Children's General Assembly
THE SELECTION PROCESS
The workshop group will select the children through a thorough process based on the application and the KPI’s set by the partnership group. The process is conducted by the selection panel which consists of representatives from the Children’s General Assembly Team.
Members of the selection panel possess competencies within pedagogy, dictactics, strategy and evaluation. They are all trained in safeguarding children.
You can read about the criteria for selection below, as well as other factors that affect how we choose participants for Children's General Assembly 2023.
Fixed criteria:
Soft criteria:
Other factors:
THE PROGRAM ACTIVITIES
Participation includes attending online workshops in April-August and attending the September Summit in the Capital of Children, Billund, Denmark.
All activities are in English and in groups with children from all over the world. The program activities include:
*The participant and one responsible adult have an opportunity to take part.
80 participants will be offered a place. However, everyone who applies will receive an invitation to attend the LIVE Streaming of the September Summit.
Participation in the online activities is free. Travel Grants can be applied for.
For further information, see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
DATES
Until February 28, children between the ages of 10-17, regardless of nationality, religion, gender, age and circumstance can apply for participation in Children's General Assembly.
In March, applicants will receive an e-mail with information on whether they have been selected to participate, as well as information on group, workshop date and times.
Between April and August, the selected participants will join a number of Safeguarding meetings and Co-Creation workshops.
Activities in the program include:
Safeguarding Meetings
Group Workshops
Consolidation Workshops
September Summit
Amanda John, British
Masters in Education and Human Resources Management
Taejha O’ Hearn, Canadian
International Business Marketing & Business Development Consultant
Ambra Molinari, Italian
Visual AnthropologistFreelance Consultant
Anamaria Sanabria Merlo, Colombian
Industrial Designer and current MA Design for Play student
Kristin R. Vilhjalmsdottir, Icelandic/Danish
Master in Applied Culture and communication Independent educator and cultural worker
Children’s General Assembly in Billund is an assembly for children from all over the world. At Children's General Assembly, children and young people will work together to draft and adopt a manifesto, as well as submit it to the world’s leaders at Children's General Assembly September Summit.
The purpose is:
The Children's General Assembly will be an online process from April-June, and a physical/online Children's General Assembly in September. Participants attend both the online process in April-June and the physical/online Children's General Assembly in September.
Accommodation
All meals
Transportation
There will be three main meals a day. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Snacks and beverages will also be served throughout the day. We will do our utmost to ensure that there are healthy and energizing food/meals that everyone can enjoy.
Below you can read a suggested list of what you might expect.
Breakfast: white bread, butter, cheese, marmalade, juice, coffee.
Lunch: sandwich, fish, meat, bread.
Dinner: Italian inspired, chicken, soup.
Snacks: fruit, crackers.
Water: You can safely drink the tap water in Denmark.
Danish cuisine:
Open sandwiches, known as 'smørrebrød', which in their basic form are the usual fare for lunch, are considered to be a national specialty when prepared and decorated with a variety of fresh ingredients. Hot meals are typically prepared with meat or fish. Substantial meat and fish dishes include 'flæskesteg' (roast pork with crackling) and 'kogt torsk' (poached cod) with mustard sauce and trimmings. Ground meats (pork, veal or beef) became widespread during the industrial revolution in Denmark and traditional dishes that are still popular today, include 'frikadeller' (meat balls), 'karbonader' (breaded pork patties) and 'medisterpølse' (fried sausage).
Children’s General Assembly provides accommodation at Lalandia from arrival at 15:00 on 18th September 2023 until departure at 10:00 am on 22ndSeptember 2023.
Read more about Lalandia here: https://www.lalandia.dk/en/billund/practical-information
Housing
Classic Plus 4 or Classic Plus 6 based upon number of guests.
Read more about the housing here: https://www.lalandia.dk/en/billund/holiday-homes/classic-plus-4
What is included
Items
Additional
Childrens General Assembly will send out a summit registration form in June. Where we will gather information about how many people you are travelling. The basic accommodation provided can house four people, if you need housing for more people we will help you with this. Read more about accommodation under accommodation.
