Detlef Dumon on the Upcoming General Assembly

The ICSSPE Executive Director provides insights into the importance of the Helsinki meetings and the strategic outline for the next few years. 

ICSSPE News: Detlef, please explain the general significance of the ICSSPE General Assembly and board meetings, and if possible portray milestones and achievements throughout the last few years.

Dumon: The General Assembly is the organ of ICSSPE where members take decisions which will define the work of the entire organisation for the next two years. The delegates of this meeting will take stock of what has been achieved over the past two years and will take decisions that will direct the work of the organisation for the upcoming biennium with regard to several aspects: The working programme which was developed by the members of the Associations‘ Board will be discussed and adopted as well as the budget of the organisation for the next two years. These two agenda items and the change of the funding scheme for our members‘ activities are of high interest for everybody.

The organisations‘ agenda for the past years has been very diverse. A strong focus was put on benefits of physical activity for health which is one of ICSSPE’s priorities. To a large extend this was linked with the global Designed to Move initiative which is supported by a broad range of ICSSPE members. Based on the final draft of global benchmarks for physical education, ICSSPE members were also involved in the development of Quality Physical Education Guidelines for Policy-Makers, an initiative by UNESCO. In addition, the entire research, policy and training activities in sport for development have taken a big step forward towards more professionalisation with strong support by ICSSPE members.  And of course, a major focus of the ICSSPE Network lied upon the organisation of MINEPS V and the development of the content for this ministerial meeting and for its final declaration. More than fifty member organisations and individuals of ICSSPE were involved in the process over a period of almost a year.

ICSSPE News: How does the General Assembly reflect the idea of ICSSPE to foster cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary collaboration and what are the strategic and operative challenges in this context?  

Dumon: ICSSPE cannot replace the work of its member organisations. Instead, the Network deals with those issues that can be addressed more sufficiently jointly, from different professional and scientific perspectives. Take the issue of the MINEPS V theme Preserving the Integrity of Sport. A theme like this is too complex to be addressed separately and requires cooperating with the sport movement, law enforcement authorities, researchers specialised in ethics, sports law, sport economy, sports medicine, and with coaches or the entourage of athletes. Therefore you need a joint approach. This is where the ICSSPE Network consisting of governmental authorities, researchers, coaches and teachers offers a unique platform with a tremendous potential. 

ICSSPE News: Is there an overarching theme or topic for the upcoming meetings in Helsinki? And which other pressing issues have to be taken into consideration bearing in mind sport-political challenges, which have been addressed for instance in the follow-up to MINEPS V?

Dumon: Good governance, integrity, participation and health for example remain or have recently become buzzwords in many regions. So it would be fairly easy to identify an overarching theme which allows many of our members to identify with. But only, if you turn this theme into practice, into jointly adopted outputs you will find out whether the members are identifying with the decision and take initiatives. It is a balancing act the Associations‘ and the Executive Board have to perform - being inclusive and goal-oriented at the same time. In general, ICSSPE has to react to the great demand for improved infrastructure and capacity building which was expressed by many representatives of UNESCO member states and professional organisations. The demand goes beyond providing training opportunities for coaches and physical educators; it also includes assistance for policymakers in public administrations and professional organisations that are dealing with policy, curriculum and structural developments.

ICSSPE News: Which direction should ICSSPE and its Network and members envisage for the next future? What could or should a possible working programme look like for the next couple of years?

Dumon: ICSSPE operates according to its working principles Science, Service and Advocacy. This means the Network will continue to support research institutions within disciplines across regions; it will continue to provide service for its membership and for external partners; and will advocate for the positive values of sport and physical education to governments and agencies. Current research activities expand across many scientific disciplines. At the same time we have to ensure that the results are made available to everyone. This can be accomplished by a close cooperation of experts in research, coaching and teaching, in policy development and advocacy activities.