Who we are
The International Federation of Settlements and Neighborhood Centers (IFS) is a global movement of more than 11000 member associations that include multi-purpose, community-based organizations across the world. We believe in empowering the people who work for social justice by connecting, inspiring and supporting an inclusive global community.
Please watch this video to learn more about Settlement Houses.
“Let’s all be brave and creative builders of a much better and just world”
How to become a member
Our Membership spans the globe offering partnership for programs and conferences that introduce you to new networking channels.
Focus Areas: Coronavirus: The impact on Neighbourhood Houses and Community Centers and more.
The IFS Helsinki Office and members have been organising online meetings as an opportunity to IFS members to share news and talk about the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on community work and plans after the crisis. There have been two meetings so far. The first online meeting took place on March 31, 2020, and the second on May 6, 2020.
Sophie Michelena, IFS Europe Projects Coordinator from Locality in the United Kingdom conducted research on COVID-19 related experiences as a part of the IFS Europe Office. The research compiled and compared experiences of social centres and their national bodies in 8 European countries: Sweden, the Netherlands, Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, and the UK.
The research took place in October and November 2020 and included:
- Interviews with the national membership and support organisation
- An online survey with social centres and local organisations in Europe
The research’s key findings can be found here.
Below you will find links and shortcuts to the main focuses of the IFS Office.
News & Blog
MAGAZINE C’EST POSSIBLE! N°18 “Le tour du monde des centres sociaux” Dec 2020 – Mars 2021
It's here! The Magazine C'est Possible! from the French Federation of Centres...
NGO Committee on Migration survey and Grassroots immigrant work and COVID-19
In the context of the Coronavirus pandemic, the survey below (via links) is...
“Get to know your board members” series: Franco Uda
In this “Get to know your board members” series, we have interviewed the IFS...
Upcoming events
IFS Board Meeting
28/01/2021
Event Description The IFS Board members will meet for the first...
Online Event: Resilience in living together
26/02/2021
Event description Vernetzungstag – „Resilienz im Zusammenleben“...
IFS Conference 2021 Social Justice – The Unfinished Journey
14/09/2021
IFS Conference Sydney 2021 - SAVE THE DATE! Event description...
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