Evaluering av Strømmestiftelsens Act Now program

Abstract

Act Now is a one year program for youths consisting of a six weeks preparation phase, seven months stationed abroad and a four weeks debriefing course. During the seven months abroad they work with one of the many partners of the Strømme Foundation in Asia, Africa or South-America. The goals for the program is described by the three Norwegian words; Tilføre, tilføres, tilbakeføre. This means that during the year as Act Now delegates, the participants should contribute (tilføre) in the work the partner is engaged in, they should learn (tilføres) about development, poverty and how to adapt to a new culture. In addition, the new knowledge and insights should be returned (tilbakeføres) to Norway to be shared with people there as a tool to better understand other cultures, poverty and how development assistance is carried out and what results it gives. In the evaluation former participants are interviewed. We have also collected information from family, friends and colleges. The results show that the participants are very satisfied with their stay. They have learned a lot and brought relevant knowledge back to the Norwegian society. Many of the participants feel, however, that they did not contribute very much during their stay abroad.