Chess in Schools Commission calling ...

LET US MAKE THE BEST MOVE!

Dear Friends,

The President of FIDE, Mr. Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, decided to nominate me Chairman of the Chess in Schools Commission (SCH) for the term 2010-2014. That makes me very proud, even more motivated, and I will focus my full energy on FIDE's Chess in Schools Project for the next four years. Here is an overview of my draft plan for those four years:

Our Vision: FIDE World Chess – Children for Tomorrow - Federation Model:

Nothing less than a social project for the whole world, using chess to make children better socially adjusted, more intelligent, better human beings, growing into young adults well-prepared for the Knowledge Society of the 21st Century.

It is also a model for each national federation to become richer and stronger. The CIS projects add value by opening up marketing and sponsorship possibilities, not just increasing membership.

Working principles:

Before we start running from here to there, we need to know where 'here' is. Right now we are preparing a worldwide questionnaire to find out. We will then inform you of the current position.

Structure:

We will establish a body (like a non-profit company) under the FIDE umbrella. I will lead it, assisted by four Councillors: Kevin O'Connell (Executive Secretary), Uvencio Blanco (Americas), Alexander Kostyev (Advisor), Ravindra Murlidhar Dongre (Asia), Jesper Hall(Scandinavia), Leontxo GARCIA (Media relations) . We will establish an office, with a full-time secretary to act as coordinator, our own web site (full of helpful and inspirational materials) and Regional Coordinators to liaise with a Project Coordinator in each federation.

I call on all federations, and every expert in this field to contact me and to work with me to make chess ever more popular, reaching out to more and more lives. If you want to work, become a Member of the Commission; we want CIS experts, especially for the major languages, Federation managers, players, journalists, and academicians.

Budget:

Once a firm agreement has been concluded between SCH and a national federation, clearly setting out the obligations of each party, we will work with the federation on how to fund their project (including seed capital), how to produce their material and which media to use.

Aims:

The main chess goal of SCH is to make CIS a powerful engine at the core of developing chess and chess federations, to raise the level of management in each participating project, adding marketing, promotion, public relations, thus increasing membership, boosting popularity, attracting sponsors, establishing a chess industry, finding talents and making them idols, and last but not least, casting aside the begging bowl, instead setting to work and reaping the riches that our work will generate.

To realise this common target there are some sub-aims, which will be followed in parallel:

· First we will publish a CIS Handbook, stating where we stand, with ideas and general recommendations to help us move forward, not a course syllabus. The book will contain the strategy and tactics to handle key decisions and questions.

· In spring or autumn 2011, a huge World CIS Conference will be held in Turkey, or somewhere else if there is a good proposal. The idea of the conference is to bring together five parties: federations, education scientists, trainers, teachers, and Education Ministries. Later on we will add business and civic authorities.

· Create the sch.fide.com website. This will have every piece of useful information and motivational material that we can find for those working in this field.

A perpetual module:

We will agree specific projects with each federation. You choose what is most relevant to you. We will consult with you to create a master plan together, tailoring it to fit your requirements. This master plan will be not only for CIS, but will also detail how to use CIS efficiently in order to develop your federation from weak to strong, from poor to rich, from small to big.

Here are some suggestions of how to use CIS to create a project that will make a difference:

° Make chess the most popular sport in your country, measured not in money terms, not by press coverage, but by the number of players.

° Build such a large base of chess-playing future voters that no politician will refuse you recognition as a sport.

° Help girls and students from deprived backgrounds to obtain equality of educational success.

° Increase federation membership by thousands, or millions, according to the population of your country.

° Build relations with all parties who might have an interest in CIS: educational, civic, business and political; this is not just a pure chess matter.

° Make everyone happy by using CIS as a tool.

° Enrich your federation, then you will have the resources to find the best talents and make them into heros, known worldwide.

° Revise, apply, revise, apply and optimize your master plan.

Once a master plan is agreed with each federation that wishes to participate, we will also establish the benchmarks to be met and, in order to reach them, your requirements from us. After that, no excuses - you will work, we will help, especially guiding you away from mistakes, and we will achieve our target.

WHO DO WE NEED?

Project Leaders: people with a real passion for chess, believers in success, prepared to work like crazy, and who have the skills (or are ready to learn them) to manage the master plan of each federation.

Coordinators: again, passionate about chess, able to manage the Project Leaders, communicating with them on a regular basis, charting results and reporting to the SCH office. Some Coordinators: Ignateus Leong, Beatriz Marinello, Geoffrey D Borg, Theodoros Tsorbatzoglou, more is expected...

Members: anyone who really wants to make a contribution. Those who just want something for their C.V. or business card need not apply.

Staff: webmasters and translators (especially Arabic, French, Russian and Spanish).

Federations: those which believe in future success through hard work. They will create a shiny new future, in which they will be rich enough not to need begging bowls.

Folks! We are awaiting your call!

Ali Nihat Yazici - This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it