Between 4th – 8th September 2018, our member movement APSD-Agenda 21 is hosting a youth exchange on peace and conflict. The project is called “Messages from the future” and it is part of our annual work plan on 2018 “We are the others”. The youth exchange is co-financed by the ERASMUS+ Programme of the European Union. It is organized as an international simulation on four different topics which affect peace and conflict at global level: climate change, migration, gender inequality and extremism.
The final day of our youth exchange brought to our attention the topic of extremism with the help of a very interesting game and many balloons. The team of facilitators adapted ”The Island” simulation from the All Different, All Equal Education Pack in order to show that differences should be first acknowledged and then accepted, that tolerance and adaptability are key skills and that diversity should be celebrated.
Split into two different tribes, both worshiping balloons the participants took their roles seriously and started looking for a very rare type of balloon which could only be found with a special map. Of course each tribe possessed only half of the map and only by coming together and mending the two halves could the tribes find the balloons. The negotiations were tough and the members of the tribes had to learn the other’s culture in order to be able to communicate with them.
In the debriefing part they talked about how important it had been to stay open and to adapt to the situation by learning the language of the other tribe, sharing their habits and not using violent methods. They discussed about culture, what makes it important and about what brings the cultures into conflict. They reflected on who gains and who loses from a conflict and about the negative and positive consequences of opening up towards other cultures.
Next, the tribes prepared the photo-messages with their most important conclusion.
The day ended with a long evaluation and follow-up session, in which the participants reflected on their learning, filled-in their youth passes and discovered what competences they had developed throughout the week. They also made plans for hosting the travelling exhibition and found out who their secret friend had been.
We are member of the MIJARC since its beginning in 1954. If we are still present today it is because it allows us to meet people from different cultures and countries. From local groups to national level MIJARC helps us to share our best practices and meet with other young people around Europe. It permits us to compare the functioning of our organizations, it helps us to make progress. The best meeting places are the European events organized each year, the Seminar, summer camps, training sessions… During those meetings we have formations and discussions and we act together regarding common topics of rural youth across Europe (agriculture, non-formal education, youth employment…). Our coordination gives us the opportunity to have a voice in the European institutions, such as: European Youth Forum for example. In these institutions we try to express the voice of European rural youth. For all this we think MIJARC is very important!!!!
For the German rural youth MIJARC shares a lot of opportunities: We can influence European politics as a huge international network. We can develop rural life by discussing our visions with other partners. And we can give our members the chance to get to know Europe by meeting other young Europeans. Imagine a summer camp where you can meet young people from Malta, Portugal, Poland or France… It’s always a good exchange about the future of rural life!
We are members of MIJARC Europe because we resonate with their