Youth Exchange in Bulgaria

Date of participants’ arrival:  01 July 2019

Exchange’s start date:  02 July 2019

Exchange’s end date:   08 July 2019

Date of participants’ departure: 09 July 2019

Location : Razlog, Bulgaria

Short description of our project

The theme of the project “SILENCE  IS NOT GOLD” is related  to following  the regulations of the human rights and their control when those rights are abused  virtually by violence related to gender-based differences  which  is just a step towards  the  real  life  violence  against  young  juveniles, minors and  the youth.  The aim of our project is to encourage the young people to speak out about the violence behaviour and to ask for help and co-operation.  It also aims to teach the youngsters how to  protect  themselves from the sneaking ambitious of the ones that we can meet in the net disguised as well-wishers, advisors and a chance acquaintances by  helping them to form a sense of tolerance  and  respect towards the ones that are different.

The project participants will get to know various virtual gender-based violence behaviours by applying non-formal education methods and interactive training methods, motivating them to take part in making recommendations for the prevention of gender-based violence, to avoid hazards on the global network.

Preparation of the participants before the exchange – investigating in details the following issues: level of virtual violence in your native country; applied prevention measures, organizations working on the problem /general information – how many are they/; the results achieved over the last two years, the percentage of children dropped out of school due to systematic harassment or domestic violence that are exposed to social marginalization. We need a short description. Each team will present in about 20 minutes the situation in their country, problems, discussions, virtual violence rate, measures taken to overcome the dangers in the Net, fighting organizations.

Each team will present their country and organization using a computer application, film or video no longer that 20 minutes, created by the participants in advance while getting ready for the youth exchange. 

National evenings – “My favorite computer character”- project participants will present their countries through a favorite computer character, theatre etude, sketch or computer show.

The working methods will stimulate the participation and communication, experience exchange and discussion. Games will be used as well as interactive activities, activities for teambuilding, empathy and brainstorming. Conclusions and new meanings of the all the stuff will be presented to the audience. Thus we will carry out learning by doing and experience. The seminars will be focused on personal development, improving knowledge related to human rights respect and lack of violence based on gender differences, acquiring practical skills for self-protection and assistance to victims of virtual violence.

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Youth Exchange in Georgia

General information

Who are we?

We are the group of teenagers and youngsters who are interested in human rights.

What’s the topic of the project?

The theme of the project “SILENCE IS NOT GOLD” is related to following the regulations of the human rights and their control when those rights are abused virtually by violence related to gender-based differences which is just a step towards the real-life violence against young juveniles, minors and the youth.

The aim of the project is to encourage young people to speak out about the violence and to ask for help and co-operation. It also aims to teach the youngsters how to protect themselves from the sneaking ambitious of the ones that we can meet in the real life and in the net disguised as well-wishers, advisors and a chance acquaintances by helping them to form a sense of tolerance and respect towards the ones that are different. The project participants will get to know various real and virtual gender-based violence behaviours by applying non-formal education methods and interactive training methods, motivating them to take part in making recommendations for the prevention of gender-based violence, to avoid hazards on the global network.

Which organizations provided the project?

The project will involve the following organizations: “Association Brainstorm Group” – Bulgaria –
project coordinator and host organization for the second youth exchange, Georgian Youth for Europe-Georgia – partner and host organization of the first youth exchange, Linguistic Aid Kit Limited – UK, EURO-NET – Italy, Hranicka Rozvojova Agentura -Czech Republic, MHA “Dobra Wola” – Belarus, Albanian Society in Development – Аlbania, World of the light child and youth center/LAMEK/ – Armenia; Asociacija “Aktyvus Jaunimas”-Lithuania.

The project will include youths aged 16-30 and youth workers with no age limits. We will attract and involve youngsters with fewer opportunities – Roma people, jobless people, orphans, people with limited economic and social opportunities and those who are exposed to be outsiders. We are going to involve participants who live in remote places, where the ties of relationship are strong and the patriarchal characters influence their behaviour even as future parents. In the Roma community, the violence is accepted as something usual and profitable. This imposes involving Romani people in the project.
There will be 98 participants /youths and youth workers/ in total: of which a minimum of 36 with fewer opportunities. Two youth exchanges will be organized. The duration of each one will be 7 days excluding the travelling days. The working methods will stimulate participation and communication, experience exchange and discussion. Games will be used as well as interactive activities, activities for team building, empathy and brainstorming. Conclusions and new meanings of all the stuff will be presented to the audience. Thus we will carry out learning by doing and experience. The seminars will be focused on personal development, improving knowledge related to human rights respect and lack of violence based on gender differences, acquiring practical skills for self-protection and assistance to victims of violence.

Activities:

Informal training will consist of the following activities:

1. Detailed study of human rights, violence, counter-violence and organizations working on the problem in each partner country. Summarizing the extracted information.
2. Seminar and RPGs on Human Rights that drew attention to combating negative acts of harassment, and disregard for personal differences and in particular violence based on gender differences;
3. City game for making informal contacts with the local people in Razlog and Rustavi to explore the stereotypes and local attitudes;
4. Self defense training;
5. Presenting decisions and conclusions on cases that will be analyzed during the morning sessions;
6. Carrying out sociological research that will show the effectiveness of a new computer game which will be used for problem-solving among the school students.
7. Partner countries presentations and cultural evenings.

Project results:

• Establishing friendly relationships, trust, respect and gender equality;
• 98 youths and youth workers trained;
• Essential project information will be disseminated and reach at the minimum of 5000 people, the preponderant majority of which will be young people.
• Recommendations compiled and project products sent to NGOs and youth organizations, social authorities.
  Participants will realize the European dimension of the subject and reflect on their own behaviour in the future, which would help generate new ideas and motivation to participate in future projects. The organizations participating in the project are going to continue the partnership by extending the subject and cooperate in the project Erasmus+.

co-funded by the Erasmus+