on arrival @ Montpelier

The on arrival training course is one of the four courses that are required under the Program for European Voluntary Service (EVS).
The first of this series of trainings is organized by the organization that sends you to this volunteer service, the second is this one who comes several months after the arrival. The third is somewhere after the middle of your stay, depending on how many months of the program you use and the last mandatory training is one who follows the completion of volunteer service, back in the home country.

My on arrival training took place sometime in the beginning of the fourth month of my stay here in Together, France and the organization that organized this training invite Us in southern part of France, near the city of Montpelier, just a few meters from the most beautiful coast sides here.
In this training I’ve met thirty volunteers from all over Europe. We were from everywhere and volunteers in various forms of civic associations and orgaisations. There were youngsters that volunteer in working with kids without parents, children with special needs, associations for organizing concerts, organisations for youth work as Together and others.

The workshops helped us to learn more French, and some important information about the European Union, which includes presentation of some programs that would be of our interest.
Our trainers presented the Youth In Action program in details and told us our goals and objectives as a volunteers in the European Voluntary Service.











We’ve got folders to archive all the activities that will be realized during our stay and in the end it will be easily for Us to observe most of the tasks that we’ve realized and that can implement and inspired Us to a further action, as well as those things that should be our key competences after our stay.
The presentations of the NGO’s where the volunteers stay helped us to make a network among those with similar interests. I hope these contacts will transfer in future collaborations.
The preparation of four issues of the newsletter helped us to show our creative writing skills. We represent volunteers whose mission is interesting and associations that are pushing for youth action.

We present the countries were we come from and on interactive way we present some of our traditional dances, games and quizzes. It was interesting method of bringing different cultures closer.
The training was attended by interesting young people from Europe who support the program of the European Commission which offers too many opportunities and who already have the mission to be realized.
The trainers were unique, congrats for organization and program.

Off programme:

• Two days before in Montpelier

• Visiting gallery and old exposition/ exhibition
  

• Night Walk in Montpelier with a movie director

• Victor, the guy from the kitchen

• A group of surfers and their private party

• Naked tourists on the beach

• sea shells
  

-o.O-

_it's good to be eco citizen

The training that was held in Le Havre was imposed for all those interested in promoting a positive awareness of ecology and the consequences that are visible from climate change.

Thirty participants from several countries actively participated in working groups where they discussed about the concrete changes that the society we live in should take, and the negative results that follow in the future if we continue this pace of development.
The training was organized by the new organization from Le Havre, "It's good to be Together", and I was the representative of the association Together, along with Ramsi, Marie and Julie.

We had a chance to see a few documentaries in which the main issue was climate change, excessive consumption of products that are not recyclable, possible lack of clean water ..
In one of the workshops we wrote a letter that is called ‘a letter 2070’ letter for our future generations. The aim of the letter was to explain the situation of natural resources today and why in the future we’ll lose them and will not give them the opportunity to enjoy in the natural resources as we do.
We think of water, nature (flora and fauna) species too die every day, organic food (we food ourselves with a hybrid laboratory vegetables and fruits) ... every day more and more air pollution.
Pretty constructive workshop, we got a lot subtle responses to this problem, the ignorance of the system to become more responsible.

We had the opportunity to visit the municipality of Le Havre and talk with some of the staff people there, what measures for prevention of these problems have taken and which are their future projects ..
We visited a large garden with more than a million different kinds of plants, herbs, trees, flowers and so on.
In the town of Val de Saane located near Le Havre we visited a school where young people have the opportunity to work with recycled materials, to create various forms and elements. The results that we saw during the visit were large, anywhere in the studio various shields, masks, lamps, swords, ... the children here have created a magical world in which they don’t see the plastic and the other materials as a garbage or dirt, but as a material that serve them to create their future ideas.



As a group of European young people during our stay there, we taken over a youth initiative. Part of the city beach was cleaned of rubbish that are not recyclable. Various pieces of plastic, glass, forgotten clothes could be found in the black plastic bags.

Some of the conversations about future collaboration with some of the participants can move in reality, so we could get to the initiative that would change the dynamics of young people to find possible solutions.

Together France

Together is a Non-governmental, non-profit voluntary organization. It was established in France in 2003 by few passionate people, who believe in what they do: cross European cooperation and networking among civic organizations and the values and mutual learning such cooperation brings.

These people wished to use their experience gained throughout numerous international programs and work experience in alike organizations in several European countries and wanted to create an open forum facilitating international meetings on different topics, bringing together different targets and thereby supporting networking among people and organizations with similar interests.

Together works on pan-European basis and recognizes the values of networking principles. Therefore it supports creation of new and development of existing partnerships among civic organizations from already 15 European countries including organizations from Commonwealth of Independent States and Middle East.

The target group of Together and it's partners is in general civic society and specifically young people, being the generation that is " to make a difference". We believe deeply that active participation of young people can empower them their friends and the society around them.

www.network-together.eu,

Email: together [at] network-together.eu

mitko.gogov [at] network-together.eu

Fête de la Musique

This event takes place in France every year. In the cities there are musicians everywhere, stages in every corner in the town. You can hear different kinds of music, all people are out on the streets and squares.



In Thionville there were more than ten stages where you can hear various sound.
First we were on the stage where one band played music similar to the music that Nora Jones compose. Wonderful concert, people were relaxed, smiling..

After this concert together with Kristine, volunteer from Estonia , went to a concert of some of our friends, a band from Thionville. They play music from Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane, Lou Reed, Mamas and the Papas. On their break, we went to a small town square where a band just preparing for performances. The poster had several bands, I recognize one of the bands - Kultur shock. I asked with my bad French, which band is drawn to playing.. the man could not answer. The bass player was on the stage, only two meters from me, I decided to ask him.

