In European cooperation, we spend a lot of time talking about funding.

New calls. New programmes. New opportunities.

And, of course, funding matters. Without it, many valuable initiatives would never get started.

But recently, at L’ORMAinternational, we’ve been asking ourselves a different question.

What if one of the biggest challenges in international cooperation isn’t the lack of resources, but how disconnected those resources are?

So much is already happening

Think about how many organisations across Europe are working on similar challenges.

Social inclusion. Education. Community development. Youth participation. Sustainability.

Thousands of organisations are developing projects, testing methodologies, building local networks and gaining valuable experience.

Some are creating innovative solutions.

Others are facing challenges that someone, somewhere else in Europe, may have already found a way to address.

And yet, how often do these organisations actually connect?

How often do successful local initiatives find their way into other countries?

How often do we build on what already exists, rather than starting something new?

We suspect there is much more potential here than we currently manage to unlock.

The invisible cost of fragmentation

Fragmentation isn’t always easy to recognise.

It doesn’t necessarily mean that organisations are doing something wrong.

Quite the opposite.

Many are doing excellent work.

But they are doing it separately.

One organisation develops an innovative educational methodology.

Another builds a strong network of local stakeholders.

A third discovers a promising funding opportunity.

A fourth has the expertise to scale an initiative internationally.

Individually, each has something valuable.

But what could happen if these resources were connected more intentionally?

Perhaps the real opportunity isn’t always to create something new.

Sometimes, it’s to connect what already exists.

We are very good at building projects. But are we equally good at connecting initiatives?

European funding programmes have helped create an extraordinary culture of international cooperation.

We know how to develop proposals, build consortia, organise activities and deliver results.

But the system also encourages us to organise collaboration around individual projects.

A funding opportunity appears, organisations come together, a consortium is formed.

And when the project ends, that particular structure often comes to an end too.

Of course, new collaborations emerge. Relationships continue. Knowledge is shared.

But how much of that potential is systematically connected to what comes next?

We wonder whether, sometimes, we are investing more energy in creating new projects than in connecting the initiatives, knowledge and relationships that previous projects have already generated.

And that feels like a missed opportunity.

What if we started connecting before developing?

Imagine a group of organisations from different European countries working on the same social challenge.

Instead of waiting for the next funding call, they start sharing what they are already doing.

They discover initiatives that could be adapted to other territories.

They identify complementary expertise.

They exchange contacts, resources and opportunities.

Perhaps one organisation has a successful local model but lacks the capacity to expand internationally.

Another has the relationships and experience to support that expansion.

A third knows of a funding opportunity that could make it possible.

Not everyone needs to participate in the same project.

Not every conversation needs to become a proposal.

But something valuable is happening.

The organisations are gradually creating more opportunities together than they could generate individually.

This is where we see the potential of Strategic Alliances

At L’ORMAinternational, this is one of the ideas behind the Strategic Alliances we are currently building.

We don’t see them as fixed consortia or exclusive networks of organisations.

We see them as spaces where organisations sharing a common challenge can connect their knowledge, initiatives, relationships and resources over time.

Sometimes, this may lead to a European project.

Sometimes, to the international expansion of an existing initiative.

Sometimes, to a collaboration between two organisations that might never have met otherwise.

And sometimes, simply to a better understanding of what is happening across Europe.

All of these outcomes can create value.

The important thing is that collaboration doesn’t have to start and end with a funding opportunity.

And that the knowledge and relationships developed along the way don’t remain isolated.

Maybe we don’t need to start from zero so often

We certainly need new ideas, new projects and new funding opportunities.

But perhaps we also need to become better at recognising and connecting the value that already exists.

Because the future of international cooperation may not depend only on how many new projects we manage to develop.

It may also depend on how effectively we connect the people, organisations and initiatives that are already trying to make a difference.

For us, that’s one of the reasons why building alliances beyond projects is becoming increasingly important.

Not simply to work together more often.

But to make what we already do, individually and collectively, more valuable.

If your organisation has been reflecting on similar questions, we’d genuinely love to continue the conversation.

Connect with us → https://ormainternational.eu/connectwithus/