only provide us with comprehensive and customised information, but she also gave us feedback on our concept note to improve our future proposal. She also shared extremely valuable tips and tricks on what the European Commission looks for when assessing a project. We would definitely recommend their services!
ECAS’ training on the EU budget cycle has helped our office to identify the different stakeholders and advocacy ‘entry points’ in this field. We particularly appreciated the fact that the trainer dwelt a great deal on how significantly the timeframe of the budgetary procedure differs in practice from the one outlined in the Treaties.
J’ai eu l’occasion de suivre une formation chez ECAS dans le but de mieux appréhender les mécanismes des aides et des projets européens destinés aux opérateurs de notre secteur. J’ai pu à cette occasion apprécier la compétence et le pragmatisme des responsables d’ECAS ainsi que des autres intervenants et leur disponibilité à répondre de manière exhaustive à nos questions. J’estime que cette formation va nous permettre d’exploiter au mieux nos ressources et nous éviter de gâcher beaucoup de temps en prospections inutiles.
A group of 10 Turkish CSOs led by our organisation participated in a study visit to Brussels organised by ECAS. ECAS offered a training on EU funding and effective advocacy and campaigning, which was greatly appreciated by our participants and has been a notable experience for them. ECAS also facilitated meetings with Belgian CSOs and EU networks and platforms enabling our participants to exchange information and identify new partnership opportunities.
I took part in a two-day training in Communication and EU Fundraising for civil society organizations organised by ECAS in Tirana. The training fitted perfectly with my day-to-day work in identifying the best communications techniques to approach targeted audiences. Additionally it highly improved my skills in terms of dealing with the most relevant EU funding programs.
