Balkan Myth Busters Erasmus Project

Project Title

Balkan Myth Busters

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Capacity Building for youth in neighbouring and enlargement countries

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Creativity and culture; Creativity and culture

Project Summary

Balkan Myth Busters (BmB) is 22 months long project in which 9 organization from Serbia, Kosovo, Croatia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania and Germany had been involved. These organization have been cooperationg for years, within SCI (Service Civil International), namely SAVA working group, which is in charge for voluntary exchange in the Balkans.The core idea of this project is related to identity, which we’ve challenged from individual to global aspect, aiming at strengthening global and weakening national identity. In the same time, through connecting participants on individual level, but in safe international environment, the idea of wider community was explored. Working on this sensitive issue only on local or national level would probably strengthen stereotypes about ‘others’ and would not provide space for wider identification with a global community. Also, since some countries are members of the EU, some are candidates and some not even in the process of pre-accession, through this project we were aiming at connecting on peoples’ level, where community is not limited by political borders. Therefore, challenging European identity outside the borders of the EU, will bring long term benefits to EU and non-EU citizens, and inspire them to look at the common future without violence or any other conflicts. For the first time we’ve challenged individual and collective identities in youth work in SCI, through aspects of culture, education, media and religion. We’ve used mythology for tackling sensitive issues, throughout creative forms of expression but also including humour, irony, sarcasm, the Balkan way of dealing with sensitive issues.

AIMS:

● strengthen the cooperation between SCI branches and partners working in the Western Balkans, and improve their competence in dealing with sensitive and complex topics such as inclusion, identity and nationalism
● exchange, share, and build capacity and competences in working with youth in the Western Balkans and develop strategic approach in long-term planning of youth work within the SAVA working group on these and other important topics
● strengthening the European feeling of youth in the Western Balkans, which live in EU and non-EU post-conflict countries, but still in one continent called Europe
● to involve and include, inspire and activate at least 100 youth and youth workers from various backgrounds (national, ethnic, sexual, cultural, geographical)
● to create multiplying outcomes and new project ideas for future activities for inclusion and empowerment of youth and social cohesion on European level

OBJECTIVES:

● to learn and share about the current state of nationalism rise in different Balkan countries
● to conduct a research among youth in countries of all partners on nationalism and identity, which will be used for project activities
● to successfully organize seminar, 2 youth exchanges and evaluation seminar
● to discuss common strategy in youth work regarding nationalism and rise of extreme ideologies
● critical analysis of roles of different institutions in forming of identity of a young person and role of youth workers/organizations in that
● to empower youth workers to understand different layers and dimensions of identity, with the focus of national/ethnic identity
● “detabooisation” of sensitive topics such as identity, in particular national identity, stereotypes and common attributes of peoples in the Western Balkans
● introducing new tools, focused on mythology, tradition, religion and culture, in youth work on the topic of inclusion, national/ethnical identity and nationalism
● experimenting with new creative tools during youth exchanges
● building new strategic partnership between international, national and local organizations, in particular with the National association of youth offices in Serbia
● creating a common guidelines and toolkit for youtwork on the topics within SCI

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 46270 Eur

Project Coordinator

VOLONTERSKI CENTAR VOJVODINE & Country: RS

Project Partners