eci youth forums project summary
DESCRIPTION
ECI Youth Forums Project SummaryTRANSCRIPT
EDUCATE – CONNECT – INSPIRE
Youth Forums on
Climate Change Influencing the leaders of tomorrow
2011 / 2012
Central, Eastern, South East Europe
Russia and Central Asia
South Mediterranean
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
2
Table of contents
1/ Introduction / Youth and Climate Change ……………………………………………………………………… 3
2/ Project Background………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 4
3/ Project Objectives………………….…………………………………………………………………………………….… 5
8/ List of Countries in which Forums will be held in 2011 and 2012……………………………..……. 6
4/ Project Description and Benefits …………………………………………………………………………………… 8
5/ Project Deliverables……………………………………………………………………………………………………….12
6/About Nektarina Non Profit…………………………………………………………………………………………….13
CONTACT AND INFO POINTS
Project Title: ECI Youth Forums on Climate Change
Project Manager: Sandra Antonovic
gsm: +385 99 560 8309
Info Point: www.eci-youthforums.info
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
3
INTRODUCTION
Climate Change
What is Climate Change? Climate change is one of the biggest issues facing the world
today. 'Climate change refers to a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to
human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to
natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods.' United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change
Youth and Climate Change
The world's population is young, with nearly 2.2 billion people under the age of 18 of
which 85 percent are living in developing countries. Children and young people are concerned,
thoughtful citizens, capable of participating in, and changing the society of which they are a
part; and they have an important role to play in addressing and affecting the issues of our
world.
In addition, children and young people have enthusiasm, imagination and abundant
energy to undertake local actions, act as effective communicators in their communities and be
involved in international arenas.
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
4
PROJECT BACKGROUND
When it comes to climate change and other environmental issues, we often hear: “For
any significant change people in the power need to make a decision.” Who are these “decision
makers” ? And how do we influence them to make a positive change?
Young people of today will be the leaders of tomorrow. Many of today’s students will soon
enough become media executives, politicians, corporate managers and entrepreneurs. They
will be in a position to make decisions which will, one way or another, impact the environment.
Will the family business recycle paper used in the office?
Will big corporation decide they approve only train travel for business purposes?
Will a media company make a decision to help raise awareness on environmental
issues?
Will a famous designer decide to use environmentally friendly fabrics and materials
when producing a new clothing line?
Will local municipality decide to help people install solar panels on their houses and help
them insulate their homes?
Will some government make decisions that can significantly reduce GHG emissions in
both short and long term?
Will artists, designers and photographs use their form of expression to enhance the
issues and share ideas about how to tackle climate change, how to reduce carbon
footprint, how to use renewable energies?
These are just some of decisions that could be made by today’s students and tomorrow’s
leaders or people of influence. “It is time to raise the bar. We need to do more than just change a
light bulb if we’re going to be successful in tackling environmental issues. Each of us needs to listen to
our green conscience, and then choose to do something ambitious. Something that will have a real
impact in our lives. I call it ‘doing the hardest thing first.’ Because it’s far more satisfying (and FUN) to do
something that is making a difference.” (Franke James, Canadian Artist)
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
5
PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Every decision making requires a certain amount of fact – gathering: the more facts you’ve got,
the more chances you have to make the right decision. ECI Youth Forums’ idea is to provide the
information and then let participants debate and discuss the topic before reaching a decision.
Forums focus on:
1/ educating youth through visual, audiovisual and practical workshops and presentations
2/ connecting peers with different lifestyles, interests, objectives and backgrounds with the
purpose of them debating and discussing forum topics, exchange knowledge, experiences,
practices and ideas
3/ inspiring youth to take positive long term action, and to, regardless of their future
occupation, become and stay committed to live and work in an environmentally responsible
way
Topics which ECI Youth Forums will be addressing throughout 2011 and 2012 are:
climate change
carbon footprint
renewable energies
sustainable living
corporate and governmental responsibility
community involvement
co-operative action
ECI Youth Forums have been tag-lined "Influencing the Leaders of Tomorrow"
Official language of the forums is English.
