A joint training course by the KDZ and Governance International, 4 May 2011 in St. Pölten

As local authorities in Austria have to reduce their budgets for traditional associations, such as the local football club and hiking club, it is time to rethink existing funding practices. Klaus Wirth (KDZ) and Elke Löffler (Governance International) explored three new funding models with the participants of this training course, including

1. Objective guidelines based on ‘social capital’ indicators such as active membership.
2. Output-based criteria which means that associations have to provide specific services within a clear contract specification.
3. Outcome-based criteria which means that associations need to make a contribution towards agreed outcomes.

The participants were then invited to devise their own guidelines which would be suitable for their own context. The workshop finished with a lively discussion about possible triggers for the introduction of the new funding schemes. If you have developed a good practice system for third sector funding, please let us know by getting in touch with elke.loeffler@govint.org