On 7-8 June 2010, Romanian social directors met in Cluj-Napoca, a member of ESN, for the second time to discuss their current challenges and exchange good practice examples. This conference brought to the capital of Transylvania some 160 delegates from all over Romania and abroad.

Promoting the role of Cluj as a catalyst for social policy exchange in Romania and linking the city services with their homologues in Europe – is the vision of Valer Morar and his department in Cluj Municipality. Supported by his elected councillors and the team, Morar organised for the second time a national conference for senior social and medical professionals. Read about the first Romanian national conference in Cluj supported by ESN.

This 2 day conference, organised amidst the worst economic crisis since the fall of communism, is a proof that the municipalities and counties in Romania recognise the values of mutual learning. Delegates, who often travelled for several hours to get to Cluj, shared stories of salary cuts and employment freezes, but equally reported the importance of comparing their experiences with those of their colleagues across Europe.

ESN members from Finland, Hungary, Iceland, Germany, Serbia, Slovenia and UK shared their experiences with Romanian colleagues, and contributed to the discussions about strategic planning. Read workshop presentations of Aleksandra Calosevic, Stella Everingham, Harri Jokiranta, Miran Kerin, Judit Kozma, and Matthias Schulze-Böing. As a keynote speaker, ESN president Lars-Göran Jansson opened and closed the event; Philip Cotterill and John Gomersall acted as moderators throughout the conference while ESN policy officer Dorota Tomalak spoke in the plenary session.

The conference reiterated the commitment of the Municipality of Cluj to create a national association of social directors in Romania. Its future constitution is being drafted by lawyers and the Mayor of Cluj offered a location for its seat. ESN has been supporting this development through its ‘Going Local’ initiative and will continue to work with colleagues in Cluj and elsewhere in Romania to support the modernisation of their welfare system and enhance professional contacts with colleagues across Europe.