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
6
LIST OF COUNTRIES in which the ECI Youth Forums will take place during 2011 / 2012
FORUM(S) PLANNED FOR
1 Albania
2012
2 Armenia
2012
3 Azerbaijan
2012
4 Belarus
2012
5 Bosnia & Herzegovina
2011
6 Bulgaria
2011
7 Croatia
2011
8 Cyprus
2011
9 Czech Republic
2011
10 Egypt
2011
11 Estonia
2012
12 FYROM
2011
13 Georgia
2011
14 Greece
2011
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
7
15 Hungary
2011
16 Israel
2011
17 Kazahkstan
2012
18 Kosovo
2012
19 Latvia
2011
20 Lithuania
2012
21 Malta
2011
22 Moldova
2012
23 Montenegro
2012
24 Poland
2011
25 Romania
2011
26 Russia
2011 and 2012
27 Serbia
2011
28 Slovakia
2011
29 Slovenia
2011
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
8
30 Turkey
2011
31 Ukraine
2012
Number of Forums per country will be between one and five.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION and BENEFITS
ECI Youth Forums are highly interactive 2-day events that include:
short film projections and/or visual presentations
debates and ‘coffee table discussions’
workshops
work in groups, work in pairs (peer to peer) and individual work
Short film projections and/or visual presentations
Visual aids help us reach our objectives by providing emphasis to the topic presented. Clear
visuals multiply the audience's level of understanding of the material presented, and are used
to reinforce our message, clarify points, and create excitement.
Visual aids add impact and interest to the Forum. They enable us to appeal to more than one
sense at the same time, thereby increasing the audience's understanding and retention level.
With pictures and visuals, the concepts or ideas we present are no longer simply words - but
words plus images.
The impacts visual aids bring to any forum are, indeed, significant. The studies, below, reveal
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
9
interesting statistics that support these findings:
In many studies, experimental psychologists and educators have found that retention of
information three days after a meeting or other event is six times greater when
information is presented by visual and oral means than when the information is
presented by the spoken word alone.
Studies by educational researchers suggest that approximately 83% of human learning
occurs visually, and the remaining 17% through the other senses - 11% through hearing,
3.5% through smell, 1% through taste, and 1.5% through touch.
The studies suggest that three days after an event, people retain 10% of what they
heard from an oral presentation, 35% from a visual presentation, and 65% from a visual
and oral presentation.
Debates and ‘Coffee Table Discussions’
Decades of academic research has proven that debate produces many benefits for students,
regardless of their year in school, their race, or their socio-economic standing. A few of the
notable findings include:
Improved Conduct
Improved Oral Communication Skills
Enhanced Critical Thinking Skills
Improved Knowledge of the Social Sciences
Discussions are equally beneficial, and they:
May generate ideas
Provide individual points, as well as whole online discussion threads
Students expand their personal knowledge-base through the back-and-forth
engagement and interaction with other participants sharing insights, perspectives,
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
10
points-of-view, as well as their personally held information and knowledge
Workshops
Workshops are essential as they help participants learn how to plan, brainstorm and obtain
constructive alternatives for action.
Workshops also get maximum participation of attendees.
Work in groups, work in pairs, individual work
Group work can facilitate the development of skills, which include:
teamwork skills (skills in working within team dynamics; leadership skills);
analytical and cognitive skills (analysing task requirements; questioning; critically
interpreting material; evaluating the work of others);
collaborative skills (conflict management and resolution; accepting intellectual criticism;
flexibility; negotiation and compromise); and
organisational and time management skills
Positive benefits explained above, combined with the topics the ECI Youth Forums will cover,
will ensure the best possible impact on Forum participants.
Forum activities cover topics from two perspectives: global and local (i.e. besides presenting
global overview, the ECI Youth Forum held in Latvia will discuss and present ideas, case studies
and will induce debate on environmental topics crucial for the country of Latvia).
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
11
Target demographics
ECI Youth Forums target young demographics:
teenagers
students
young people who might be already working (work & study)
Size of the Forums
Forums size will depend on the country / town / venue, and may vary from 15 to close to a
hundred participants (primary reach). Secondary reach (via word of mouth, social networks,
media and similar expected reach is anywhere between estimated 1,000 and 10,000 people per
country / venue – depending on the country / venue).
Speakers
ECI Youth Forums will include local and international speakers.
Materials for the Forum
Participants of each Forum will receive:
Educational booklet on carbon footprint
Educational poster on carbon reduction
DVD with short films
Forum ID Card
Educational booklet on renewable energy and sustainable living
Educational poster on renewable energy and sustainable living
Cotton tote or conference bag
Materials will differ from country to country (having in mind local approach). Materials will be
bilingual (English and local language), and all materials will also be available online after each
Forum (hence providing youth from other countries – or to those unable to attend the Forum –
insight in country-specific practices and case studies). Overview and notes from each Forum will
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
12
also be available online after each Forum, sharing more details and discussion notes.
