\nOver
\nFebruary 1st
\n2019 and January 31st
\n2020 the ‘Young Initiative’ Association implemented a programme
\nentitled ‘United We Stand for European Values’. Funded through
\nthe European Solidarity Corps, the project was aimed at developing
\ncritical thinking in young people coming from disadvantaged
\nenvironments in the Bucharest – Ilfov region as well as their civic
\nempowerment through non-formal learning contexts so that they may
\nbecome more actively involved in society and in the situations
\nconcerning them. Here is Eliza
\nVa\u015f, vice-president of the ‘Young Initiative’ Association with
\nmore on the aforementioned project, drawn up by young people for
\nyoung people.
\n<\/p>\n
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\nEliza
\nVa\u015f: This
\nis the first project of this kind implemented by the volunteers of
\nthe ‘Young Initiative’ Association, which we carried out by means
\nof the funds we got through the European Solidarity Corps. Our goal
\nwas to develop critical thinking in young people from the
\nBucharest-Ilfov area and help them get more involved in society. We
\nmainly addressed young people with ages between 14 and 25,
\nhigh-schoolers, students or those interested in non-formal education
\ncontexts. More than 250 young people got involved with the project
\nduring one year of implementation; they participated in 15 events,
\nsuch as interactive workshops, debates or decision-making simulations
\nat the level of European bodies. We even had a board game of
\ncommunity involvement, which we named ‘United’.<\/p>\n
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\n
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All
\nthe participants in the ‘United
\nWe Stand for European Values’ project were brought together and
\nguided in every moment of their activity by members of the ‘Young
\nInitiative’ Association. Nevertheless, the impact of their actions
\nwas being assessed in the end and every participant was able to
\nunderstand how important is for an individual to get involved at
\ncommunity level.<\/p>\n
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\n
\n
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\nEliza
\nVas: My
\nrole during the project was to be a coach, which means that I was
\ntraining in a way or another the team of volunteers. I helped them
\ndevelop and put into practice the activities that are part of the
\nproject. To use an illustration from football, I was like a headcoach
\nstanding beside the pitch and watching how the players are putting
\ninto practice the strategy previously discussed. Then we had
\nlocker-room talks about what was good and if there is room for
\nimprovement. The idea is that non-formal education lays very much
\nemphasis on reflection in the learning process. The people involved
\nbecome more aware of the knowledge they get and the abilities they
\ndevelop. But most importantly they become aware of the impact they
\nproduced through their activity.<\/p>\n
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\n
\n
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The
\nproject United
\nWe Stand for European Values is first and foremost focusing on the
\nsolidarity and the general overview of the young Romanians as
\nEuropean citizens. The largest number of debates and workshops were
\nstaged around the European community values. Here is Elena
\n\u015eelaru, from the International Relations Department of the ‘Young
\nInitiative’ Association<\/p>\n
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\n
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Elena
\n\u015eelaru:
\nPractically
\nwe as an organizing team prepared various workshops and debates on
\nissues of European interest to create a framework to be able to talk
\nabout our rights as European citizens, European values and the
\nopportunities of European mobility. My involvement in this project
\nconsisted in staging a workshop on circular economy and climate
\nchange for ninth graders of the Technical Energy College in
\nBucharest. I got involved in a simulated decision-making process like
\nthose in the European Parliament, during which I acted as a
\nfacilitator. I wanted to make sure my participation was interactive
\nand that all participants would be able to express their ideas in a
\nsafe environment.<\/p>\n
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\n
\n
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It
\nis very important for the young people in the Romanian society to
\nhave initiative in their fields of interest. Any idea or small action
\ncan create large-scale projects or activities aimed at improving the
\nlife of the community they are part of. So the team of the ‘Young
\nInitiative’ Association is encouraging such initiatives as they
\nthemselves are people with initiatives. Here is Elena
\n\u015eelaru at the microphone again.<\/p>\n
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\n
\n
\n<\/p>\n
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\nElena
\nSelaru:
\nI
\nbelieve that if you have initiative it means that you can think for
\nyourself and maybe solve some issues or situations other people don’t
\nthink they need to be dealt with. I believe in our time, many people
\nhave initiatives and get involved with the local community. And it is
\nthis involvement that adds the value that makes the difference. And I
\nam thinking here of my colleagues from the ‘Young Initiative’, as
\na lot of projects started from their initiatives.<\/p>\n
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\nFor
\nElena \u015eelaru, the working experience with the project ‘United
\nWe Stand for European Values’ had a special impact not only at the
\nprofessional level. What do the young people who choose to get
\ninvolved in suchlike activities gain actually? Well, they are
\nboosting their self-image.
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\n
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Elena
\nSelaru:After
\nthe funds had been approved, I had a short time of training, prepared
\nthe next activities and then started to implement them. Getting
\ninvolved with this project was for me a personal accomplishment as I
\ngot a series of skills in the process of staging various activities
\nand I learnt what assuming responsibility on long term was like.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
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The
A new programme aimed at getting the young generation more involved in society issues<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":133,"featured_media":143528,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42997],"tags":[28915,40197,43804,43801,43802,43803],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-143527","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-society-today","tag-bucharest","tag-elena","tag-ilfov","tag-selaru","tag-united","tag-values"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
\nsolidarity team of ‘United
\nWe Stand for European Values’
\nhad 8 people (Elena \u015eelaru, Andrei Dobrea, Cristina Cauti\u015f, Maria
\nBalea, Simona Baciu, Andreea Boieriu, Drago\u015f D\u0103nil\u0103, Marius
\nGhi\u0163\u0103), six volunteers (Ana Maria Andronache, Maria Baciu, Irina
\nDobreanu, Vl\u0103du\u0163 Ene, Claudiu Brotea) and an experienced trainer
\nwith the European projects, Eliza Va\u015f. (Translated by D.B.)<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"