News
Strengthening the Erasmus+ Network
The idea of this project is to create a local model to reinvigorate the Erasmus+ network as a robust, multigenerational community that imparts real social capital to alumni. This model will include a social media-based campaign to identify alumni, surveying the group as well as a pilot programme and a kick-off event.
Participation in alumni networks wanes over time, and mid-career professionals are the least engaged just when they become change-makers. We will select a single region or city where Erasmus+ alumni are present, but the network is not active. We will implement a social media-based campaign to identify alumni in the selected region and personally invite them to engage in a local Erasmus+ chapter, seeking out older alumni and in particular women who have left the workforce but are interested in rebuilding their professional networks. We will survey the group, identify additional organisers, and organise a kick-off event tailored to the needs and interests of the local members.
We will create a local model to reinvigorate the Erasmus+ network as a robust, multigenerational community that imparts real social capital to alumni. First, we will study successful local networks through interviews of EMA regional chapter presidents and OCEANS representatives to understand what has worked for them and learn which activities have led to cross-generational engagement. Second, we will select a single region or city—Singapore or the Washington, DC metropolitan area—for a discrete pilot programme. Both cities are home to Erasmus+ alumni, but the network is not active and lacks older alumni engagement.
For our social media-based strategy, we will be using a premium subscription of LinkedIn, which allows for unlimited searches. We will apply search terms (“Erasmus,” “Erasmus Mundus,” “OCEANS,” et al) and filter by location to find alumni in the selected area. Using the premium version of LinkedIn will allow us to send tailored, direct messages to the alumni we identify. Finally, after identifying and engaging alumni in the selected region, we will survey the group and propose a kick-off event tailored to the needs and interests of the new members. We will pass down decision-making down to the members themselves, which will ensure this local version of the Erasmus+ community will flourish.
If the plan is successful, it can serve as a model in other regions to reinvigorate the Erasmus+ network where it has atrophied or lost mid-career and senior members.
Rebeca Simon
June 20th, 2022