PROJECT DELIVERABLES
An evaluation will be done after each ECI Youth Forum.
After the Forums attendees should be able to:
Recognize and define terms and concepts discussed at the Forum (climate change,
carbon footprint, renewable energy, sustainable living and similar)
Identify way of positive action with regards to the topics discussed a/ acting positively
and environmentally responsible as an individual; b/ acting positively and
environmentally responsible as a part of a community; c/ acting positively and
environmentally responsible as a part of an organization
Recognize the impact of mainstream media, social networks and viral marketing in the
process of raising awareness of people on a certain issue
Identify ways of involving community or an organization into positive action
Recognize the benefits of exchanging information, appreciating local perspective and
sharing of experiences and practices
Recognize the ways of positively impacting local communities while being part of a
global process
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
13
ABOUT NEKTARINA NON PROFIT
Nektarina Non Profit was founded in 2009, and its primary focus is education about
environmental issues and inspiring people to get actively involved in positive action regarding
those issues.
Our educational projects include areas of climate change, GHG emissions reduction, renewable
energies and sustainable living. We are particularly focused on promoting low carbon travel
options, recycling and low carbon lifestyle.
In 2009 Nektarina partnered with Global Campaign for Climate Action (www.gc-ca.org) and
their public campaign TCKTCKTCK (http://tcktcktck.org), raising awareness and building
momentum in the Western Balkans before the Copenhagen Climate conference. At the same
time we launched our Evergreen Campaign, providing extracurricular activities in elementary
schools. Activities included creative expression of the pupils (visual essays) on topics of climate
change and the impact it has on the environment, multimedia educational presentations on
climate change , and other offline interaction (games with environmental themes, tree planting
and similar).
In 2010 Nektarina continued with its EverGreen project, collaborating with over 1,000 schools
in 6 countries of the Balkan region. From January till May 2010 we carried out over 100 hours of
educational workshops and interactive classes, where pupils could learn more about recycling,
saving energy, composting, pollution. In May 2010 Nektarina Non Profit became an official hub
for 24 countries (Albania, Greece(EU), Montenegro, Belarus, Israel, Poland (EU), Bosnia &
Herzegovina, Kosovo, Romania (EU), Bulgaria (EU), Latvia (EU), Russia, Cyprus (EU), Lithuania
(EU), Serbia, Croatia, Macedonia (FYROM), Slovakia (EU), Egypt, Malta (EU), Slovenia (EU),
Estonia (EU), Moldova, Turkey, Ukraine) for the 10:10 global campaign on carbon reduction.
From June till December 2010 we have created of network of 10,000 schools across 3
continents, and our work included over 40 volunteers. We successfully carried out the campaign
in different cultural and economic surroundings, adapting to local customs and way of life, while
ECI Youth Forums _____________________________________________________________________________________
www.nektarinanonprofit.com
14
staying on track with globally agreed goals. Our work gained support from municipalities and
ministries across 24 countries, and all our activities were focused on educating, connecting and
inspiring communities to take action on reducing carbon footprint, and share their measurable
results with others, inspiring thus more positive change.
In 2011 Nektarina Non Profit continues to work as a 10:10 hub for 24 countries, adding more
schools and small local NGOs to our community in 24 countries. We are proud to say that the
area we cover as a 10:10 hub spreads across three continents, has close to half a billion people,
and includes Orthodox countries, Muslim countries and Catholic countries – yet we all work
together towards the same goal – reducing GHG emissions.
In March 2011 Nektarina Non Profit added another partnership to its CV – we partnered with
Earth Day Network, and committed to help them with Billion Acts of Green campaign (that is
building the momentum for the UN Rio Summit). To our network of 24 countries we have added
6 more countries: Armenia, Georgia, Kazahkstan, Azerbaijan, Czech Republic and Hungary,
where we continue to build our network of schools and other educational organizations, while
inspiring wider demographics to take positive (measurable) action, like recycling, tree planting,
carbon reduction and similar.
In the past 12 months Nektarina Non Profit organized planting of over 100,000 trees, schools in
our network recycled over 29 tons of paper, PET and cans, and achieved 15,000 tons of direct
reductions of carbon emissions.
Nektarina Non Profit has also contributed by building the sense of the community, creating
momentum and creating the positive approach towards climate change issues.
We have contributed strongly to the objectives of the Sixth Environment Action Programme, in
particular in the following areas: encouraging voluntary commitments, helping citizens to
benchmark and to improve their environmental performance, improving the quality of the
education on the environment and information provided.