Terms if you wish to book holiday homes for more than two people:
Payment of the extra residents in the accommodation shall be made up-front upon arrival at Lalandia. The price for staying from 18th-22nd September is 1500DKK per. person.
Extra linen and towels: 99DKK per. person.
20% off accommodation in Billund from 22nd September and beyond.
Billund - The Capital of Children has a lot to offer. If you have the possibility, we highly recommend you spend a few more days in Billund to explore the many attractions. If you plan to extend your trip to Billund beyond the dates 18th-22nd September (for the Summit), we advise you to extend from 22nd September and beyond, due to the opening times of the attractions in Billund. You will get free access to a handful of attractions in Billund.
We have the opportunity to offer you 20% off three accommodations in Billund from 22nd September and beyond. To get the codes please contact us by mail at info@capitalofchildren.com
If you wish to make use of this offer you must go to the website of the accommodation of your choice and use the required code. Booking accommodation that extends the dates of the summit (18th-22nd September) is a matter between you and the accommodation of your choice. Your extended stay is at your own risk.
It is not possible to order meals through Children’s General Assembly.
There are supermarkets close by in Billund City and at Lalandia there are cafes and restaurants.
Read more about the food options in Lalandia here: https://www.lalandia.dk/en/billund/eat
The official program and the parent/caregiver program are carefully planned months in advance based on a specific headcount. Therefore, we cannot accommodate more than the one participant and one parent/caregiver.
Billund city has an airport. If you travel by airplane, we advise you to arrive at Billund airport. The Capital of Children team will greet you in the airport when you arrive.
Transportation during summit
On arrival day: Billund Airport to Lalandia (accommodation), shared transport (bus) / or paid taxi
On departure: Lalandia to Billund airport, shared transport (bus)
Children’s General Assembly will provide shared transportation (bus) From 19th September to 22 nd September during the full Summit program.
If you need to use transportation that is not part of the official program, this is at your own expense and risk.
Billund Taxi service: +45 48 48 48 48.
There will be a parent/caregiver lounge. This lounge will serve as the physical area where the parent/caregiver will be located.
During the summit there will be a participant program (official program) and a parent/caregiver program. These programs will sometimes overlap, where you as a parent are invited to join the official program and accompany your child. As a parent/caregiver you will always be in close physical proximity to your child.
Amanda John, British
Masters in Education and Human Resources Management
Taejha O’ Hearn, Canadian
International Business Marketing & Business Development Consultant
Ambra Molinari, Italian
Visual Anthropologist & Freelance Consultant
Anamaria Sanabria Merlo, Colombian
Industrial Designer and current MA Design for Play student
Kristin R. Vilhjalmsdottir, Icelandic/Danish
Masters in Applied Culture and Communication, Independent Educator and Cultural Consultant.
The Facilitators are trained in-house in safeguarding, facilitation, co-creation, and therefore aligned with the values and tools used in CoC Playful Minds.
The facilitators facilitate the 10 workshops and have the primary contact to the participants. The facilitators ensure safeguarding throughout the process. The facilitators will be physically present during the September Summit and act as facilitators and guides for the participants.
All questions that do not concern the workshop process should be forwarded directly to the Children's General Assembly official e-mail. info@capitalofchildren.com
Only under special circumstances.
If there is a justified reason for the group change, and it is desirable that this should happen before the first workshop is conducted.
The workshops will always be conducted within the hours between 06:00AM – 22:00PM
The participants reside in countries across the globe and under several time zones. When creating the groups this is taken into count. Creating the groups is a complex puzzle. When we move one participant to another group that can have an effect on all groups, and possibly require more alterations.
NOTE: When conducting the consolidation workshops, the participants will be divided into new groups. The participants live around the globe and have different timezones, because of this some participants may experience that the consolidation workshops are conducted outside the given hours of 06:00AM-22:00PM.
Please contact your facilitator to let them know when and why you cannot participate.
We encourage you to participate in all workshops, as many as possible to get the full experience and to have the opportunity to share your perspective and identify and help find solutions to challenges in the world.
The length of the workshops are three hours.
