Parental Pals are passionate parents who believe in open minded education.
Their key elements: a global perspective, playful curiosity, confidence, respect,
good humoured common sense and partner families with a kindred spirit.

They see the benefits of cooperation. Here is where they meet.

“Gentlemen, you are now about to embark on a course of studies which will occupy you for two years. Together, they form a noble adventure. But I would like to remind you of an important point. Nothing that you will learn in the course of your studies will be of the slightest possible use to you in after life, save only this, that if you work hard and intelligently you should be able to detect when a man is talking rot, and that, in my view, is the main, if not the sole, purpose of education.”

• John Alexander Smith, Professor of Moral Philosophy, Oxford University, 1914

Q: Where can I find a brief description: “Who or what is a Parental Pal” ?

Please visit the weblog ParentalPal.Net. You find a fast “elevator-pitch” style answer there. Here’s the link.
For the more detailed approach you may want to check out the eight questions at the start of the Case Studies page: The “Pal-ability test”!

Q: Where can I find a brief answer: “What can ParentalPal.Org do for me” ?

Q: Why is the site available in English only ?

English is (currently !) the leading language in the world of international education and science. There is no way around a good basic command of English for any girl or boy with the ambition to study and/or work abroad. The vast majority of important publications (like Science and Nature) are written in English and innumerable University lectures are held in English world wide, regardless of the respective country’s native tongue.
However, nothing will keep us from going multi-lingual in the long run if this is what you want and require. We will always have an open ear for all wishes and needs to provide parents with the best common denominator globally.

Q: How can I find out about the character of potential Pals ?  Are they trustworthy ?

The greatest strength of this system lies in the mutuality of sensitivities.
Families communicate and socialize here always on eye level, they are in identical situations. Your Parental Pals share your doubts, worries and of course hopes; they are as concerned about the safety and well being of their children as you are. Nobody can look inside someone elses heart, but mutuality of interest is a strong bond and a good foundation to build confidence. The more parallel and cross ties you establish as you get to know each other better, the easier you will find it to trust and be trusted. Our concept of parental cooperatives allows ample time for a slow and sustainable growing process for relationships.
To back up the “moral, rational and humanitarian safety factors” we take great care to verify our members’ identity and credentials as an essential part of our strategy. Our greatest responsibility is the safe keeping of our members and their children.

Q: Will any of my details be found by search engines ?

No.

Q: Is there a limit to pictures or texts I can upload ?

A ParentalPal profile accomodates a fair number of photographs, data files and as much text as you want. The idea is that you present who you are, what you want from life and from ParentalPal and what your family is up to by offering as many links as you want to:
Most people have existing profiles in other networks, actively using them (rather than setting up yet another one) is our favourite approach. We encourage you to set (and maintain) links to all your profiles and additional online information, your personal weblogs, the company you work for and other sites offering an insight into the the topics, organizations, publications etc. that really interest you.

Q: What is the “loyalty bonus” ?

As the number of registrations goes up, so does the volume of questions and suggestions. The wealth of ideas and the great passion behind so many conversations we’ve had the privilege to have so far takes us into far deeper waters than we had anticipated. It is as much our wish as it is an obligation to do justice to this feedback and its quality. Preparations will take longer and even more think-tank work will go into the ParentalFusion aspects of ParentalPal.Org. This input into the true power of the network reflects the hope of many members and supporters: to make in impact on educational strategies world wide. That’s why some of you had to be a bit patient. Thank you for holding on!

No. There is only an invitation, no obligation.
To be a PhilanthroPal means to give a hand by sparing time and knowledge, by being accessible for good advice and perhaps even as a mentor for a young person. The invitation takes very much into consideration that an individuals readiness to spare time or other resources for others has its ups and downs. An obligation would be a hindrance, an invitation is an opportunity.

“Ycccio - Young, Capable, Creative and Curious kids with an International and Open mind“ are human resources in seeding stage: from kindergarten kids to almost grown up teenagers, from all walks of life, from all social and cultural backgrounds.
The label to the right takes you to “Promissio pro Futuro”, the website for a new name for ycccios and a highly challenging competion for it !

SharedMindspace.Org is increasingly turning out to be the most useful and most welcomed service we ever invented. This makes it our main field of activity with about 80% of all new members. Naturally we are delighted that it can help so many youngsters, we will keep up the think tank work for other ideas too.

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