With regard to the online events that are part of the European Territorial Cooperation Programme - URBACT, we talked to Maria João Matos, senior technician at the Directorate-General for the Territory, about the role of the FCCN services in the organisation of these events.

"The support of the FCCN team in running 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."

URBACT 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, much appreciated not only by the URBACT community and national stakeholders, but also by the programme 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 other FCCN services that are used by the DGT?

In addition to the regular use of Colibri, more recently the Directorate General of the Territory established a protocol with FCCN that allows the use of Educast. We also used the Video Bank to share with each other and with the Studio the contents necessary for the Transfer Marathon, which was extremely useful.

How do you anticipate the relationship between the DGT and the FCCN Unit to evolve in the future?

I think that, now that several DGT employees have already used the FCCN services and had specific training, the Studios and Educast will be increasingly used by DGT, for events and institutional contents, 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 in 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 the various services of FCCN we can ensure a professional studio with competent technicians, broadband connections that ensure the good 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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