SI NEWS 2005 en GAWorkshops
From SI Exco News
General Assembly Workshops
Saving the World
- how you can do it as Servas host and traveller Globally and Locally! This workshop held at the General Assembly, in Spain, continued over two afternoon sessions: one to generate and share approaches to advancing Peace; the other, to come up with a Summary. This is the Summary Recommendations session.
Servas should:
1. Get to know the Millennium Development Goals and use them, as guideposts for enriching traveller/host discussion – building a culture of Peace in Servas.
2. A key area of effectiveness for Servas in advancing Peace is that of public and personal education – towards understanding. The great asset that Servas has in education is the relationship between host and travellers.
Other:
3. Advance "Peace-Building" as a Servas ethic including through training of Servas Interviewers
4. Promote the Peace-building role of Servas
5. Affirm many paths to Peace, and strategically develop Servas as a catalyst towards Peace-building
6. Value and encourage the individual
7. Limit Servas actions on Peace to non-partisan and positive approaches and avoid negative and destructive language and approaches.
General:
8. All committees should work towards Peace, peace-building
9. Servas should actively seek out and show off its own and other peace-building experiences and successes to itself and connect to the work of others
10. Servas should organize a Peace-Building network. (About fifty people offered their emails with the intent of enlarging the Peace-Building network within Servas. They would be invited to provide input to a multi-themed Peace network, including Servas/UN and other Servas Peace activities.)
Specifics:
11. Servas establish a global Servas Peace Prize.
Gary Sealey, Canada
Other Workshops ...............
These included:
- Power of the General Assembly
Investigated methods of voting between General Assemblies to recommend Member Group voting.
- Budget 2005 - 2007 (see p22)
Reviewed past and potential future income and expenditure to produce a workable budget.
- Host and traveller interviewing
Examined the need for interviewing and the various methods to be used with the importance of the peace aspect to be included.
Youth Project
A group of 14 young people, mainly aged 18 to 25, from 9
countries were brought together as volunteers and
participants at the Conference. The aim was to build on
previous youth events, encourage the wider interest and
participation of young people in the running of Servas, and
promote future youth activities.
The young people were largely self funding, with a reduced conference fee for some. The DFC part funded travel expenses for 3 young people selected from a large number of applications for funding. Failure to get visas prevented several young people attending from Africa and Pakistan.
As volunteers the young people:
- Helped the Spanish volunteers in the daily running of the conference, and the opening ceremony.
- Contributed to the G. A. minute taking team.
- Collated a list of youth contacts in each country.
- Undertook a survey on travelling with disabilities.
- Compiled the list of contact details of participants.
- Organised the last night event.
As participants the young people:
- Contributed to Conference workshops (e.g. Saving the World and ICT work on WHALE).
- Ran workshops on Non Verbal Communication (Pablo Chufeni, Argentina), Human Rights (Andrzej Jedrzejczak, Poland), and Indian Meditation (Vipul Shaha, India).
- Chaired and minuted discussions on Youth in Servas.
- Shared in the formulation of a proposal to the General Assembly as to the future structure of youth activities.
Outcomes:
The Assembly approved a proposal for a Youth Forum to be created via email to encourage the exchange of ideas between those wanting to promote youth activities in Servas. Connected to this would be a wider communication network of young people (up to 25 years old), interested in getting involved and sharing experiences. Ann Greenhough and Pablo Chufeni were appointed by the Assembly as International Youth Co-coordinators. Once technical difficulties are overcome, it is hoped to set up a Youth Page to encourage the development of the Youth Forum and Network. The recommendations arising from the Disability Survey are available from youthcoordinator@servas.org Final thoughts: Feedback from the Conference
- ‘We want to continue working as a group after the Conference. We as youth need adults –we’ve got the energy, you can support us with the know-how’ (YP)
- ‘Young people’s enthusiasm is needed’ (Participant)
- ‘Our model supports the idea that everyone in Servas can get active, from anywhere ‘(YP)
- ‘The model is a positive, constructive statement and a gift to the Conference’ (Participant) Look for up to date information about youth activities on the S.I. website.
Contact Ann and Pablo at youthcoordinator [et] servas.org with your ideas, suggestions and any information you have about youth activities.
Ann Greenhough, Britain
