Peacemakers Global Week
Latest News Peacemakers Global Week From the Macedonian group of participants This summer, about 50 young people gathered in Oslo, Norway within the framework of PEACEMAKERS GLOBAL WEEK 2022. It was a week of discussions, learning, action, and interesting meetings on various issues around global world trends that also affect young people. With participants from many countries, Global Week is an event where one gets a sense of how small the world is and where the cosmopolitan spirit is built. This event is an opportunity to better understand how young people from different parts of the world work and how they think about important world issues related to tolerance, justice, and peace. The “Global Week” took place in the period from 11-17 July 2022 in Oslo under the auspices of the Global YMCA-YWCA of Norway. There were participants from 3 continents, and we were four from Macedonia, Marina, Andrej, Tea, and Bojan. The activities during the entire event included various games through which we got to know each other and our cultures. In a very short time we realized that although we come from different countries, we all have different characters, we all come from different religious and national origins, and we all come from different cultures, we realized that we are united by one thing: our will to learn something more and our desire for a better tomorrow for all of us. The topics we worked on were related to discrimination, violence, stereotypes and prejudices towards young people from foreign backgrounds, racism, and racial discrimination, ethnic stereotypes and segregation, prejudices and discrimination towards refugees and immigrants, and a bit about global warming. In addition to the serious part, there was of course also the intercultural evening in which we presented our countries and cultures through our traditional food and a few words more about our country. We had endless fun and unforgettable days spent. We left Norway full of emotions, friendships made, and lifelong connections. We all finished the trip to Oslo with new experiences, learned things, friendships, and memories that we will always carry in our suitcase called life.
Synergy Training for Personal Development in Ravnogor
Latest News Synergy Training for Personal Development in Ravnogor By Petar Kuzmanovski and Viktor Zafirovski From June 1-8 a synergy training was held in Ravnogor, Bulgaria organized by the Synergy Bulgaria team, which conducts such training for personal growth and development. The training was led by Markos and Julia, the leaders of Synergy Bulgaria, and was titled “Charge your future” like when you charge a battery on a charger. The training was attended by 23 young people who wanted to learn something more about themselves. The content was focused on achieving personal development through a series of specific outdoor and indoor exercises that challenged our limits. With that, the trainers tried to achieve a new kind of personal integration, of our qualities and skills that we want to improve to have a healthier and more fulfilling future. The event was attended by participants from several countries such as Spain, Italy, Lithuania, Greece, Bulgaria, and Romania. It also contributed to the international moment in the group, as there were participants from countries with which I had never been in contact. There were only two participants from Macedonia, Viktor and I, and the overall experience was very interesting and challenging. Especially the part that was about outdoor activities, like the part where we were left to fend for ourselves in the nearby surroundings around Ravnogor and how the synergy training made us understand the ideas of “creativity” in a new way and make it applicable in solving the problems we were thrown into. I think that all the participants were involved in everything and that they used a lot of the experiences to start thinking about how they can make changes in their lives in the future that will always feel energized. You can see a short video of the training here.
Empowering Summer Camp Youth Leaders (ESYL)
Latest News Empowering Summer Camp Youth Leaders (ESYL) By Kristina Talevska After the short break, in May the ESYL training for camp leaders in the YMCA continued. Again in The Netherlands, in May 2022 leaders from several YMCAs from around Europe gathered to learn about camping, camp rules, camp games and other activities relevant to them as future leaders. This event was an unforgettable experience that will forever remain in our memories. For us it was a huge opportunity to learn new things, to meet new people and a new country, to expand our knowledge, skills, and creativity. After the necessary postponements of this camp due to the pandemic situation this whole event was a great refreshment and a return to reality. This camp took place near a small town called Leusden and is part of a large network of YMCA camps in the Netherlands. Several countries participated, such as Romania, Macedonia, Sweden, Finland, Italy, Spain, and of course, the hosts from the Netherlands happening between May 25 and 29. Within a short time since we arrived, we all bonded and it wasn’t long before we started talking to each other as if we had known each other for years, with no awkward moments, no shyness, no introversion. Everyone showed a genuine interest in the country the others came from, its culture, daily life, habits, food, and traditions. We don’t know if it was because of the effects of the pandemic wave, but it was certainly good to feel human warmth and togetherness as before. Since at this camp we were preparing and reminding ourselves how it is to work with other people, important topics we covered were leadership, being a good communicator, being a team player, what it means to be a volunteer coordinator, creating workshops, and feeling spontaneous throughout that process. The three of us from Macedonia, myself, Darko, and Andrej went through a program that helped us to return to the good old tested camping routines and to get new strength for the future.
