The official newsflash of Don Bosco Youth-Net ivzw

NF 91 (November 2008)

Calls & Public information - Picture of the month

NEWS FROM THE NETWORK

Network meeting in Munich

We held our autumn network meeting from the 23rd to the 26th of October 2008 at the Salesianum in Munich.  In total we had by 21 participants from 11 European Countries, including Fr Meinolf von Spee from Don Bosco International and Fr Dominic Sequeira from the Salesian Youth Ministry Department.

We started with the meeting of the Administrative Body (Belgium, Germany, Malta, Poland and the President Fr. Bob Gardner). This was followed by the presentation of the new website, in order to help the member organisations to discover its full potential and to use it for better communication among them. The participants then moved on to do the Work Plan 2009 which needs to be submitted to the European commission in order to get the administrative grant. All participants helped to do the Work Plan by bringing in their projects and information for the coming year 2009.

With the help of a short and simple presentation the members took part in the Exchange market wherein the members look for partners in order to organise projects in the years ahead. The members then worked seriously over the Master Plan of DBYN for the years 2009-2011.  As you probably know, DBYN already has a training structure.  Currently we worked on our communication structure and a representation structure to further support our organisational framework.

New dates for the coming years

At the network meeting we fixed the dates of some of our upcoming activities in 2009 and 2010.  So, if you are planning coming to one of these meetings, you can already put them in your calendars:

• 12-15/03/2009: Network meeting and G.E.B. in Bollington (UK)
• 12-19/04/2009: STEP 2 training course project management in Rijswijk (NL)
• 19-26/07/2009: STEP 1 training course intercultural learning in Benediktbeuern (DE)
• 02-09/08/2009: Eurizon 2009 in Bollington (UK)
• 08-15/08/2009: European youth week in Benediktbeuern (DE)
• 15-18/10/2009: Network meeting in Groot-Bijgaarden (BE)
• 11-14/03/2010: Network meeting (CZ or NL)
• 04-11/04/2010: STEP 3 training course training of trainers in Groot-Bijgaarden (BE)
• 18-25/07/2010: STEP 1 training course intercultural learning
• 14-26/10/2010: Network meeting (MT or SI)

NEWS FROM THE PARTNERS

Prize for Austrian volunteers

On 26 September 3 young people former volunteers with the Austrian NGO "Jugend Eine Welt", were given awards by the German Foundation "Filippas Engel".

Each year the Foundation belonging to the family of the Princes of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn, gives awards to young people who have made a special contribution through their social commitment.

Reinhard Heiserer, Director of "Jugend Eine Welt", says with great pride: "The three young men who received the awards - Peter, Thomas and George - are an example for everyone. After spending a year as volunteers in Salesian projects overseas, on their return to Austria they continue to support the Salesians and their youth projects for disadvantaged children and young people."

Peter Rinderer devoted a year of his life to poor children in a Salesian centre in Tijuana, Mexico. This experience as a volunteer led him to begin a process of vocational discernment. Back in Austria he spent some time in an aspirantate in Vienna, and now he is making his novitiate in Pinerolo in order to become a Salesian.

George Urschitz and Thomas Strasser worked together for a year in a Vocational Training Centre at Sunyani in Ghana, giving computer courses to about 300 young people. With the help of these two volunteers the students were able to start a small business enterprise. With the money earned from repairing and assembling computers, the young Ghanese were able to finance their own studies and improve their standard of living.

Thomas Strasser, 22 years of age said: "I am very pleased to have received this award; I'll invest the money for my next project. In October I'm going to work for a year in the Don Bosco Vocational Training Centre in Lilongwe, Malawi, to organise a course and other activities similar to those in Ghana". George Urschitz, at present studying in Austria, also continues to support "Jugend Eine Welt" and the Salesians, organising presentations and collecting funds for the project in Ghana and holding meetings to get other young Austrians involved.

EUROPEAN YOUTH FORUM

Call for NGO Participants in the EU Childrens Rights Forum

The EU Commission works with civil society to build the European Forum on the Rights of the Child .The European Forum on the Rights of the Child is a permanent group chaired by the European Commission aiming to promote children's rights in EU internal and external action. The Forum was launched following the adoption by the European Commission on 4 July 2006 of the Communication entitled "Towards an EU strategy on the Rights of the Child".

