So what happens next?

There were a few project ideas initiated during the meeting:

• Dream a little Dream (and make it happen!) is an idea for creating a 'better world'. The change is to be initiated in different levels... through self-development, through community development. Through media, arts and creativity and through influencing economists, journalists etc. Within the group we have agreed to exchange different views of change via e-mails and see where we find the common points.

• Youth in Relaxtion is a project answering the fast and wild, yet beautiful world we live in and the need for learning how to relax in the speeding for success. The idea is to make a training course where youth leaders would learn different reaxation techniques.

• A Chair for the World was initally meant to be a youth exchange though during the talks it felt more as a youth initiative within which there could be a youth exchange event organised as well. The idea is to initiate different activities for promoting preservation of natural goods. One of the ideas was to turn unused chairs into something useful for example a flower pot which we would place in front of the houses or buildings in the city. That is how we wouldn't throw them away and at the same time we would have plants growing where they usually don't. As a peak of different activities there would be a 10 days exchange organised with youth from different countries joining in a 'survival' challenge in the nature (with therapy with horses).

• Chain of Compliments is meant as a youth initiative project for creating moments of happiness within people... Simply by giving compliments or nice thoughts to others. No matter if they are friends, family, colleagues at work or total strangers. The personal chain is to grow into making posters and flyers, pocket compliment books, a web page.

These project ideas are based on thinking (or rather dreaming) of our world as a place we would want it to be. It is the changes we would want to make as creators of a better world.

All of them are beautiful ideas and worth working on which is also what the participants of the meeting agreed upon. We were thinking about how to support the actual realisation.

One way would be to apply for funding the network under Youth in Action programme, action 4.3. This is how we would enable partners in developing the projects further by being able to meet and cover other costs for planning. It would also help strenghtening the relations between partners and so create a sustainable partnership.

SO, LET'S SEE WHAT HAPPENS ,)

DAY 4

Energizer.

Defining a common project(s) we might want to pursue,
steps that need to be made,
sharing tasks and responsibilities.

Break.
Evaluation.
Lunch.
Departures.

DAY 3

Energizer.

Preparations for the public event in cooperation with The Association for the Blind.
Activities:
- tandem cycling,
- golball (a game with a sounding ball),
- 'blindwalking',
- presenting YiA,
- lots of fun!!!

Energizer.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow: the world we want to help create.
Joining ideas, creating working groups.
Working in smaller groups, creating basic project ideas.



Energizer.
So how about this energizer ;)

Preparing and presenting project ideas, defining the type of a project.
Letting it cook in our minds :)
Daily evaluation.
Dinner.
Free evening.

DAY 2

Energizer.
Attending MAN garden: planting the seeds, growing plants, see what's under the rocks.
Brief organisation/ group/individuals presentations.
Break.

Energizer.
'Baking' a cultural cake – sharing pieces on speed dates.
Lunch.
Energizer.
ACTivation projects presentations.
Break.
Energizer.
What made you choose those projects? Implementing Appreciative Inquiry principles.
Daily evaluation.

Dinner &Intercultural Bazaar.

DAY 1

Participant arrivals.
A traditional Slavic welcome.
Who is who?
Uverture to our common journey or... getting to know eachother.

L'ARCOBALENO, the Rainbow Crossing from Italy

L’Arcobaleno is a social service cooperative which works with young people and adults since 1984.

The main sector and organization background is health education. Since 1987 Arcobaleno has been running a community for people with addiction problems (drug, alcohol), who are hosted to be followed by a team of experts to get over their addiction. The community has been hosted more than 400 people coming from the region.

The second sector, called “Route_ag”, deals with education&training for adults and youth, and youth policies. The main objective is the active involvement of people in non formal education paths. Route_ag promotes: the management and coordination of counselling centres; juvenile aggregation centres; meetings; trainings and workshops.

The main activities are:

- promotion of youth policies and cultures,

- social inclusion,

- street education,

- health education,

- expression through art,

- media and communication,

- intercultural learning,

- experiential learning,

- international mobility.