Testimonials 2016
Latest News Testimonials 2016 Group of participants – Intercultural exchange in Trogen, Switzerland “We had the opportunity to live for 2 weeks in the children’s village of Pestalozzi, in Trogen, Switzerland. There we lived together in the houses, we agreed on everything, and everyone had their tasks and responsibilities. We learned not to see each other in differences, to forget stereotypes, and to have more respect for ourselves. Of course, we also enjoyed the beauties of Switzerland and we will take beautiful moments with us from each city. We were sad to leave this wonderful place, but also happy that the 8 of us will no longer be the same, but new people with different ideas and goals.” Natalija Damchevska: I came back from Switzerland with acquired many habits, as well as acquired new knowledge in relation to the topics we were working on. I met many friends from Macedonia and Serbia. In a word for me, this exchange was something I will remember for the rest of my life. Matea Naumovska: for me, this exchange was a wonderful experience. There I expanded my circle of friends, gained more knowledge, and returned home with changed opinions. The most interesting for me were the walks and the letter about myself, which we should receive after a few months. I hope that everyone will have a chance in their life to get this experience. Christian Lazeski: the stay in Switzerland was very interesting and I came back with many arguments with which I can freely oppose people who discriminate. The workshops were very effective and interesting. I have no words for the fellowship and I am still in contact with all the other participants. European Solidarity Corps “On my EVS, I improved my English and learned to drive a utility vehicle that they used for farm work. Then I realized that living and socializing with people from different cultures is challenging but also fun on the other hand. Cycling to work can be more tiring than the work itself. I also figured out where I want to live.” Vasko Ristevski “The biggest impression left on me was the mentor’s commitment to the work tasks, the great concern, as well as the fact that I had the chance to get to know the history of the city. The warmth of the people was surprising and on a break from work, we had lunch with the family, during which we felt like part of the family. I have traveled to many cities around the Netherlands and this project has met my expectations.” Martin Angelov “I met people from different countries and some of them were interested in learning sign language, so I spent some time teaching them and it fulfilled me. But what pleased me the most, even gave me goosebumps, was the procedure of our 67-year-old mentor who made an effort to find, download, and learn to work on an application that translates English into sign language, which enabled our communication to go very well and quickly.” Radmila Peric Training Course “Re-connection, Czech Republic I still hear the echo of this beautiful song, which reminds me of the unique adventure of self-discovery. This new journey was titled ‘Re-connection*, a magical project that took place in the idyllic part of the Rychlebske Mountains in the Czech Republic. This close, unusual contact with nature was the most authentic way to penetrate the purest parts that fill my soul, for the sincere reason of wanting to achieve this or that in life. For the clear picture, of me in the past, present, or future. The trip was a great opportunity for me to concentrate for the first time in more detail on myself and to think about all the things I have experienced so far. The mentors also contributed a lot to the whole atmosphere with the support they gave us, as well as the group as a whole. This unusual opportunity was a new chapter in the building of my personality and character. It was a reason for me to deepen my self-reflection and awareness, so now I trust my instinct, I know how to ask myself a real question and give myself an answer that is authentic, only mine. It was a priceless, pleasant experience with new people, beautiful nature, and most importantly, an opportunity to reunite with yourself. This journey was the beginning of a lifelong process for a significant part of human life – discovering and believing in oneself. Pavlina Veljanovska
Wonderful Days in Denmark 2016
Latest News Wonderful Days in Denmark 2016 Last year i visited GLOW Camp, which gave me an incredible experience, and this year i visited ‘’Wonderful Days’’, a festival camp in Denmark. I’ll try to describe this experience, but i’m not sure if i’ll do it properly, because there aren’t enough words for it. Firstly we stayed in Aarhus and then we went to the festival place. The days in Aarhus were amazing, as well as their program. We had a challenge which gave us opportunity to explore that beautiful city with the groups they made. Also all the activities aiemed to show us the importance of trust, team working, solidarity and empathy. After Aarhus we went to the festival place. It was my first camping time (with tents), so i was really excited about it. In the festival we has a lot of concerts as well as fun. There were different tents as skills, sports, music, wildlife,tree house….. The thing i like the most about the activities during the festival was the night when we had a challenge like surviving or rather we had a marked path , we had to follow it and there were different challenges we had to pass. Wonderful days is an unforgettable experience- a chance to explore Denmark, to meet new people, to make new friends, to try new things, to see new cultures. I’m really happy because i had an opportunity to try this and above all i want to give an enormous thank you to all people who helped to organize and make the festival incredible.
