"Globalisation is here to stay," said Gard Titlestad, Head of Department of Education, Research and Labour Affairs at the Nordplus launch conference in Copenhagen 8-9 November 2007.
The theme of the two-day long conference was to present The Nordplus Framework Programme as a programme which supports, develops and spreads innovative products and processes in education through the exchange of experiences and best practice. The new programme is a result of collaboration between the five Nordic countries, and the three Baltic countries.
"Intensified Nordic and Nordic-Baltic cooperation will strengthen our home base," Titlestad pointed out.
Best practices
The best practice examples presented showed a wide range of possibilities that Nordplus offers to institutions already involved in the programme.
"The aim of the project is to develop knowledge of and reflection about culture in general, and children’s culture in the Nordic countries in particular," said Eva Maagerø, one of the coordinators in the children’s cultural expression project at Vestfold University College in Norway.
Online application and reporting system
To ensure transparency and dissemination of information a new website, nordplusonline.org, has been developed. Also, a new application- and reporting system (ARS) is developed for the new programme.
"ARS will go live the first week of 2008 and all application and reporting procedures will be done through the system," said Søren Langgaard of Peytz & Co., the company responsible for the development of the system.
A new era for Nordic-Baltic cooperation
Involving thousands of people from the Nordic and Baltic region is the aim of the Nordplus Framework Programme for 2008-2011, making it the largest education and research programme of the Nordic Council of Ministers.
"Happy new Nordplus to us all," concluded Thórir Ólafsson, Consultant at the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture in Iceland.
Nordplus Junior – granted preparatory visits
56 applications for preparatory visits were submitted to the Nordplus Junior deadline 15 October applying for a total of 126.906 euro. The grant amount available was 70.000 euro, and 38 of the 56 applications have n...
Nordplus – new programme period from 2012
The Nordic Council of Ministers has extended the Nordplus programme for the period of 2012-2016. The call for proposals is now available, and the application deadline is the 1st of March 2012.
Calls for research on welfare
Further development of the Nordic welfare model was on the agenda when the Nordic ministers of education met in Copenhagen on November 2. Tora Aasland, the Norwegian Minister of Research and Higher Education, called...
Granted Nordplus-projects
The results of the 2009 application round are now ready, and the applicants will be contacted by the chief administators of their respective Nordplus-programmes.
Information about reporting
Time for reporting? Some of the project that started in 2008 have received an e-mail saying that it is time to submit a report. The reports should be submitted through the ARS. In the revised user guide for ARS, eac...
