Criteria for participating in the International Meeting

The purpose of the International Meeting is not to hold an event as such but rather to initiate a process of discussion before, during and after the meeting itself. To this end, a group of volunteers has been looking for funding for several months, and as a result we are now able to meet. We strongly urge you to join forces as much as possible and to consult each other and/or the organisations with which you have worked while preparing Forums to try to find alternative sources of funding and to share them among yourselves. Similarly, if you feel able to pay for part or all of your ticket, this will allow more people to participate.

Reminder concerning participants:
– 60% will come from the Babels network;
– 40% will be from networks or activities connected with the Social Forums.

Faced with the need to reconcile involvement in the various topics and workshops with our budget contingencies, the project promoters have established criteria for a list of participants based as far as possible on your self-selection.

Participants in the International Meeting should:
– Have been actively involved in at least one Forum (preparation and/or event itself) or a Babels project or one of the tools used by the network;
– Have indicated an intention to take part in the Babels International Meeting process, playing an active role with regard to certain programme topics;
– Ensure balance (tending towards equality) between the different regions of the world and the different areas within these regions;
– Devote special attention to areas or regions that will be hosting a Forum within a year or so of our meeting.
– Collective selection of participants for workshops, working groups and regions on the basis of these criteria is strongly recommended.

For example, if there are three people in the same city interested in a given workshop, they should choose just one person to attend the International Meeting. We would therefore encourage the various groups (geographical and/or thematic) to reach the necessary compromises to allow specific individuals among them to communicate work and views developed jointly with people who will not be at the International Meeting.

Remember that it is the process which counts, even more than the actual meeting. The working papers produced beforehand will be essential and will determine the quality of discussion during the meeting itself.

Travel Group / Participants Group: Jeanne Gaffet, Sarah Brickwood, Emanuela Casola, Laurent Jesover