2018 Annual Report: Another Year of Impact

The Athens Partnership (AP) released its 2018 Annual Report, detailing the outcomes of its public-private initiatives in Athens, Greece. Since its inception in 2015, AP has directly served more than 150,000 Athenians through its innovative programs in areas including education, community and economic development, social inclusion, technology and culture. AP has engaged over 300 partners in both the public and private sectors to advance projects in coordination with municipal government.

“The Athens Partnership’s programmatic success is thanks to an incredible – and increasing – network of collaborators and supporters,” said Alexandros Kambouroglou, Executive Director  of the Athens Partnership. “These programs are sparking change in municipal government, bringing together cross-sector partners in meaningful ways, and garnering international acclaim.

With lead support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and a growing network of partners, AP has lead more than 14 major initiatives in coordination with the . In 2018, Athens was recognized as the European Capital of Innovation by the European Commission, stemming from a range of innovative efforts that included 13 AP initiatives, more than half of the Athens dossier in consideration for the award.

AP’s 2018 accomplishments include:

• The Athens Open Schools program exceeded 30,000 participants since its launch, both adults and children. Free classes offered ranged from theater for teenagers by the National Theater to Cisco Networking Academy course and accreditation on CCNA Routing & Switching.

• The Designed for Better Learning program launched the City’s first Municipal Maker Space, in collaboration with the Technical University of Crete and with a founding grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation. More than 1300 students and teachers were trained in the pilot phase. Over 1.5 million euro in City funding has now been secured for Designed for Better Learning and the Maker Space, ensuring future funding and sustainability under the City’s oversight.

AP and its partners launched the first Municipal Maker Space in Greece, located in central Athens.

• The Commercial Triangle project supported the revitalization of the city’s historic center, where a cumulative 30 million euro of private investments has been realized since the start of the program. Ground floor occupancy increased by 25% and new “smart” apps were piloted in collaboration with the local business community, for smart LED lighting and smart waste disposal.

The Commercial Triangle project is creating new pedestrian streets in the center of Athens, upgrading networks, removing graffiti tags from historic buildings and inviting artists to create works of public art.

• Digital and technology initiatives supported by the Digital Council were launched as part of the City of Athens’ 15 million euro investment plan. Projects launched included initiatives run through the Athens Digital Lab, the Municipal Maker Space, Commercial Triangle project, and Athens Open Schools.

• The Athens Coordination Center for Migrant and Refugee issues (ACCMR)  enhanced the City’s refugee response, with 92 of the leading government and nonprofit organizations active in the field. ACCMR also supported the creation and operation of the first “Cities Network for Integration”, joining 13 Greek Municipalities that host a large number of refugees to exchange know-how and work towards common solutions.

• Building on the success of AP’s Athens Tourism Partnership, a new coalition, known as This & Athens & Partners, was formed between the City of Athens and major tourism enterprises to develop projects that boost economic growth and job creation by attracting investment, businesses, events and visitors. The success of these sustained efforts led to a 10% year-on-year rise in tourist visitation numbers in 2018.

Read the 2018 Annual Report.

Athens Partnership presenting at the Delphi Economic Forum

The Athens Partnership will be joining the Delphi Economic Forum, February 28 - March 3, 2019. The Forum brings together political, business, academic, and other leaders in an effort to address current challenges, influence national agendas and promote sustainable and socially responsible growth in Europe, Greece and the wider Eastern Mediterranean region. 

AP Executive Director Alexandros Kambouroglou will join the Saturday March 2, 10.45AM panel on “The New Role of Cities in Global Issues”, chaired by Bloomberg Associates CEO George Fertitta, at Leto Hall, along with distinguished speakers, including Athens Mayor Georgios Kaminis, Open Society Foundations Senior Program Officer Manos Moschopoulos, and Microsoft Greece, Cyprus and Malta CEO Peggy Antonakou.

The panel will highlight public-private initiatives of the Athens Partnership, presenting some of our innovative programs tackling urban challenges in collaboration with local government. Elina Dallas, Athens Trigono program manager and Konstantinos Champidis, Athens’ Chief Digital Officer, will share insights on some of our cross-sector projects on urban regeneration and the digital transformation of the city, which are now serving as models for other municipalities.

Watch the live stream of the discussion at Leto Hall, on Saturday 10.45 am.

Athens Partnership - two years of impact

The Athens Partnership, a nonprofit organization established in 2015 to address pressing needs exacerbated by the economic crisis through public-private collaboration, released its first Biennial Report detailing outcomes to date. Twenty-four public schools remodeled; 25 schools opened with free community activities; 6,000 sq meters of graffiti removed in the city center; and the development of an online case management system serving 40,000 beneficiaries – these are just a few of the results a new wave of public-private initiatives has achieved for the City of Athens. The Athens Partnership estimate over 70,000 Athenians have been directly impacted as a result of its programs to date.

In partnership with the Municipality of Athens and theTechnical University of Crete, and with a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, the Athens Partnership launched “Designed for Better Learning”, transforming 24 schools, inside and out.

“The Athens Partnership is helping to drive change and advance city priorities at an unprecedented pace,” said Mayor Georgios Kaminis. “This new model is not only facilitating impactful new programs, it is also helping the City of Athens to reimagine its public spaces and deliver services more effectively.”

Τhe Chanion multi-service clinic was the first public clinic to offer health and social services under one roof, free for all.

“The Athens Partnership’s scope has gone far beyond channeling aid rapidly and transparently to address pressing needs. AP projects are now offering model solutions to chronic problems in Athens, as well as helping create new opportunities for the city’s rebirth. Thanks to lead support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, our partner and donor base has now grown to encompass individuals, foundations and companies who want to offer funds and expertise to achieve effective public-private partnerships with lasting impact”, says Alexandros Kambouroglou, Executive Director of the Athens Partnership.