The participant kit will be sent late March.
When sending a recorded letter/package it can be a three-to-four-week journey from sending to when you receive it. When sending the package out of Europe the package is checked in customs and that can delay the delivery further. You can contact the info mail info@capitalofchildren.com for a track and trace number.
When sending a recorded letter/package it can be a three-to-four-week journey from sending to when you receive it. When sending the package out of Europe the package is checked in customs and that can delay the delivery further. You can contact the info mail info@capitalofchildren.com for a track and trace number.
Unfortunately some packages may never reach their destination. They can be hold back in customs, disappear, be returned or for some other reason to us unknown not reach their destination.
If you never receive your package you will get a kit when you get to the physical summit in September. The items in the participant kit are used during the workshop but if you don’t receive it, the facilitators can send you the material that can be accessed digitally and ensure that you can participate as best possible without the items.
The facilitators created a group channel in teams for each participating group (from group A-H). On the platform the facilitators and participants can communicate about the workshops and share ideas, post questions and information in general.
You have the possibility to apply for a partial reimbursement of your trip to Billund in September 2023. We wish to make the trip to Billund possible for as many children as possible. Therefore, as the travel grant pool is limited in size, we encourage you to apply for a travel grant only if it is a necessary precondition for your trip to Billund. Applications from developing countries will be prioritized. It is possible to apply for a travel grant for the participating child and for one responsible participating parent/caregiver.
DEADLINE FOR APPLYING FOR TRAVEL GRANT: 26th April 2023, at 8 am UCT+2.
Requirements for applying for a travel grant
To be considered for a travel grant, we expect you to participate in a minimum of 5
workshops. In the Qualtrics application form, you will be asked which workshops you
do not expect to participate in and provide a valid explanation of absence. If the
criterion about participation is not met, we reserve the right to reclaim the amount of
the travel grant. We wish to make the trip to Billund possible for as many children as possible. Therefore,
as the travel grant pool is limited in size, we encourage you to apply for a travel grant
only if it is a necessary precondition for your trip to Billund. Applications from developing
countries will be given priority.
How and when we transfer the travel grant to you
If a travel grant application is approved, we will transfer the granted amount to you. We
will do our utmost to ensure an efficient transfer process, but it may take several days,
from when the money leaves Denmark and until it is received at an international bank - in many
cases, up to 20 working days. You can expect to receive the money after approximately
one month.
Once you have received the transfer of the promised amount, you are obliged to:
visa application. The deadline for this is 19th June 2023. You will receive this form
if/when your travel grant application is approved.
If, for some reason, you are unable to make the trip to Billund, you must repay the travel
grant you have received, so that it can benefit other children.
Visa Application
Please write to info@capitalofchildren.com for assistance.
Unfortunately, we cannot provide an Official Letter of Invitation for the whole family.
A visa is an official document that allows the bearer to legally enter a foreign country. Travel visas allow the bearer to enter a foreign country for tourist and leisure purposes only and to stay for a predetermined amount of time. Visas are necessary if you do like to travel to a country that does not have a visa policy in place with your home country.
Children’s General Assembly can assist you with an Official Letter of Invitation that will serve as an authentication document if/when you apply for a visa.
Unfortunately, we cannot provide an Official Letter of Invitation for the whole family.
Please write to info@capitalofchildren.com for assistance.
Billund city has an airport. If you travel by airplane, we advise you to arrive at Billund airport. The Capital of Children team will greet you in the airport when you arrive.
If you are traveling by train from another airport in Denmark. Please go to this site for train tickets DSB (This is at your own cost)
We have made agreements to ensure that your accommodation, meals and transportation in Billund will be without charge to you. This covers:
Accommodation
All meals
Transportation
(please note that these agreements covers one participant and one parent/caregiver)
___________________________________________________________________________________
Own cost
Grants regarding travel expenses (See Q&A about travel grant)
Safeguarding Channel.
WHAT IS THE SAFEGUARDING CHANNEL?