The role of the Forum is to advise and assist the Commission and other European Institutions, in particular regarding the mainstreaming of children's rights in EU policy and programming, and to provide an opportunity to exchange information and good practice between stakeholders. It is hoped that the Forum will be a place to allow children's opinions to be heard and taken into account in the development of policies concerning them. It takes place twice a year. In order to ensure effective representation of civil society at the Forum, Civil society organisations have launched a call for interest. NGO's can submit their application up to 14th of November 2008.

The link to the online application form is in the text of the call but it can also be found on the jls website at the following link.

Please have a look at the call for nomination and the selection criteria.  If you are interested in going, please contact the international secretariat a.s.a.p.

CALLS & PUBLIC INFORMATION

European Youth Week 2008

The fourth European Youth Week celebrates twenty years of European programmes for youth. It's the perfect time to look to the future and discuss the challenges that young people in Europe will be facing in the years to come. So mark your calendar from November 2 to 9 - because the youth of Europe will be speaking up! Events are organised in the 31 countries participating in the Youth in Action Programme and a central event takes place in Brussels from November 2 to 6. This year's Youth Week is also dedicated to "intercultural dialogue" - the EU's theme of 2008. Do you want to know what is happening right now? Stay tuned in ... and check out www.youthweek.eu regularly.

New SALTO publication: Youth and the City

Youth and the City is the latest SALTO Inclusion for All booklet about setting up international projects with young people from disadvantaged (sub)urban areas - based on the many ideas from the Urban Youth Seminar last December.

Youth gangs are killing each other in London, teenagers are burning cars in Paris, youth protestors are battered by police in Warsaw, young people drink themselves into a coma on the streets of Madrid,...  Life does not seem all that positive in disadvantaged (sub)urban areas. That's why youth workers, street workers and social workers are all the more important in creating some alternatives for young people in the cities.

Why not try an international youth project? It opens up young people's worlds and helps them put things into perspective. Life in the city isn't that bad after all!  "Youth and the City" is a practical manual for youth workers about setting up meaningful international youth projects with young people in those disadvantaged (sub)urban areas. This booklet is about giving young people positive opportunities in the city area.  "Youth and the City" gives you suggestions and tips for motivating your group, finding partner-groups abroad, raising funds for your urban project, working with the local community, encouraging participation and intercultural learning, avoiding things going wrong and lots more. We hope this booklet will give you inspiration to bring an international dimension to your urban youth work and to create life-changing opportunities for the young people you work with.  This booklet is part of the SALTO 'Inclusion for ALL' series.

Agenda 2020: European Ministers adopt a blueprint on future of youth policy

A blueprint for the Council of Europe activities in the youth field for the next decade was agreed by youth ministers and high-level policy makers from the 49 signatory countries of the European Cultural Convention at the 8th Conference of European ministers responsible for youth affairs which ended on Saturday, 11 October in Kyiv.

Ukrainian Minister for Family, Youth and Sports Yuriy Pavlenko said that the "adopted policy document will be an excellent thesaurus of the Council of Europe youth policy achievements."  "We have plenty of time to put it into practice both at the national and European levels. I am sure with common efforts we will fulfill this task as Europe's future belongs to youth," he underlined.  His words were echoed by Ralf-René Weingartner, Council of Europe Director of Youth and Sport who said that "Europe as a continent based on shared values - on human rights, democracy, the rule of law, peace, solidarity, intercultural dialogue- has no future without active commitment of the young generation,"

The final declaration - the "Agenda 2020" - spells out what youth policy needs to do now and in the next decade in three main directions: human rights and democracy, cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue, and social inclusion of young people: Kyiv Declaration - Agenda 2020.

The next Council of Europe conference of ministers of youth will be held in 2011. For more information on the conference surf to www.youthministers2008.org.

PICTURE OF THE MONTH

The picture of the month shows the participants of our network meeting in Munich: