With a Heart For Arendal
My role in the With a Heart For Arendal-network
In 2013, I was elected to lead the building up of a national pilot project, as the head of the Cooperation Council in the new pilot project With a heart For Arendal/Med Hjerte For Arendal. I got the job as permanent leader of this network from January 1.st in 2017, and have worked through local mobilization, participation from civil society and co-creation with many actors in the municipality, working groups,organizations and the research field, in order to develop a sustainable method and model for welfare and sustainable local development.
The pilot project “With a Heart For Arendal – a good place to live for everyone”.
Background and Objectives
The main objective of With a heart For Arendal Med Hjerte for Arendal (MHFA) during the project period has been to develop a sustainable model for citizenship and welfare through a new interaction between civil society actors, non-governmental organizations, actors from the business- and cultural field, and the public sector. Through daily networking at collaboration across sectors, with teams, associations and organizations in Arendal, and through participation and being supportive of various projects, one of the goals has been to reduce loneliness by linking people to activities and social networks, often across the generations. See; White Paper Report / Stortingsmelding 29 (2012-2013) Morgendagens Omsorg/ Tomorrow’s Care, Box 4.6 on With a Heart For Arendal. An active CITIZENSHIP through active participation, co-creation and placemaking , is central to the network’s commitment. The project is closely linked to the development of the municipality and the focus on Arendal 2023 which represents the plans for the physical development of the municipality towards the 300th. anniversary of Arendal municipality, but also the work to create good living environment and an inclusive and co-operative Arendal, The network has participated in the preparation of the Civil Society Strategy, adopted in the City Council in the autumn of 2018, and work on a new overall municipal societal plan for Arendal. With a Heart For Arendal has also contributed actively to the Sparkling Spaces project( Levende Lokaler- Arendal) through the efforts of many actors.
Description of challenges that formed the basis of the project
Increased welfare challenges, especially in Arendal, which has not been performing so well in many welfare surveys, have required a more comprehensive effort and a greater diversity of contributors to change and improve this situation. The first partners signed a letter of intent that resulted in the project “With a Heart for Arendal – a good place to live for everyone”. With Heart for Arendal (MHFA) was established as a collaboration project in 2012, between Arendal municipality, KS-Agder and 5 non-profit organizations; Church City Mission, Red Cross, The National organization for Public Health, T5 / Blue Cross, and the Salvation Army.The intention of the agreement was to look into the possibilities of realizing what NOU 2011.11 “Innovation in Care” / “ Innovasjon i Omsorg” named the “The second cooperation reform” ( den andre samhandlingsreformen). During this period, a thorough survey was made to uncover key humanitarian needs in Arendal municipality and assessed the organizations’ opportunities and expertise. In the work to prepare the project description for the main project, the basic principles were more inspired by a health-promoting perspective, than disease-oriented, based on public investigations and laws such as NOU 1998: 18 “ There is a need for everybody”,(” Det er bruk for alle “), Parliamentary Report no. 16 (2002 – 2003 ) “Prescription for a healthier Norway”, ( “Resept for et sunnere Norge”), Parliamentary Report no. 39 (2006- 2007) “Volunteering for all”, ( «Frivillighet for alle») the Public Health Act (2011) “Health in everything we do”, ( “ Helse i alt vi gjør”) and the Cooperation reform ( “ Samhandlingsreformen) – right up to the inputs in connection with the new Public Health Report 2013. This collaborationin With a heart For Arendal has developed into an organic cluster network with more than 100 organizations, four volunteer centers, immigrant council, Arendal Cultural Forum, Arendal Business Association, the regional sports-organizations, etc. Since the 1st. of January 2017, the network has been firmly established and the daily management, office and basic operations are financed by Arendal Municipality, based on a decision in the City Council in the autumn of 2018, deciding for the continuation of the With a Heart For Arendal cooperation/ network. The overall goal has been to strengthen social inclusion through the sharing of knowledge and the creation of inclusive meeting places and activities, to create measures to combat loneliness, promote public health, and prevent poverty and marginalization, through participation and intergenerational interaction.
The development of a Model for collaboration and co-creation
The model and methods of collaboration developed in the With a Heart For Arendal-network has been further developed on the basis of systematic gathering of experiences from MHFA and other contexts in collaboration with Agderforskning Research institution, Trøndelag Research Institution and the Marselisborg Center in Denmark. An overall approach, which should be recognized in all measures and activities in the network, is the focus on the whole person and not on symptoms and diseases. In order to realize the objectives of the project, a Penta Helix-partnership between public sector, voluntary organizations and private sector, as well as fellow citizens, enthusiasts and academia has been established.
Read the research report from the pilot-project period in Norwegian here.