Financial aid: Available

Date: 28 June - 1 July 2012

Deadline: Registration Closed

Open to: All Interested from Anna Lindh Foundation Network

The Anna Lindh Foundation

Youth Contributions for Dialogue and Change

1^st Preparatory Meeting for the Anna Lindh Forum 2013

Istanbul - Turkey, 28 June - 01 July 2012

In the context of the "Anna Lindh Forum 2013", the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for the Dialogue between Cultures (ALF) will hold a Pre-Forum Preparatory Meeting with the participation of Youth from the Euro-Med region where thematic priorities for reflection and action will be identified in the context of the 4D ALF strategy: Dialogue, Diversity, Democracy and Development.

The Meeting will be organised in cooperation with the three co-coordinators as the Heads of the ALF National Network in Turkey: the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV), the System and Generation Association (S&G) and the Association of Civil Society and Development Institute. The event will take place in Istanbul, Turkey, from 28 June to 1 July 2012.

1. BACKGROUND: THE "ANNA LINDH FORUM 2013"

The Anna Lindh Forum is a major civil society gathering for the promotion of intercultural action across the Mediterranean region to bring together civil society and NGO representatives from the Union for the Mediterranean countries to debate and create action in favour of dialogue, mutual understanding and peace. The event is organized every three years.

2. OBJECTIVES, EXPECTED RESULTS AND METHODOLOGY

The Pre-Forum Preparatory Meeting “Youth Contributions for Dialogue and Change” will represent the first meeting before the Forum 2013.

The Meeting will gather a group of around 45 young participants from the Euro-Mediterranean region from 28 June - 1 July 2012, to debate, interact and share experiences focusing on the 4D ALF strategy: Dialogue, Democracy, Development and Diversity.

2.1 General Objective

The general objective of the Meeting is to contribute to the formulation, development and implementation of the Programme of the Anna Lindh Forum 2013 by articulating a Youth Perspective on broad social, cultural, economic and political challenges in the Euro-Mediterranean context in the wake of the major changes experienced by the region in the last year and a half.

2.2 Specific Objective

The specific objective of the meeting is to identify thematic priorities for reflection and action from a Youth perspective through the Intercultural Dialogue approach in the Euro-Mediterranean region in the framework of the overall ALF strategy (4 Ds) and fields of action (Education & Intercultural Learning,

Culture & Creativity, Urban Spaces & Citizenship, Media and Public Opinion) in view of the Ann a Lindh Forum 2013.

2.3 Expected Results

The expected results of the Pre-Forum Youth Preparatory Meeting will be:

1) Identification of the key questions to be discussed in the Forum taking into account the Mediterranean Youth Perspective on current critical issues, recent trends, key developments, lessons, challenges and major needs related to the thematic focus of the meeting;

2) Identification of best practices and possible synergies in relation to the topics discussed;

3) Concrete Ideas for Discussion to be further debated and Ideas for Action to be integrated in the Road Map to emerge from the 2013 ALF Forum:

- at the level of ALF overall strategy/programmes/projects/activities

- at level of ALF Networks activities

- at the level of Euro-Mediterranean agenda

4) Selection of the three best project ideas developed in the thematic workshops to be presented at the Forum;

5) Ideas about the overall programme structure as well as the debate and exchange modalities during the event.

The working languages of the Meeting will be English and French.

3. THEMATIC AXIS

The discussions in the Pre-Forum Youth Preparatory Meeting will be articulated around the following three main thematic axis:

1. Dialogue and Diversity: Living together in Plural Societies
2. Democracy: Opening New Spaces for Youth Participation and Citizenship
3. Development: Youth as Key of Change in a New Social and Political Context

5. TARGET GROUP

The Pre-Forum Youth Preparatory Meeting targets mainly youth activists from ALF National Networks. The 45 participants from the Euro-Med region will not necessarily be experts on the thematic axis of the meeting, but youth activists with grass-root experience working in the field of youth, preferably in relation to some of the thematic axis. Around 10 of them will come from Turkey as hosting country of the meeting.

Representatives of major actors in the field of Euro-Mediterranean and Arab youth will be also invited.

6. PROFILE OF PARTICIPANTS

The participants should:

• Be resident in one of the 42 countries1 of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership;
• Be between 18 and 35 years old;
• Representatives of an ALF network member;
• Have knowledge and strong interest in at least one of the three topics of the Meeting and be working in the field of Development, Dialogue, Diversity & Democracy;
• Have experience in the field of the selected working group(s);
• Be strongly motivated to work on at least one of the three topics of the Meeting and ensure a follow-up to the Meeting;
• Preferably be young activists with grass-root experience working in the field of youth in relation to the thematic axis focus of the Meeting;
• Be able to communicate in English and/or French during the Meeting;
• Be able to participate during the full duration of the Meeting;
• Preferably be able to act as a multiplier of the Meeting conclusions through the organization/institution he/she represents.
• From the following countries:
  • Albania, Algeria, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mauritania, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Netherlands, Palestine, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Tunisia, Turkey, United Kingdom.

7. APPLICATION AND SELECTION PROCEDURES

This Call for Participants along with the Application Form will be sent by e-mail to all ALF network members. The selection committee at ALF Headquarters will examine the received applications and select around 45 applicants. The selection of participants will be subject to the quality of applications received, while trying to ensure a geographical and gender balance.

The filled in Application Form should be sent email to: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

9. DEADLINE FOR APPLICATION

The deadline for receiving the applications is Wednesday 23 May 2012 (16:00 Egypt Time – GMT+2)

Kindly note that applications received after the deadline will not be taken into consideration and that only selected applicants will be notified.

Attachments:

* Call for Participation

* Application Form

Contact Information:

Anna Lindh Foundation

Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Website: ALF