The Community Activists Network 4 will start 15th February 2008. This project is supported by the European Voluntary Service (EVS). This phase of CAN will be a 7.5 month program, open to 10 EU volunteers. Volunteers must be between 21-25 years old, and a legal resident a European Union Country or Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Turkey.
The primary focus of the volunteers will be supporting education in the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities in Kosovo and Macedonia.
Therefore, experience, skills and interest in education, particularly with vulnerable communities are predominant criteria for being accepted as a volunteer.
Balkan Sunflowers will begin a large and comprehensive project expansion in its community-based education activities: the Learning Centre Network. This program will begin in February/March 2008. CAN volunteers will work in these communities with either existing Learning Centers or be engaged in the start-up of new centers.
Volunteer responsibilities will include but are not limited to:
- Development of volunteer program. The project will include Peer Tutors and other volunteers supporting the Learning Center activities
- creating activities for these volunteers for value-added benefit, building a team, etc.
- Direct activity involvement with children. As most volunteers will not have the ability to communicate, initially, in local languages, these activities will be “support” related: arts, games, sports, etc.
- Working with managers so that they understand and value the importance of reporting and information management as necessary for managing a network of centers and satisfying donor requirements. If necessary, the volunteer might assist with, or initiate the creation of a Database that will enhance data and monitoring of the numbers of children, families, education participation so that this process can be self-sustaining after the departure of the volunteer.
The CAN program will emphasize volunteers as “multipliers” – supporting development of stronger local networks for education success in the communities. Multipliers are pro-active, team-oriented people who bring about results but also value the processes. CAN is part of an expanding major Balkan Sunflowers commitment to community-based education, in the form of the Learning Centers Network which aims to support approximately 1000 children to stay in school and succeed in school. Applicants should have a passion to accomplish useful work in their host communities. There will be support for language learning.
Valuable qualifications:
- Volunteers should have had previous experience with informal education, early childhood education and community education-oriented projects or related fields.
- Volunteers should be well-organized, be self-initiative yet be excellent team-workers.
- Volunteers should be flexible, open-minded, innovative, and have patience and humility.
- Volunteers will live for a minimum of the first three months with host families.
This CAN program will begin on 15th February and end on 15 September 2008.
The Application Form in the Volunteering section of this website should be filled out and sent electronically to Balkan Sunflowers. If you are interested in applying but are not in contact with a “Sending Organization” from your own country please contact us so we can give you contact information.
Paulina Sypniewska
00377 (0) 44 847 503 / 00381 (0) 38 246 299
www.balkansunflowers.org
E-mail: evs@balkansunflowers.org
Skype address: balkansunflowers
Skype address: spineczka907
Sport, Youth and Culture Palace
Prishtina / Kosovo
Volunteer in Kosovo!
Friday, January 18 2008 By paulina | prishtina-kosovo | 12 comments
Kosovar students: 10th January-ultimatum to declare independence
Tuesday, December 11 2007 By paulina | prishtina-kosovo | one comment
Kosovar students: 10th January-ultimatum to declare independence
On the clock, there are 120 days left to discuss the future status of Kosovo. But in the centre of the wannabe 'capital', students from the University of Prishtina (UP) marched with the organization 'Students Initiative for Independence of Kosovo (SIIK)'. The motto:
“All for the independence of Kosovo”
They protested to Kosovar and international leaders to set a date for the declaration of the immediate independence of Kosovo. Supported by 3 thousand citizens from different places of Kosovo, protestant students of UP, gave ultimatum to MPs and Kosovo's leaders to declare independence till 19th January 2008. If their requests are not fulfilled, the protests will continue.
Although strongly hoping to obtain the date of independence, the students were left by the MPs. However, students promised that in case the independence is not declared till 19th January, they will go out on the streets and protest until their demands are fulfilled.According to them, independence was already paid by the martyrs of Kosovo.
Both Unity Team as well as the office of the new prime minister rejected to talk to Ardian Bajraktari, the leader of SIIK. In front of thousand of protestants, Bajraktari said that today it was the people's will that was totally rejected. “We deserve independence, we won it with honor, therefore our MPs are obliged ,in return, to pay us as well with honor and declare independence," said 70 year old Hasan Ibrahimi. Ibrahimi emphasized that the blood of his son, who was a martyr of the Kosovo Liberation Army as well as the blood of others, cannot be stepped by the Kosovar leaders or the international ones. But many other citizens said that such prolongation is unnecessary cause Kosovo needs the status right now.
On the other hand, spokesperson for the Unity Team, Skender Hyseni told media today that although he cannot not give the exact date, independence of Kosovo will be declared earlier than in May 2008. “Today's date marks the end of all negotiations regarding the status of Kosovo. Today's date marks the beginning of the consultations with our international partners. Besides the steps that Kosovo must take to declare independence, the request for official recognition of this independence is equally important" said Hyseni. Moreover, Hyseni underlined that consultations with the international partners will take some time, and because of that Kosovars should wait for the constitution of new institutions of their future country. Hyseni added that Kosova has entered a new extremely dynamic period of the status process.
