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Ninety-five young people aged 18 to 26 gathered in Sofia on June 24 - 26 for a truly inspirational event, which resulted in new cross-country partnerships and friendships. The participants came from Bulgaria (52 participants), China (9 participants), Latvia (19 participants), Spain (9 participants), Thailand (3 participants) and Vietnam (3 participants). They had been selected on the basis of photography, essay and project idea competitions, carried out at the national level of each participating country by the partner organizations:


- Bulgaria: Workshop for Civic Initiatives Foundation (leading organization) and its Bulgarian partner, Community Foundation “Bridges over Tundja”- Yambol;
- China: Future Generations China;
- Latvia: Valmiera Region Community Foundation;
- Spain: Bertelsmann Foundation, Spain;
- Thailand: ECPAT, Thailand
- Vietnam: CEFACOM, Vietnam.


The forum’s outcomes surpassed all expectations. The youth was very active during both the plenary sessions and the small group works and generated high-quality project ideas, which laid the basis for future international youth-run projects. READ MORE
 

 

Dear potential participants in the international Youth in Development Forum, to be held in Sofia in June 2011,


Essay, photo, and project idea writing contests are underway. The deadline for your submission is February 15th, so if you haven't done so already, check out the links above for contest rules and regulations. Your submission should be sent by email to the representative selected for your country.


Also, make sure you have a look at the latest issue of "Novini", the forum's monthly newsletter. Partner organizations have sent us quotes, interviews, pictures, thoughts, and words of advice on youth work and volunteerism. Their experience and points of view will inspire you.


Good luck!


Monika Pisankaneva
Project Manager

 

Introductory Letter from WCIF

 
Workshop for Civic Initiatives Foundation is happy to provide an opportunity for youth activists from Europe and Asia to unite in creating change in the areas identified by the UN’s Millennium Development Goals. We are organizing the “Youth in Development” forum in June 2011 in Sofia, Bulgaria, in which disadvantaged youth from Europe and Asia will compete in the fields of photography, project proposal, and essay writing in order to participate. One hundred of the best contestants from these regions will be selected by WCIF and our six partner organizations to attend the “Youth in Development” forum here in Bulgaria. The main focus of the forum, however, will be to develop grassroots initiatives to be jointly implemented by forum participants. Working in groups that bring together different levels of expertise and different nationalities, the youth activists will perfect participant project proposals. The end results of this forum are not only increased levels of mutual understanding, the development of cross-border partnerships, and the further stimulation of youth for change, but also 10,000 Euro in starter grants for the strongest projects, as devised during the course of the forum.
 
Each of the partners involved in this proposal has a strong record of supporting youth initiatives and local development, and in each region of activity we have seen measurable success in these efforts. All partners are in agreement, however, that more is needed to grow youth interest for the creation of change. This forum was created to address this need. The forum has been specifically tailored to support youth leadership while also creating dialogue that supersedes national borders, cultural lines, and religious difference. 
 
We appreciate the “Youth in Action” Programme of the European Commission taking an interest in helping us stimulate youth activism in conjunction with our six partners ECPAT-Thailand, CEFACOM-Vietnam, Future Generations – China, Community Foundation Bridges Over Tundja - Yambol, Bulgaria, Valmiera Region Community Foundation – Latvia, and Bertelsmann Foundation - Spain. 
 
In the beginning of the New Year - 2011, we wish all partners and potential participants in the project peace and joy, and lots of success
 
Sincerely,

 

Iliyana Nikolova
Executive Director
  Уеб дизайн и програмиране Whiz