Institut für gesellschaftswissenschaftliche Forschung, Bildung und Information

The FBI Centre” is a provider for adult education and an independent research institute rooted in the sciences shop movement. It is organised as a non-governmental organisation – NGO. The main objective of the FBI Centre is to bridge the gap between science and the civil society in the sense of “making advanced knowledge accessible, understandable and applicable for a broad public” by means of transforming current and self-generated research results into applicable courses in the frame of education and development. It serves as a link between knowledge producing systems and society and between scientific knowledge and experiential knowledge on issues related to research, society and culture with a special focus on social and gender issues, transculturality, participation and empowerment. Major current courses and projects deal with women and gender-related issues (gender studies, female studies, women in science, gender mainstreaming), other participatory methods, the biographical approach, conditions of employment, mentoring for young people with migrant background (courses for mentors and mentees), “Jungenarbeit” (gender sensitive education for boys) and “Cross Work” (gender pedagogic of women with boys and men with girls) – courses for teachers and trainers. It developed 3 new courses on how to keep or reintegrate people 50+ in the labour market (for the three target groups: people 50+, teachers/trainers and HRD managers) and a course for Spa managers and Spa employees in touristic resorts.

The FBI Centre was involved in the EU projects SCIPAS, INTERACTS, ISSNET, TRAMS – all on the interrelation between Science and Society – the ESF-projects MIDAS, AQUA, JOIN IN and Initiative.Frauen.Gründen, and the GRUNDTVIG II projects “the knowledge shop”, IMPROGE and PASS, further the Europe for citizens project “Identities in European societies” and under the programme line Grundtvig: REALIZE – GRUNDTVIG I; SIGOLD – GRUNDTVIG I, TRAWELSPA – GRUNDTVIG I, Traces of ROOTS - GRUNDTVIG II Learning Partnership , Migrant Women – GRUNDTVIG II Learning Partnership and in Erasmus plus Projekte E4E, Education for Equality uns EYESA, Empowering Youth for Social Action and EDU-DAPRO, EDUcational resources for training adults on digital DAta PROtection.

The “FBI-Centre” is a founding member of the international network of science shops (Living Knowledge) and a member of the Austrian national network of organisations against domestic violence, section Youth, conducting an annual project on prevention since 1993.