The purpose of the safeguarding channel is to have a safe place for the participant and the parent/caregiver to comment upon your experience regarding the workshops, Children’s General Assembly in general, and safeguarding. Furthermore, to be able to speak up about good ideas, concerns etc. throughout the workshop process. The information shared in the safeguarding channel will be used to ensure the safety, security, and wellbeing of everyone participating in Children's General Assembly 2023. The data on this channel will be processed confidentially and securely. It will only be read by the Project Group of Children's General Assembly 2023 with the purpose of ensuring a good experience for all during the workshop process. After receiving your enquiry, the Project Group will do their utmost to act upon the stated issues.
You can submit your enquiry with name or anonymously. If the enquiry requires the Project Group to take immediate action that requires us to know the name of the participant/letter of group/facilitator etc., then please state your name or the name of the person that the enquiry is regarding.
HOW TO ACCESS THE SAFEGUARDING CHANNEL?
The channel is accessed by clicking on this link.
This link will lead you to a short survey. With a few clicks and comments, you can submit your enquiry for us to read.
Once you have submitted your comment/enquiry, on the screen you will see an immediate confirmation (not by email). If the enquiry calls for an answer, we will endeavor to respond within 3 working days.
Current recommendations:
There are no longer covid-19 restrictions in Denmark. There are recommendations and general guidance. Read more here: https://www.sst.dk/en/english/Corona-eng (Danish Health Authorities).
The parent/caregiver group is a platform for us (parents/caregivers and representatives from Children’s General Assembly) to communicate about the general information about Childrens General Assembly. Here you can raise general questions about Children's General Assembly, the program and the role as a parent/caregiver and your child's participation in the program. There are two channels. The General Channel where all the general questions, information and updates will be posted, and then we have the social channel - the social channel is for you the parents and caregivers only. We can see your posts and communication, but we will not interact on this channel. It is for you to share your experience and communicate parent to parent. If you have questions or comments that do not apply to the Parent/Caregiver group as a whole, please write to the infomail - info@capitalofchildren.com. You will receive important information by mail. Have a look at our Q&A site if you need to find answers to common questions - this site is continuously updated. If you need us to be aware and react to your post please use the @ sign to tag Cecilie or June. We cannot be reached by chat in teams - reach us through info@capitalofchildren.com.
All parent/caregiver has been invited to this teams channel. Please contact us if you do not have access.
The facilitators created a group channel in teams for each participating group (from group A-H). On the platform the facilitators and participants can communicate about the workshops and share ideas, post questions and information in general.
Info about the project phases
Applicant: Apply for Children's General Assembly by using the Qualtrics link on this website
Parent/Caregiver: Help your applicant through the application process by e.g., filling out the necessary information
NB! Deadline for applying is 28 February 2023
(Deadlines may be subject to change)
Applicant: If you receive an invitation to participate in Children's General Assembly, you should together with your parent/caregiver fill out any necessary information in the invitation link
Parent/Caregiver: Help your applicant accept the invitation, make sure to give your informed consent in the invitation link, and attend the online information meeting for parents/caregivers as well as safeguarding meetings
NB! You will receive the invitation link by email from Capital of Children - Remember to check your Spam-filter
NB! The deadline for accepting the invitation is March 13. 08:00 am (CET) 2023
(Deadlines may be subject to change)
Participant: Participate in the co-creation workshops and attend safeguarding meetings
Parent/Caregiver: Assist your participant throughout the workshop process with whatever their needs may be, attend safeguarding meetings together with your participant, and attend the online information meeting for parents/caregivers. Take care of practical and logistical things in regard to your and your participant's attendance at September Summit
Remember to:
(Deadlines may be subject to change)
Participant: Participate in the co-creation workshops and attend safeguarding meetings
Parent/Caregiver: Plan your and your participant's attendance at September Summit. Participate in safeguarding meetings alongside your participant and attend the online information meeting for parents/caregivers
Remember to:
NB! The consolidation products will be ready on 1 September 2023
(Deadlines may be subject to change)
Participant: Participate in September Summit activities and have fun
Parent/Caregiver: Provide moral and emotional support for the participant, be close by (be in the Parent/Caregiver Lounge), help keep track of times, dates, and activities, and support the participant with social media and press