Dušana Findeisen: Slovenian Third Age University
I do not think I have ever asked myself »why«. It came somehow naturally. My firstprofessional encounter with Ulm and Carmen Stadelhoffer was in 1995 (later we havebeen meeting all over Europe) when Prof. Dr. Ana Krajnc and myself registered for a conference with a highly attractive title Competence and Productivity in The Third Age, a topic that has never ceased to be of interest. The conference itself was an important breakthrough in older adult education, conveying images and ideas about how to understand older people and deal with them, images that were new and more in tune with social developments and completely in tune with our beliefs. We have walked together from 1995 till now, a way “23 years long”, which made us meet colleagues from many Danubian countries and enabled us to work and create with them in the field of scientifically grounded education for older people, intergenerational dialogue and social participation. No wonder that in i2013 we crowned our long lasting co-operation by establishing a more permanent co-operation within the Association Danube networkers for Europe ( DANET).
Now, going back to the title of this contribution: Why did I join DANET? The answer is: because today interconnectivity, giving and receiving knowledge, creating new knowledge together and working together are essential. Because consulting and meeting our colleagues from the Danube region has become a natural part of my personal and professional life, because DANET is an international recognition of what we do nationally and internationally, because of sharing humanistic values, ideas and work.