2015-2017 results include:

• Collaborated with school community to remodel 24 public schools (impacting 4,215 students and teachers), providing not only upgraded physical spaces but helping build a personal bond between students and their schools and creatively reimagining learning activities.

• Transformed the city’s Commercial Triangle from an overcrowded central neighborhood into a model city center by cleaning 6.000 sq metres of graffiti, pedestrianizing streets, and incorporating public art, while engaging participation from the local community to ensure sustainability.

The Commercial Triange project is removing tags, cleaning and pedestrianizing streets and engaging the local community to create a model city center in Athens.

• Organized the pilot operation of a municipal health clinic in Kypseli, central Athens, which for the first time provides health and social services under one roof, free of charge (15,000 residents served to date).

• Enhanced the City’s refugee response through the creation of the Athens Coordination Center for Migrant and Refugee Issues (ACCMR) by bringing together 75 organizations to strategically address needs. The ACCMR is the first of its kind in the country.

• Strengthened economic development through a new Athens Tourism Partnership (ATP), bringing together Aegean Airlines, Athens International Airport and the Hellenic Initiative, that supported a multi-media campaign reaching over 34 million potential travelers. Through the ATP's Greeters program, 124 volunteers personally welcomed over 70,000 visitors at key city hubs.

Read our Biennial Report here.

Strengthening Athens through Partnership

In addition to its antiquities, Greece is renowned for its severe economic crisis and the accompanying frightening statistics that demonstrate its harsh impact on residents: 50% unemployment rate among young residents; 15% living in extreme poverty. In addition, beginning in 2015 Greece was faced with an international humanitarian crisis as fleeing refugees flocked to the country, further draining the country’s limited resources.

The creation of the Athens Partnership strengthened Municipal services, by forging alliances with private sector partners.

With the public sector under huge strain, cutting down even on the most basic services, many Greeks in and outside of the country stepped up and asked, “How can I help?” Unfortunately, good intentions and a desire to help do not always translate to impactful and lasting results. When it comes to philanthropy, many challenges stand in the way, such as how to coordinate and direct private investments in an efficient and effective way, and how to make meaningful and sustainable change. Enter: The Athens Partnership (AP), which was formed in 2015 to tackle these challenges and to leverage the existing services and resources of local government.

An early advocate for the AP model, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation committed 10 million euro to support the Municipality of Athens and entrusted AP to administer its generous grant for the benefit of Athenians. After two years, AP launched over a dozen impactful programs garnering the support of many donors and project partners. Our Biennial Report features a robust description of the cross-sector programs launched in coordination with the City of Athens and the outcomes to date. What is more difficult to convey is how AP has helped to rethink and reawaken some of the City’s essential services, developing a new framework for collaboration, transparency, and accountability.

Transformational programs: in Designed for Better Learning schools, 77% of students report leaving school happy.

For instance, Designed for Better Learning could have been a simple renovation of public school buildings in dire need of attention, however, working with the Technical University of Crete, we reimagined a new way of teaching, learning and community engagement. Twenty-four schools (5% of City schools) were transformed and new activities, co-created with students, were embedded such as IT training and DIY construction. AP has received over 40 requests to replicate this program.

Transformational results were also achieved in our Commercial Triangle initiative, which helped turn around a crowded city center filled with tags into a new vibrant area, boosting business conditions and attracting tourism. It took cleaning 6.000 square meters of walls and storefronts, removing illegally parked cars, creating new pedestrian streets, and most importantly, working closely with local business owners and residents on every step to ensure success and sustainability.

Reshaping the heart of Athens: the Commercial Triangle program is removing tags and cleaning walls and storefronts, creating new pedestrian streets, in cooperation with local business owners.

Addressing one the most pressing emergencies in Athens, the Athens Partnership became a catalyst to public and private efforts assisting refugees and migrants. The creation of the Athens Coordination Center for Migrant and Refugee Issues enabled the City of Athens to assume a proactive role in the coordination of 75 NGOs and government agencies—helping to identify gaps, avoid duplication of efforts, promoting the integration of migrants and refugees as well as preparing for a possible future emergency. This program has fundamentally begun to change the way resources are channeled to address the refugee crisis, building synergies between private and public sector partners.

Above all, the success of the Athens Partnership is good news for the City Athens and its residents—new and old. As noted in our Biennial Report, over 70,000 Athenians have been directly served by the work of the Athens Partnership since its launch. We are confident this is only the beginning.

We are deeply thankful to our growing list of partners and donors committed to the health and well-being of Athenians and our country. In spite of the challenges we face, we can only be optimistic about the future: by harnessing this powerful mix, there are no limits to what our City can achieve ahead!

Athens Partnership Presentation at Foreign Press Association Christmas Drinks event

The F.P.A. invited members, colleagues and guests for Christmas drinks on December 20. In a relaxed and collegial atmosphere, it also hosted a presentation by the Athens Partnership, a non-profit carrying out high-impact public-private initiatives in partnership with the Municipality of Athens.

The Athens Partnership’s Executive Director Alexandros Kambouroglou gave a rundown of its 14 major projects and achievements since its 2015 launch with the backing of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation. “We come up with real, scalable solutions,” Kambouroglou said.

Other key Athens Partnership officials were also present: Athens Vice Mayor for Migrants, Refugees and Municipal Decentralization Lefteris Papagiannakis; the city’s first Digital Officer Kostas Champidis; as well as Kostis Alketas Oungrinis, Vice Dean of the School of Architectural Engineering at the Technical University of Crete.

The F.P.A. founded in 1916, brings together the foreign press corps operating in Greece and hosts events and press briefings throughout the year.

reproduced from www.fpa.gr