UGLA’dan Uluslararası Barış Eğitimi
Uluslararası Genç Liderler Akademisi (UGLA) tarafından 20 uluslararası, 10 ulusal katılımcı ile 22-28 Eylül 2014 tarihinde İstanbul’da düzenlenecek olan Uluslararası Barış Eğitimi için başvurular başladı. Siz de 15-29 yaş arasındaysanız ve ingilizce dil bilginiz varsa 27 Ağustos 2014 tarihine kadar başvuruda bulunabilirsiniz.
Proposed Action
The International Youth Leadership Academy (IYLA) created and based in Istanbul by a community of international and Turkish partner organizations, including UNICEF, is a space for non-formal education, capacity building and enhancement of leadership skills for youth.
The proposed international training program of IYLA will take place on 22-28 September 2014 in Istanbul, Turkey. The training will be conducted based on the experience and knowledge of experts and trainers from Habitat Center for Development and Governance and UNICEF long with Peace Educators. The main aim of this programme is to develop the capacity of local youth leaders and to support them to actively contribute to their own communities in building peace and to increase their role in peaceful activities.
The training will be conducted in Istanbul in coordination between Habitat and UNICEF. The training aims to develop the capacity, skills and experience of the participants on understanding and defining concepts such as identity, stereotypes, discrimination, violence, conflict and peace as well as meaning of those in peace building, conflict transformation and conflict analysis processes. Therefore, this training will focus on theoretical learning combined with various case studies and simulation games that participants will be able to learn from experiencing.
The participants are expected to share the training sections in their locals through local activities, workshops and etc. During this process, the participants will be supported by the coordination team from IYLA and empowered with various materials that will enable them to disseminate the local activities.
Previously, with funding and support, four international summer school sessions have been organized. The aim of these sessions have been to tailor to marginalized youth representatives from Turkey as well as CEE-CIS and MENA in order to provide them with equal opportunities as other youth for leadership and self-fulfillment.
Outreach to youth from socioeconomic, ethnic and sexual minorities are ensured through partnership with relevant organizations and self-identification by youth.
Thus IYLA serves as a regional development and leadership hub for young people from Southeastern Europe, Middle East and North Africa, the Caucasus and Central Asia, based on experience accumulated in the course of the past three years.
Aims and Objectives of the Proposed Action
The International Training Program Youth in PEACE EDAUCTION will have the following aims and objectives:
- To raise awareness and knowledge about identity, stereotypes, discrimination, violence, conflict, peace in peace processes,
- To empower young people to use analytical methods of conflict transformation and analysis in managing conflicts in their communities,
- To share good practices and tools in the area of peace building,
- To provide young people with communication and understanding skills for their effective participation,
- To empower young people with inclusive leadership skills,
- To empower young people to link peace education and youth works
- To provide an opportunity for young people from Turkey CEE, CIS and MENA regions to exchange information and experiences on participating in civil society, peace-related and youth work and establish a network for further collaboration,
- To empower young people to share training activities in their own NGOs or local communities.
Expected Impact
A young person will benefit from this training will lead responsible actions for development of peaceful conflict analysis and transformation processes and opening dialogue channels in the community. In addition to this, young individuals will be able to lead as a change maker in youth organizations, schools they enroll in or businesses they lead, or through social media across and beyond borders. Furthermore, young leaders will be supported in developing their own visual and multimedia material for dissemination and further South-South exposure. And the networks established in the Academy enable continued South-South cooperation.
Application Procedures and Process
Program
Program begins on the 22nd September with arrivals and ends on the 28th September with departures. All participants must participate in whole program.
Participants
30 participants (20 international from abroad and internationals living in Turkey, 10 national) will be selected from countries in the CEE, CIS and MENA regions. Young people from other parts of the world are also encouraged but the priority will be given to the applications from those given regions. Application criteria are as follows:
- be between 15 and 29 years of age,
- have the ability to use English as the working language throughout the training program,
- represent a youth NGO (priority will be given to those that work on conflict resolution or/peace studies as well as youth participation)
- and/or be in youth work (as a volunteer or as a fresh professional)
- be willing to play an active role in the sessions,
- be able and willing to follow the process and actively implement the activities required by the programme,
- have the opportunity to share their new knowledge, skills and contacts within their own organizations following the program,
- be committed to carrying out follow-up activities and be active in localising the knowledge,
Working language of the program will be English. Participants should be proficient in English. Training participants will be selected based on gender-equality and diversity of background. Selection will be conducted through the criteria mentioned above
Expenses
Travel costs and accommodation (including meals) will be covered by the program. Only selected applicants will be informed about this process.
