| SEEYN
WORKCAMPS The South East European Youth Network is an attempt of overcoming differences among societies that have recent tradition of conflicts through bringing young people from the entire South Eastern Europe region to work together. This is one of the seven networks established within FRESTA program conducted by Danish Foreign Ministry. Since youth is one of the pillars of FRESTA, SEEYN plays an important role in contributing to its overall goals such as peace, stability and democratic development in the region.The idea that young people will be future society leaders is the basis of the network. This approach is long-term in its orientation and it takes a lot of effort to become reality. What is particularly important, is the equal representation of all different peoples in this process, as well as neutral and independent treatment of initiatives coming from different countries. If young people become able to support each other's initiatives, carefully listen to their associates from other countries and honestly put efforts to understand each other, it will be possible to create strong regional network with common interests over time.The only way to overcome inherited hatred and intolerance is to work in coordination with people who have the same goals. For this reason, youth cooperation is a step that can make many others follow this example and resolve accumulated problems. Objectives of SEEYN:
possibilities for democratic
culture education with main focus on voluntarism; established cooperation mechanisms
between governments & youth; better perspectives (social & economic) for
youth; strong cooperation between main stakeholders (governments and NGOs); developed
tools & structures for education and information about mobility, supportive
changes in legal environment; educated & involved policy advisers; youth policy
papers and raised awareness of the youth on relevant issues.The focus of SEEYN
was set on the following topics. More about this can be found in the 'history
and about us' sections of this site: SEEYN Workcamps as a network organizes workcamps for already 6 years. SEEYN new approach is to create and implement workcamps with educational component. TheIdea is that work camp participants take part in activities that are pro-social, challenging, involve self-management, and which involve substantial contact with other cultures. Moreover, SEEYN will ensure that effects of the work camps are multiplied through participants who will promote and transfer interest of VS to peers. Expected
outcomes- Developed/increased pro-social values and behavior in work camp participants: SEEYN Member is registered and have Secretariat in Sarajevo (Bosni and Herzegovina). Network consist of 15 members that comes from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia Montenegro and Serbia. However, the number of organizations within SEEYN changes, so for the current membership status you can check on the website. The membership of SEEYN is very diverse. The Network covers a broad range of organizations, ranging from small and loosely structured groups to well-established NGOs. Thematically, the organizations vary from topic based NGOs (e.g. human rights, environment), to NGOs with a broader approach to youth issues or democracy building in general. Other members define themselves as voluntary service organizations. But what all the organizations have in common is the inclusion of active volunteers in the organizations' work and the belief in cross-boundary exchanges as an important tool for youth engagement in society and co-operation for peace and stability. For more information about SEEYN network, please visit: http://www.seeyn.org | ||
