Introduction

The annual European solidarity programme enables several groups in Europe to run initiatives that further the struggles of our movement. Supporting these initiatives is only possible thanks to the support provided by other European Emmaus groups!

What is the European solidarity programme?

The programme is for initiatives that the groups would like to lead but for which they require financial support. The initiatives put forward by the groups are then analysed and approved at the meetings of the collectives and by the elected representatives of Emmaus Europe. The representatives ensure that the initiatives meet our common criteria (see how it works) and that they will help us achieve our social goals. Once the initiatives are approved the groups are then asked if they wish to provide support by sending funds across to Emmaus Europe. This voluntary funding scheme is the sole source of finance for this programme, it relies entirely on the resources and the enthusiasm of the groups – it is thanks to the daily work led by the members of our movement that this programme exists.

Solidarity is at the heart of our movement

This programme is designed to be an expression of Emmaus’ solidarity, something which is at the heart of our movement. Solidarity is one of our objectives, it is an expression of our desire to bring people closer together and to live in a more humane world as well as being a means of redistributing wealth for a fairer society. The reports of the initiatives led in recent years thanks to the programme will show you how these projects have allowed the groups to make progress in many different ways.

The European Solidarity Programme

Introduction

What are the geographical collectives all about?

The European collectives are groups of members of Emmaus who meet up to debate about various topics and to work as a team. The collectives were initially created in order to organise solidarity initiatives to support the new groups that were being launched at the time in eastern Europe. They have since become more generic structures where Emmaus groups and their members meet to discuss the evolution of the movement in their countries and to debate about current hot topics for Emmaus in Europe.

Which countries are involved?

There are currently three collectives within Emmaus Europe, they cover the countries identified in the map below:

The Poland-Ukraine collective
The south-east Europe collective
The Romania collective

You can find the dates and locations for the upcoming meetings of the collectives in our calendar of meetings and training sessions. The reports of these meetings are also provided on the web page for each of the collectives. The meetings of the collectives are open to all interested European Emmaus groups.

The Geographical Collectives

Container Handbook

The European container handbook was drafted based on the contributions of various European groups involved in the programme. It outlines why the groups joined up and what they get from the programme. It also looks at how the programme is structured, the different stages involved in sending a lorry of donated objects/materials and it provides various pieces of advice and examples of best practices for the sending of transports.

Transport Programme for Resource Pooling

Annual Calandar

The calendar for the programme is drafted based on the groups’ estimates for the year ahead and is updated every time a lorry is sent. The calendar highlights the needs expressed by the receiver groups and the number of lorries set to be sent or that have already been sent by the sender groups.

You can also take a look at this table. Please inform the secretariat of Emmaus Europe if you have any changes or updates to be made to the table.

Transport Programme for Resource Pooling