In general, the students' march managed to convey a clear message to the Kosovar and international leaders that it is high time for Kosovo to become independent.
Flora Loshi, photos Driton Paqarada
On the clock, there are 120 days left to discuss the future status of Kosovo. But in the centre of the wannabe 'capital', students from the University of Prishtina (UP) marched with the organization 'Students Initiative for Independence of Kosovo (SIIK)'. The motto:
“All for the independence of Kosovo”
They protested to Kosovar and international leaders to set a date for the declaration of the immediate independence of Kosovo. Supported by 3 thousand citizens from different places of Kosovo, protestant students of UP, gave ultimatum to MPs and Kosovo's leaders to declare independence till 19th January 2008. If their requests are not fulfilled, the protests will continue.
Although strongly hoping to obtain the date of independence, the students were left by the MPs. However, students promised that in case the independence is not declared till 19th January, they will go out on the streets and protest until their demands are fulfilled.According to them, independence was already paid by the martyrs of Kosovo.
Both Unity Team as well as the office of the new prime minister rejected to talk to Ardian Bajraktari, the leader of SIIK. In front of thousand of protestants, Bajraktari said that today it was the people's will that was totally rejected. “We deserve independence, we won it with honor, therefore our MPs are obliged ,in return, to pay us as well with honor and declare independence," said 70 year old Hasan Ibrahimi. Ibrahimi emphasized that the blood of his son, who was a martyr of the Kosovo Liberation Army as well as the blood of others, cannot be stepped by the Kosovar leaders or the international ones. But many other citizens said that such prolongation is unnecessary cause Kosovo needs the status right now.
On the other hand, spokesperson for the Unity Team, Skender Hyseni told media today that although he cannot not give the exact date, independence of Kosovo will be declared earlier than in May 2008. “Today's date marks the end of all negotiations regarding the status of Kosovo. Today's date marks the beginning of the consultations with our international partners. Besides the steps that Kosovo must take to declare independence, the request for official recognition of this independence is equally important" said Hyseni. Moreover, Hyseni underlined that consultations with the international partners will take some time, and because of that Kosovars should wait for the constitution of new institutions of their future country. Hyseni added that Kosova has entered a new extremely dynamic period of the status process.
In general, the students' march managed to convey a clear message to the Kosovar and international leaders that it is high time for Kosovo to become independent.
Flora Loshi, photos Driton Paqarada
Challenges for Kosovo in the EU-accession
Monday, December 3 2007 By paulina | prishtina-kosovo | 12 comments
'What are the challenges for Kosovo in the EU-accession process?
Responds Wolfgang Koeth-Political Advisor from the office of EU Commission in Prishtina
Kosovo cannot be judged the same way other neighboring countries in the region, which are potential candidates for the accession. Kosovo is not a sovereign state. The final legislative and executive power lies still in hands of UNMIK, UN administration. So, whenever we assess Kosovo institutions for, let’s say, the rule of law, we have to take into account that finally, final responsibility for this sector is not with Kosovo authorities but with the United Nations. However, this should not serve us as the excuse for Kosovo authorities. Sometimes we have the statement from local authorities that” you know but we don’t have legal competencies „. But that is not true, because Kosovo authorities do have a lot of competencies, but there is still a number of deficiencies. The area which gives us the most headaches is the rule of law. Because rule of law is not a separate sector as we have, let’s say economy, education. No, rule of law is underline, is across all these sectors. Because if we don’t have the well-functioning justice system, we won’t have any foreign investments in here. As long as the foreign investor cannot be sure that when he comes to Kosovo and when he invests his money, when he has got a legal issue, he can go to the court and exercise his rights. So rule of law is the issue which gives us the most headaches. That is mainly part to the weak capacity institutions. It can be also explained by the fact that Kosovo has no experience as the functioning state. Kosovo was a part of former Yugoslavia, then under the Milosevic regime, let’s say all Kosovo Albanians working in that sector were pushed out from their jobs, that means all judges and prosecutors and lawyer which are working here now have been under Yugoslav system and then have been without jobs for the next ten years, then started to work in a new system. All of them have received training during and after Milosevic period. The training which is inappropriate to the European standards.
" EU-what's in it for Kosovo?"
By paulina | prishtina-kosovo | one comment
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission.
Prishtina getting on the board
Tuesday, November 20 2007 By paulina | prishtina-kosovo | 2 comments
This is the official blog of non-EU, non-state team of Prishtina cafebabel team.
Kosovo is like the Pandora box-full of questions, riddles, surprises. And it is one of the reasons why it was so incredibly difficult to start that blog, to pick up one topic among others equally unsettling one’s mind. Fortunately the special mission of the cafebabel journalists came to explore the life in Prishtina and gave us the powerful and fair enough drive to launch this blog.
Let’s start it then…