By the time you read this, the 2014 EFC Professional Development programme will be in full swing. The emphasis is on evolution rather than revolution, with a busy calendar combining well-established EFC learning events and exchanges (TIEPOLO, Next Generation, European Learning Lab) with exciting new initiatives both face-to-face and online.

Into this latter category fall the Wednesday Webinars, which take place every first Wednesday of the month. In an age when everyone seems to be networking online, these 90-minute events will get to grips with a wide variety of contemporary ‘philantopics’, including:

• EU funding – an introduction
• Young grantmakers
• EU election results – a first analysis
• Practical transparency
• Diversity and mainstreaming

The emphasis throughout is on diversity, in terms of the subjects covered and the audience engaged. The Wednesday Webinars will reach out beyond the EFC membership to welcome participants from outside – a kind of ‘love all, serve all’ Hard Rock Café ethos intended to ensure as wide a range of contributors and opinions as possible.

Boosting the skills and professional understanding of foundation professionals across Europe is, after all, vital for a vibrant and thriving sector. As Albert Einstein once pointed out: ‘Any fool can know. The point is to understand.’

For more information
asalvadori@efc.be