Paper Willem Blok

Toward more democracy and active citizenship

in Polish society

What I have to say on this conference about developments in Poland, is colored by my specific position as an outsider, as a foreigner from the West. However, I am not a tourist, but a worker in your country, operating in the field of social work, social policy and education.

I come since 1993 in Poland. I have seen, and I still see, the country changing.

Poland did quite well in the 1990’s from a political and economical point of view.

But from a social point of view, and that is the way of looking and discussing today on this conference, is in my opinion less reason for enthusiasm.

I like to mention three main problems and I will suggest some elements for a solution.

Problems

1. The first problem I like to mention is the lack of investment in the social sector. The wages in health care, education and social work are far to low and the housing and facilities of many of the institutions are in a worrying state. In this respect Poland is operating far below the standards in Western European countries. The social sector is not attractive to work in. Besides: you are facing new dangers: the more your boarders are opening, the more qualified people you will loose as a result of emigration.

Poland needs more and better health care, education and social work. It is really high time

for a well thought out policy for the middle and long term.

2. The second problem I like to signalize is the old fashioned, bureaucratic functioning of many of your institutions. In my western eyes to many institutions are functioning not effective, not efficient and not client oriented.

In my contacts with students, social workers, researchers, teachers, and other people that I meet, I hear many complaints, sometimes even alarming stories, about daily work circumstances, every day procedures and old fashioned, authoritarian ways of management.

If I hear these experiences, I wonder why high qualified workers are so limited, are tied to so many control mechanisms and -procedures and are given so little room to take their professional responsibility.

I know that you are teaching in Poland modern insights, methods of Human Resource Management and, for example, Mintzberg’s theories and models on how to organize professional work in non profit organizations. But just because of that, I wonder why so little of this modern thinking is practiced and experienced in every day reality.

I am curious to know, especially from colleagues of management and organization studies, how they see this problem, how they are dealing with it, and how they proceed to stimulate the implementation of modern insights and methods in every day practice.

3.The third and last remark concerns the consequences of the neglected social sector on the democratization process in Polish society.

It must be clear that a western type of society - and that is where a majority of Polish people likes to live in - demands a western type of social infrastructure. In other words: you need modern organized and modern managed institutions with a sufficient number of qualified professional workers. Such a rnodern social infrastructure is needed to keep the societal system working, to cope with the negative effects of it and to stimulate and support citizen participation. The participation of active citizens is needed to consolidate the democratic political system and to guarantee the democratic functioning of institutions.

In my opinion the worrying state of social affairs in Poland puts the country on the back seat of the European bus. It also will hamper, or already hampers, further economic development. I only have to refer to the fact  that Poland is not ready to receive money from the European Regional Fund and the European Social Fund from January 1, 2004, due to a lacking administrative system to deal with this money stream.

Solutions

The solution of the problems I mentioned is not only depending of the Polish government and the European Union, but also of initiatives of organized citizens from all social groups and all social levels in society. Workers and students in social sciences can take their social responsibility as citizens and support this community development process, by delivering data, theories and methods for democratic procedures, modern structures and innovative practices.

Social Innovation Centre

From my side, I work for many years now in Poland, initiating and stimulating modern professional social work and social work education. The latest project is the so called Matra SIC! Project. This is a three years Dutch-Polish Project, financed by the Matra Fund of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Aim of the Matra SIC! Project is to stimulate modern local social infrastructures in Poland by building up a Social Innovation Centre that is able to function as the engine, the booster of the modernization process of Polish social work and local social policy.

The Matra SIC! Project started at June 1, 2003 and is operating nation wide from Poznan. The Polish project partner, Fundacja SIC!, employs 9 staff members. The Dutch partner Noordelijke Hogeschool Leeuwarden (NHL) delivers the project manager, two assistants and consultancy. The Social Innovation Centre (SIC!) is a bridging institution between theory and practice. From the perspective of social workers and local policy makers, SIC! is a workshop in which well trained professionals construct tools an built instruments that are useful for social workers and social policy makers in practice. From the perspective of science and education, SIC! is functioning as an instrument to try out concepts, insights and methods and to make knowledge useful in society. The Social Innovation Centre functions as a „science shop” where social workers, social managers and policy makers can get the knowledge they need for their practical work.

I will deliver soon an article in which I will describe the Social Innovation Centre as an example of mobilizing and using intellectual capital for meaningful social improvements. In this article I will explain how SIC! is constructed as an instrument, and how SIC! works as an instrument for social sector in Polish society.

Interested colleagues can already have a brochure with key information of the project.

I thank you for your attention.

Author

Drs. Willem M.J. Blok is:

- Wykładowca Uniwersytetu Nauk Stosowanych NHL w Leeuwarden, Holandia

- Starszy wykładowca na Uniwersytecie Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu, Wydział