menu

Actors in National Dialogues

The key actors in the National Dialogues are the participants and the organisers of the dialogues. To enable the dialogues and their effectiveness, an operative core group is needed to take care of the background arrangements and, amongst other things, to draw up the national summary. The users of the summary are also important for impact.

Core operational group

  • Launch, plan and coordinate the process
  • Map and decide on the topic
  • Invite, inspire, commit and thank the dialogue organisers
  • Draw up the materials
  • Plan and provide sparring
  • Compile registrations and list of dialogues
  • Analyses the notes and is responsible for drawing up a summary
  • Publishes and shares the summary
  • Shares and communicates
  • Assesses and develops the model together with other actors

Dialogue organisers

There are three types of organisers: permanent dialogue organisers, organisers based on the topic and those participating based on an open invitation

  • Reserve a space or platform for the dialogue
  • Invite participants
  • Facilitate and record the dialogue
  • Send the notes to the operative core group
  • Communicate about the dialogue
  • Make use of notes and summaries
  • Challenge others to participate as dialogue organisers

Participants

  • Take part in dialogues , enriching the discussion with their own experiences of the subject
  • Discuss their experiences in a constructive way in the dialogue

Users of the summary

  • Government utilises the insights and understanding born from the dialogues in the preparation of decision-making and policy measures, futures and foresight work, and in strengthening dialogue and cooperation between public administration and non-governmental organisations.
  • Dialogue organisers, participants and other parties will use the summary according to their own needs.

Dialogue organisers

The operative core group will ensure that the dialogue organisers form from a broad range of stakeholders and the specific dialogue subjects cover regional and group-specific issues. The topics should be widely from multiple perspectives.

The aim of the National Dialogues is for the dialogue organiser’s own activities or organisation to gain a deeper understanding. It is hoped that the dialogue organisers will gain an experience of being part of a socially significant entity.

Permanent dialogue organisers

The aim is to establish permanent dialogue organisers for the entire country as well as actors that reach different groups of people as extensively as possible. All those who wish to fulfil the criteria will be appointed as the permanent dialogue organiser, and they will become a network. The network is maintained by an operational core group.

The National Dialogues are held twice a year, once in the spring and once in the autumn. In spring or autumn, there are two to four dialogue days, of which at least two permanent dialogue organisers must organise a dialogue. You can act as a permanent dialogue organiser for as long as you agree to organise at least two dialogues per year. This will ensure that the regular dialogue organisers are active participants.

The permanent dialogue organiser must have prior experience of organising and guiding the dialogue. The organiser of the dialogue has participated in the Lockdown Dialogues, Democracy Defence Dialogues, Immigration Dialogues or otherwise organised and steered dialogues.

The permanent dialogue organisers will have the opportunity to influence the selection of the theme of National Dialogues and be invited to join the peer network.

The Ministry of Finance is responsible for co-ordinating peer-to-peer activities of the permanent dialogue organisers. The aim is to form a network that provides mutual support for each other meeting a few times a year. The activities of the peer network are planned together with the regular dialogue organisers according to the needs arising from the network.

It is also hoped that permanent dialogue organisers will share information about National Dialogues and become a dialogue organiser.

At the moment, the permanent dialogue organisers are

  • Aretai Oy
  • Arts Promotion Centre Finland, anna.sidorova(at)taike.fi
  • Autokton ry
  • Central Union for Child Welfare, ulla.siimes(at)lskl.fi
  • Citizens’ Arena, anyara.wise(at)kansalaisareena.fi
  • City of Espoo
  • City of Oulu
  • City of Rovaniemi
  • City of Vantaa/City culture/common services
  • Deaconess Foundation
  • Deaconess Institute
  • Deaconess Institute/D station Kallio
  • Deaconess Institute/D station Kannelmäki
  • Deaconess Institute/D station Kontula
  • Development Centre Opinkirjo
  • DialogueAcademy
  • Educational centre Sivis, annika.tahvanainen-jaatinen(at)ok-sivis.fi
  • Educational centre Visio, maia.fandi(at)opintokeskusvisio.fi
  • Espoo City Library
  • Familia ry
  • Finnish Federation of Settlement Houses
  • Finnish Institute in Estonia, hannele.valkeeniemi(at)finst.ee
  • Finnish Local Heritage Federation, marika.punamaki@kotiseutuliitto.fi
  • Finnish Youth clubs
  • Forssa City
  • Helsinki Diakanisus Institute, Oulu D station
  • Heureka, Finnish science center
  • HUS Meilahti Bridge Hospital
  • InnoOK, info(at)innook.fi
  • Intonaattorit Oy
  • Itla Children´s Foundation
  • Kalliolan Setlementti
  • Kare Ry
  • Kaskas media Oy
  • Kela, anna-stiina.lundqvist(at)kela.fi
  • Kolarin kunta, Arkiäly-Tekoäly-hanke
  • Kouvola City Library
  • Kvs Foundation
  • Lahti city
  • Liisa Vilkki, liisa@kohtaavadialogi.com
  • Mieli, Association for mental Health in the Rovaniemi region
  • Mikkeli City company Otavia
  • Mila Harra, mila.harra(at)gmail.com
  • Ministry of education and culture
  • Ministry of Finance/open Government, katju.holkeri(at)gov.fi
  • Ministry of Foreign affairs/Kathmandu, Nepal
  • Ministry of Justice, ETNO
  • Municipality of Tuusula
  • Naistenkartano ry
  • Operation Libero Finland
  • Pesäpuu
  • Puolakanaho Teemu
  • ROBOLINE GROUP Oy, mikael.jarvenkyla(at)outlook.com
  • Sammattiseura
  • Savonia University of Applied Sciences
  • Sitra, hannele.laaksolahti(at)sitra.fi
  • Study Centre Citizens’ Forum
  • Tammela municipality
  • Threshold Association, mika.valimaa(at)kynnys.fi
  • The Association for Rural Culture and Education
  • Timeout Foundation, vilja.vonweissenberg(at)erataukosaatio.fi
  • Tukena
  • Turku Cathedral Parish

Dialogue organisers based on the topic

The core group charts and invites the dialogue organisers in accordance with the topic. The aim is to get different groups to discuss the selected subject of the National Dialogue as comprehensively as possible and to find actors from different target groups to act as the organiser of the dialogue. Organisers based on the theme will be sought and attracted separately for each round.

Other dialogue organisers

Any organisation or organisation can participate in and organise a dialogue/dialogues during the dialogue round. Dialogue organisers will be supported in organising the dialogue.

Communicating about National Dialogues is important, especially when activating this group. It is easier to start organising the dialogue if the topic of National Dialogues and the opportunity to organise the dialogue have been widely visible, for example in national or social media.