Insurance
Participants are requested to have their own accident, civil liability and health insurance for the duration of the training. Health insurance is not provided and any costs incurred will not be reimbursed by the organizers. All participants are also strongly advised to purchase private travel insurance.
Application Link
Young people interested in participating in the International Training Program must apply online:
NOTE! Please answer all the questions!
DEADLINE: 27 August 2014, 17.30 (GMT+2)
Only selected applicants will be informed by 5 September 2014 and receive the program documentation directly.
30 participants will be selected on the basis of the profile outlined above. During the selection process, criteria will be applied to ensure a balance between sexes, geographical regions, and the diversity of religions, cultures, organizations and experiences. Young people with disabilities are encouraged to apply.
Support letter:
Supporting agencies or organizations are requested to send us a reference letter stating how your organization or agency can support you in the follow-up activities. Moreover, there is no format for the letter, yet it is important to see how your participation is important for the sending organization in conducting similar activities in your own community. The letter should be sent to ugla.iyla@gmail.com
Contact information:
Please feel free to contact us if you have questions or need further information.
Situation Analysis
Issue
Youth matters. Yet, in both CEE-CIS and MENA and in Turkey, lack of access to education for some, low social and employment prospects for many, and prevalence of destructive behaviors and violence and conflict amongst and against them are serious causes of concern.
Social norms of inequity, early marriages and obedience, conflict history and experience, and lack of communal peace are among the many subjects they would like to have a say on. However, youth are rarely trained in the basic analytical and life skills they would need or provided with accurate information or space for discussion at home or at school about ‘their’ issues.
The youth-led protests throughout both regions illustrate this need to create avenues for youth participation through legitimate and innovative support structures, in their countries and across borders. Therefore, negotiation and mediation as conflict resolution methods have been important tools for youth to enrich dialogue processes and sustain peace in society.
Youth now!
In the global context, it is stated that for the first time in the world history, 17% of the general population consist of young people[1]. Therefore, we have this crowd of young people in the world for the first time, and if necessary precautions not taken and studies not performed, the problems that the young people will face would be destructive for both young people and other sector of the society. Additionally, a global survey shows that good education is the top priority among all youth sector regardless of regions and gender[2].
Half of Turkey’s population is under 28 years of age, representing almost 38 million people. Social and economic disparities effect the youth and their life situations and opportunities as well According to the UN’s Common Country Assessment (CCA) for 2006-2010, Turkish youth are rarely trained in the basic ‘life skills’ or provided with accurate information. Skills-based education topics are not covered in the mainstream education curriculum or addressed by parents. Likewise, young people in the CEE, CIS and MENA region, have been suffering from the same consequences. Although, skill-based education through learning by doing method has been recently promoted with several agencies and programs in the regions, it is still an important need to enrich the process. Therefore, for these reasons it is deemed essential to inform children and youth of their rights, give them access to information and educational services, and promote a gender equitable, protective, enabling and peaceful environment. They should be able to participate actively in social and economic processes and realize their potential as agents for social change.
Under the coordination of the Habitat Center for Development and Governance (Habitat), local youth platforms have been established in 78 cities throughout the country. These Youth Councils and Youth Centers bring together youth organizations, high school and university students, young representatives of neighborhoods, political parties and public institutions; and employed and unemployed youth in partner cities. These platforms raise awareness on youth related issues, encourage youth participation in decision-making, and create an inclusive platform for people of different backgrounds to come together, share common values, and identify solutions to shared concerns.
In order to support these platforms and consolidate democracy with young people Habitat together with UNICEF has been supporting the International Youth Leadership Academy (IYLA) project since 2010. IYLA empowered young people not only from very rural and local areas of Turkey but also youth activists and young people who have marginalized background in the CIS/CEE and MENA regions.
[1]http://www.unhabitat.org/downloads/docs/Youth21_Building_an_Architecture_for_Youth_Engagement_in_the_UN_System.pdf