YMCA Berlin Work Camp 2016
Latest News YMCA Berlin Work Camp 2016 By Marija Tomevska In the period from 19th to 28th August in Berlin was held the trinational Work Camp organized by the YMCA, which was attended by 25 young representatives from Macedonia, Germany and France. The participants were accommodated in the youth hostel “Gaste-Etage” located on the street Osloer, where the camp acted as one big family, where each participant took care of the food preparation and the maintenance of the space on a daily basis. The first day began with introducing of the participants from the three countries with a help of couple interesting games, followed by language animations. Throughout the duration of the work camp the participants used rented bicycles in order to accelerate the movement around Berlin and thus closely to acquainte with the beauties of the German capital and the sense of freedom that the cycling brings. With the bicycles they visited the airport Tempelhof which is no longer in use, but it is now transformed into recreational space for bicyclists, joggers, rollerbladers, urban gardeners & yoga enthusiasts where the residents and the tourists spend their free time. With this visit they learned about the concept of urban gardening and got ideas on how to organise an urban garden, which was supposed to be done near the French Centre in Berlin. The participants were divided into two groups. The first group was responsible for the cleanup of the landfill that was located near the French Centre in Berlin where the urban garden was supposed to be formed. The second group was performing activities in a workshop where they built furniture and props from wooden pallets and other natural materials that were going to be placed in the urban garden as equipment. This working part durated every day for four hours, afterwards followed by language animations and games in French language center. During the free time that the participants had, they visited the Bundestag, Mauer Park, Alexanderplatz, Berlin Wall, The Memorial Museum of the Jews, Tiergarten, and they also enjoyed swimming in one of the many ponds near the Tegel airport. One of the most interesting evenings was the international evening where all of the participants prepared traditional food from their country, they presented it to the others, tried the different specialties and drinks and sang traditional songs. The last day of the camp was reserved for the presentation of the final form of the urban garden. Plants were planted in large pots by all participants of the camp, and afterwads was organized a party with barbeque and German beer, where not only the participants were present, but also the local citizens from the nearby buildings. After the ending of the official part, all of the participants shared their experience with the successfully organized camp and the way the language animations were held, which helped in getting familiar with Macedonian, German and French language. Apart from the learning and practicing the three languages, the pleasure of meeting seemingly different people, get close to them and to create something together suggests that we, the young people of Europe are not so different after all.
Empowering Summer Camp Youth Leaders – a fantastic experience for everyone
Latest News Empowering Summer Camp Youth Leaders – a fantastic experience for everyone By Jovche Krsteski May 2016, a period when I had an incredible journey, a valuable learning, a memorable experience that will stay in my mind and soul forever. It was not an ordinary trip; it was an enormous opportunity for discovering myself, for meeting new people and new country , for expanding my knowledge, skills and creativity, for finding out my purpose and enjoyment. This magical voyage was a lovely, enthusiastic camp training program known as the “Empowering Summer Camp Youth Leaders”, simply called the “ESYL”. The whole story took place in the Netherlands, the beautiful, flat, green land of the tulips, countless canals and bicycles. The kindness, politeness and friendliness of the warm Dutch people make the country more adorable and lovely. In the center of Holland lies a small town named Leusden and near the town, there it was: “The YMCA” Camp, a place where the ESYL training happened. The huge campsite was impressive, set in a big forest with many tents, some of them prepared for us. As we reached to our part of the camp, we were immediately welcomed by the friendly Lithuanians who brought us the positive energy that we also had. Conversation started in the same moment. And while the other countries were coming one by one, we also shared the welcoming greetings and bonding like the Lithuanian campers shared with us. After us came Romania, The Netherlands, Kosovo and Moldova. Everyone increased the euphoria and excitement more and more. Somehow we began to talk with them like we knew each other for years, no awkward moments, no shyness, no introversion… Everybody wanted to learn more about each other’s country, culture, every-day life, habits, food, traditions… Even though it is a bit cultural shock to talk, play and laugh with boys and girls you met two hours ago, I figured that I like that, meeting new characters, perspectives, personalities, feelings. The moment we finished dinner on which we were coincidentally completely mixed, I knew that this camp will be fantastic. And it was! Not only for finding many new great people, but also for upgrading myself on a higher level in future bigger challenges. Learning how to be a leader, a good communicator, a team player, a volunteer manager, a workshop creator, how to act and react in practice situations, learning how to discover your true talents, skills, motives and way of acting. It was a program that helped us to create the perfect combination of success, the perfect combination of our success. The new relationships between all of us were also strengthened through the workshops. The day was full with many other interesting activities and learning experiences, every free time was spent on hanging out on the trampoline, playing table-tennis or volleyball, discussing and laughing on the benches, during meals or while walking to the tents. Everything that happened was funny and wonderful; doing pushups for being too late, singing “Cheap Thrills” or “YMCA”, staying late in the night for playing one more round of “Wolves of Walkerdam”, enjoying laughing with people even though they don’t know English quite well but you want to have fun… Going to bed late, getting up early in the morning, but ready and energized for any new activity, for new entertainment with lovely people for today, sad for all the hugs that were so strong and warm on the departure day but happy that you will meet all of them again one day… Every second, every moment is memorable and magical. ESYL was not an ordinary camp; it was a special journey for me. A unique, sweet and epic one 😀 .