- Excuse me, do you speak English? (This is me in French)
- Yes man, I'm from America.

I knew it was from Kultur shock, I told him only that I’m from Macedonia, and they play punk mixed with Balkan music. I was happy and we started to speak, I said it would be better if we continue after the concert.
I had heard them once in Macedonia, but I had no opportunity to meet them and speak with them .. here we continue with the conversation on the private after party in their apartment after a really good concert.

On the other stages there were: hip - hop, indi, folk, rock, alternative bands etc. ..

Great event!

Regular event for the end of June or End of the school

This event at the end of the school year regularly is organized by the Association Jacques Prevert, the place where I spend part of my volunteer services.
The association works with children and teenagers, but also organizes various events that promote local bands, dance groups, different cultures and so on.

For this event as part of the programme Together volunteers who volunteer in the Association Jacques Prevert powered face painting workshop for the children and they really liked the idea.

We had the opportunity to see how it looks a Arabian bride, to follow a female dance group and dance to the rhythm of djembe masters.
The kids from the Association Jacques Prevert had an excellent dance and the barbecue also as the other food was very tasty.

Wonderful event!

Young and Participative - Youth Democracy Project

Meeting of European volunteers and participants of youth exchanges with representatives of institutions that host volunteers and are open for new challenges

As part of the agenda of the training course Young and Participative - Youth Democracy Project held in Arry, centre for children and young people in the vicinity of Metz, the participants from several countries as a development activity have a plan for future project in which the main structure will be young, and will help enforce their active participation in society.



Presentation of proposals went along with the discussion in which everyone was entitled to supplement his perception of the successful realization of the given proposals.
The event was held at a high school in Thionville, Sophie Germain and was successfully followed by both school students and other young people interested in Youth in Action Programme and other organizations and associations of the city and local media.

Le Rèpublicain Lorraine also sections in their newspaper space for our event and little promotion of the European Voluntary Service and Youth in Action, Programme of the European Commission. It is good that the newspaper that is one of the important in the region Lorain follow the program of the association Together.

The idea of the activity of the training course was young participants divided into groups to make their youth initiatives.

Were presented three proposals:

• Opening radio that will promote local bands and on the end of the year will record CD with the best songs of all months and a concert where the bands will have the opportunity to perform live

• School for young businessmen and business development plan (provides short courses, workshops, etc. ..)

• Entrepreneurship (the project that is most interesting for me)

For some of the proposals it was open a big debate, and for each project separately the president of Together, a representative of the centre Arry also as the director, president of the association Jacques Prevert and others told separate observations for the presentation and how these ideas could see the result soon.



The program in the school Sophie Germain ended with intercultural presentation of food from the countries participating in this training course.

..more about Young and Participative - Youth Democracy Project you can find HERE!

Training course Youthpass: for a better recognition of non-formal education

From July o2 till July o7 in Novoli, Italy training course organized by the youth organization WIP - Work In progress took a place.
French group with me as a leader couldn’t reach the training on the July o2 .. missed flight in Brussels due to the large traffic jam in front of Luxembourg and Brussels was the problem that was not part of our plan.
But, we joined the group of young people from 9 different countries the next day after we took the flight which was almost in the same time as the previous term.

Italy is a beautiful country, at least I felt like that when after four attempts to get there, the fifth time finally I broke the curse.
We landed at Bari and then we took a train to Lecce. After a small walk through town, visiting the exhibition of Caravaggio, Luigi member of WIP take us from Lecce and with his car bring us to Novoli where really wonderful group of people together with the coordinator of the project and president of the organization WIP, Lara were waiting for Us with great satisfaction.

At the moment we arrived there was a workshop on the agenda for designing the largest Youthpass. I join them immediately and few days after with several participants we made our design that is "almost" a copy of the original, and there was another group of participants that made a great creative version of the Youthpass.
In the night we visit Lecce and we attend the White Night or on Italian ‘La notte bianca’. Huge crowds of people in the streets. I was delighted from the night lights in combination with lights and street lights installed along different buildings with architecture that fascinates. Various bands and stages on all streets in Lecce, street artists, performance event .. I will remember.




Excellent discussion of Youth in Action Programme, presentation of a youth initiative that is implemented by an organization in the region Apulia, a photo and a video animation. New graffiti where we were accommodated ~ Centro Madonna di Lourdes, logo WIP few meters below the wall .. victory win at the Campus, that is regularly held there. We participate only in one of the games after the organizers gave us permission to participate, colorful team managed to win and give us a special motivation in communication with the local youngsters.

The visit of the beach and the excellent weather were perfect shot.

here are:
the blog of this Training Course Youthpass: for a Better Recognition of Non Formal Education
the picassa web album with all the pics from there.
the facebook event for this TC
the page of the organisation organizer of this exchange
and
also few articles about the exchange:
Lecce - YOUTH IN ACTION - GIOVANI EUROPEI PIU’ ATTIVI E MOBILI puglialive.net
Lecce - YOUTH IN ACTION - GIOVANI EUROPEI PIU' ATTIVI E MOBILI san-pietro-vernotico.virgilio.it
YOUTH IN ACTION GIOVANI EUROPEI PIU' ATTIVI E MOBILI polveredistellelecce.it
“Youth in action” per una gioventù consapevole C.S.V.S. - Centro Servizi Volontariato Salento
Youth in Action: un corso di formazione peer to peer leccenews24.it

..here is the video of the game where the colorful team w.IN!
Videoclip - Campus Giovani 2010: format EUROPEO