Target Groups:

- Young people from 15 to 30,

- Adults: parents, teachers, social workers, services workers.

Presenting H2O from Portugal

Arrouquelas is a small village in the centre of Portugal, in the district of Rio Maior which is known by its sports achievements. Our county is well known for its wines and gastronomic specialties, mainly made of pork meat. There are many people who work in agriculture and whose jobs are very precarious. Agriculture and breeding cattle are very important activities in the economy of our region, Ribatejo. Voluntarism, based on solidarity, friendship, compassion, citizenship has been fighting back the tendency of our societies which promote material values and breed selfish people whose main worries are to buy the next newly arrived good in the market. Therefore, associations like ours are a very important factor in the social development, as in some cases the only development opportunity.

We're an association whose typical name is “H2O”, was founded in 1996 and nowadays has 100 members. We carry out several kinds of activities, which mainly promote environmental awareness. Our work has been acknowledged both by regional and national entities. Voluntarisme and concentration characterise our work, which aims at educating people and thus becomes considerably relevant in the communities development. Gradually, we have managed to orientate the people in a region that despite being close to Lisbon has serious social and financial needs, like a rural area that we are.

Generally speaking, our association aims to show that the habitants of the rural areas can and should have the same opportunities that those in the urban areas have. Therefore we try to offer them activities that they can only carry out in the countryside, in which we try to match the countryside’s' best assets — the environment and nature— with the conditions they find in the cities. We carry out Non-formal Education, we organise debates on various themes, all aiming the protection of the environment; we promote awareness campaigns in which we conceive posters and fliers.

We are involved in National and International projects connected with European Citizenship, organise exchanges, seminars and training courses as sending and hosting organization. Our association has got its own facilities, which was built by our members. Despite some difficulties, we try to keep track of the new technologies, through our cyber space, which allows access to the Internet.

They have been arround...

Magyar Zanemuveszeti Alapitvany Stationed in Hungary

An organization from Budapest, Hungary, supporting young artists, musicians. Their target group is unestablished talents, creating in 'less popular' music branches.

As all the musicians are not at the same time managers, economists or media people, this organization is offering support at organizing events/concerts, media publishing etc.

European Youth Press

The European Youth Press is an umbrella association of young journalists in Europe. It involves more than 48,000 journalists who are less than 30 years of age. The association consists of twenty member organizations, of which eighteen are national youth media associations. For everyday work EYP elects a board, that serves two years, which works together closely with the associations’ European secretariat.

The European Youth Press is a young association, not only because it was founded in 2004, but because the participants are young themselves. Journalists who are organized in the European Youth Press are working for either school magazines, internet projects, radio and video productions, or are interns in editor-rooms, freelance journalists, journalism students or trainees.

The European Youth Press’ primary objective is to ensure strong cooperation among national youth media structures through group projects. Moreover, the Press’ overall aim is to strengthen the role of youth media and promote freedom of press in Europe. The European Youth Press also takes part in discussions about journalistic education standards and media policies throughout the European Union. The EYP sees itself as serving the national structures through the development and coordination of projects that are organized by young media makers in Europe. The EYP also provides contact forums and educational seminars for multipliers of the member associations and provides internal and external communication among all partners.

Young people write for young people – and give topics a youth perspective; a perspective which is sometimes overlooked when examining European issues. At the European Youth Press, we want to contribute to the intercultural exchange in Europe by facilitating direct contacts between young journalists through international projects and events.

Equal People Squad from Belgium...

...is a trainers collective designing and delivering trainings mainly for non-profit organisations started by Steven Haine.

Contact: stevenhaine@equalpeoplesquad.com

Greek Activators, ACRO NGO

Active Creative Reforming Organization from Greece :)

Non governamental organisation established in 2007 in Kastoria and already organised/participated in training courses, seminars, youth exchanges and the European Youth Week 2008.

Check this link for the news on INFOLIBRARY.