On the subject of holding online events as part of the European Territorial Cooperation Program - URBACT, we spoke to Maria João Matos, a senior technician at the Directorate-General for Territory, about the role of the FCCN services in holding these events.

"The support of the FCCN team in carrying out the online events was essential"

How did the opportunity arise to use the webinar feature of the Colibri service to streamline online events linked to URBACT?

We were already aware of the existence of the webinar feature of the Colibri service, but an opportunity to use it had not yet arisen. It seemed to us the most suitable for the URBACT Transfer Marathon, given the format of the event and the large number of participants expected.

And what added value do you think this service has guaranteed? How do you evaluate the experience?

The distinction between speakers and participants was crucial here, as was opening up the event to a significant number of participants who could interact through the Q&A feature, which the webinar feature ensured in a simple way.

online events Maria João Matos interviews DGT
Maria João Matos, DGT

"The professional support, availability and friendliness of the Studio's technical team, as well as the excellent technical means provided were essential."

The URBACT project also included a visit to the FCCN studio. How can you describe that moment?

The FCCN studios made it possible to hold dynamic online events, which were highly appreciated not only by the URBACT community and national stakeholders, but also by the program's Secretariat, which has been referring to Portugal's Transfer Marathon as an example of a National Sharing Event to be followed by the other European countries involved in URBACT.

To achieve this success, was essential professional support, availability and friendliness of the technical team of the Studio, as well as the excellent technical means provided. We highly recommend it!

Are there any other services on FCCN that are used by the DGT?

As well as using Colibri on a regular basis, more recently the Directorate-General for Territory established a protocol with FCCN that allows us to use Educast. We also used the Video Bank to share the content needed for the Transfer Marathon with each other and with the Studio, which was extremely useful.

How do you anticipate the DGT's relationship with the FCCN Unit to evolve in the future?

I think that, now that a number of DGT employees have used the services of FCCN and have had specific training, the Studios and Educast will be used more and more by the DGT, in the context of holding events and institutional content, as well as for their dissemination.

Colibri Webinar service

The Colibri webinar project had its implementation in July 2020, due to the demand by the community for this type of solutions for events and given the pandemic situation we are experiencing.

We remind you that this service is available at no extra cost to the entire RCTS community, for online events with more than 300 and up to 1000 participants, upon reservation. Read the news of its launch or visit the Colibri service website.

FCCN and online events at your institution

With the confinement, we have all become more aware of the need to move our events to online or even hybrid formats, and the experiences have been very positive.

With FCCN 's various services, we can guarantee a professional studio with competent technicians, broadband connections that ensure the quality of the event and, above all, access to the Colibri service.

In summary, if your institution is part of the RCTS Network and you are thinking of organizing online events to take knowledge beyond borders, talk to us, we have the solution.

If you are not yet part of it, then check our page The RCTS Network and see how you can join.

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