The SSE programme is the next step after Children Committees, which play active roles in assessing applications under RUSAL’s ‘100 Best Projects’ competition. It started in 2004. At first only the children of RUSAL's employees could take part. Since 2006 everyone can participate.

Children Committees are an effective education and development tool.

In their own words, past participants described their experience in the committees as a means to: ‘find new capabilities in myself. I found new friends and learned to be organised and work in a team’ and said ‘My inner world has changed. I revealed new qualities within myself. I learned to understand others and take the surrounding reality as it is’”.

The SSE programme includes the following components:

• A modular programme called ‘Basics of Social Engineering’ for pupils;
• Engagement of the most active member of the School in assessment of applications for 100 Best Projects;
• Organisation of seminars
• Implementation of SSE members’ in-house social initiatives, including the Spring Week of Good and the International Day of Youth Service.

The competition to organise the activity of Children’s Committees in the academic year 2007-2008 was held in Achinsk, Boksitogorsk, Bratsk, Irkutsk, Krasnoyarsk, Nikolaev (Ukraine), Novokuznetsk, Pikalevo, and Sayanogorsk.

According to the resolution of the Experts Committee, the winners are as follows:

• Achinsk children’s activity centre, for the project ‘Build your world’
• Boksitogorsk history and culture club, for the project ‘Social engineering school for children and teenagers’
• Bratsk state teacher training college No.1, for the project ‘VEGA social engineering school’
• Irkutsk state teacher training college No.1, for the project ‘Fireworks of ideas’
• Krasnoyarsk interschool professional training centre, for the project ‘Children’s activity for the development of the Krasnoyarsk region’
• Novokuznetsk psychological, social and health care support centre ‘DAR’, for the project ‘Make your world better’
• Sayanogorsk educational centre, for the project ‘Walk and you shall reach’

In November, the winning organisations held festivals for short listing 280 kids who will go on to work in the Children’s Committees of their cities.

‘Social Engineering School’ for adults is designed for promoting the project culture, train social engineering coaches and project assessment experts. In 2007 the programme attracted 25 representatives of the local community from 5 Siberian cities. They received the following training:

• Social engineering
• Training for preparation of social engineering coaches
• Improvement of coaching skills
• Expert revisions, monitoring and assessment of social projects
• Improvement of skills required for expert revisions, monitoring and assessment of social projects

This year the Social Engineering School opens its doors for leaders of non-commercial organisations, employees of state and municipal agencies from Ekaterinburg, Kamensk-Uralsky, Krasnoturyinsk, Mikhailovsk and Severo’uralsk (the Sverdlov region), Segezha and Nadvoitsy (the Republic of Karelia), Boksitogorsk and Pikalevo (the Leningrad region) and Kandalaksha (the Murmansk region).

On February 8th, 2008 the Company announced a competition to undertake an educational programme aimed at preparation of social engineering coaches and project assessment experts.

It encompasses three training sessions that will be held from March to September 2008. After the programme is over, its participants are expected to be able to singlehandedly develop training sessions on the basics of social engineering and carry out project monitoring and assessment.

To participate in the competition, the qualifying organisations are to provide an educational programme, supporting handouts and a detailed CV of the coach, with a full description of his/her work experience.

The closing date for applications is February 26th, 2008. All the applications are to be submitted to UC RUSAL’s Social Programmes Centre.

Additional information about SSE can be obtained from regional Social Programme Centres or from Olga Kurnaeva, Programme Manager (Tel. +7-3912-273191; E-mail: kurnaeva@fcsp.ru).

Corporate social responsibility service

Igor Baradachev
CSR@rusal.ru
Tel.: 7 (495) 720-51-71