Making numbers: interview with Alan Tuckett

By Enrique Buchichio
ICAE

Alan Tuckett is Director of the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE), having worked previously as an adult education organizer in Brighton and as a Principal in inner London. He started Adult Learners’ Week in the UK in 1992, and supported its adoption by UNESCO, and its spread to more than 50 countries. He is a Special Professor in Continuing Education at the University of Nottingham and an Honorary Professor at the Institute of Lifelong Learning at Leicester University. He advises UNESCO on adult learning.

Alan Tuckett is also treasurer of the International Council for Adult Education (ICAE), which is why we consulted him to know about the financial needs and challenges in the way to the ICAE VIII World Assembly in Malmö, Sweden (14-17 June).

As treasurer of ICAE, it’s easy to assume that you play a key role in organizing an event like the World Assembly. How costly is an event like this and how are you working to arrange all the financial needs?

The budget for a World Assembly is a patchwork quilt.  ICAE itself spent months fund raising and we have a USD 175,000 budget for the event. That has gone on organising, paying for plane tickets and accommodation for speakers from the global South, helping with the costs of translation, and a thousand other things.

Our key partners in Sweden – who had to put up a guarantee of USD 160,000 to start with in order to secure the accommodation have had to find money to meet a range of costs: website (USD 20,000), Congressbureau (USD 45,000), materials, programmes, logos, etc. (USD 35,000), local group in Malmö (USD 6,000), venue (USD 75,000), technique in the venue  (USD 25,000), interpretation, technique and interpreters (USD 80,000, this is extremely expensive), transport with buses (USD 12,000), cultural activities and travel costs for some contributors (USD 35,000), food (USD 165,000), and others (USD, 20,000). In part these costs are shared, because at the same venue as the Assembly, earlier that week the Nordic associations meet. So does the European Association for its annual meeting, and also the GEO.

Folkbildningsrådet is directly contributing with USD 130,000; they expect a contribution from the EAEA of USD 17,000; the city of Malmö is contributing with USD 55,000; the region of Skåne in Sweden will find USD 40,000. The Swedish National Agency for LLL will give USD 30,000 and the Nordic Network of AL USD 8,000. Different Swedish trade unions are contributing with USD 35,000, and some NGOs will find USD 16,000. The EESC and the ALDE group within COR co-finances part of the interpretation with about USD 20,000.

Participation fees were estimated to USD 210,000 but are likely to be less. Then there is the support of agencies like dvv-international that support ICAE to ensure that each region of the global south has at least three representatives. And there is more direct solidarity support between youth and adult educators in the north with their colleagues in the south. Of course, underpinning all this is the core support ICAE gets from its development partners NORAD and SDC.

Given the pressure on budgets, ICAE has asked each participant support for modest co-funding to maximise the numbers who can come.

The Danish Adult Education Association (DAEA) has decided to donate 50,000 DKK (some 9,715 USD) to support participants from the South.

How fundamental is for ICAE to count on this kind of generous contribution in order to secure global participation?

The Danish Association, like its Norwegian and Swedish compatriots makes a vital contribution to the maintenance of a global association. At a time when the funding priorities of many governments is shifting away from adult learning, mutual aid is often the only way we can make sure we really work globally.

How can ICAE members and participants collaborate in order to facilitate participation from all, including those from the South that can not afford their costs?

Every member can help, either through supporting a participant to come to Malmö;  contributing to, and promoting the virtual seminars – the papers are all on the ICAE website -; maintaining dialogue through Voices Rising, through social media, and through advocacy for youth and adult learning wherever we live.