From now on stay tune with MediArt blog

Dear friends and colleagues!

We thank you for being with us all this International Youth Year. As August 2011 is the last month of this period deducated to youngsters, we finish with this peculiar blog and go on with our Serres volunteer blog.
With our posts in our Praxis International Youth Year blog we have spread many activities and offered you useful information which could help to build an awareness of the global situation of young people and make you to believe that possible is EVERYTHING.

Let our blog Volunteering in Serres MEDI- ART as well as our live broadcasts at RODON FM every day from 15.00-16.00 serve as a report of what we have done or what we would like to do in future. Hope our experiance and contribution will find fertile territory!

Stay young despite your age. As Mark Twain said: "Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter".

Letter-writing competition: London 2012 Olympics

The Olympic Movement seeks to create a better world through sports, by promoting the universal values of excellence, friendship and respect. With these values in mind, young letter-writers are invited to express their thoughts on what the Olympic Games, which are being organized in 2012, mean to them.

Write on theme: "Write a letter to an athlete or sports figure you admire to explain what the Olympic Games mean to you".

The best letter from each country must be submitted no later than 30 April 2012, and all member countries are urged to respect this deadline. Only one entry per member country can be accepted. All submissions become the property of the UPU.

Good luck and - break a leg!

Don't forget to check Universal Postal Union

Youth in Action: A Snapshot of Democracy

World Youth Movement for Democracy announces its first Annual Photography Contest

Submit your photo capturing democracy, and win an opportunity to attend one of the largest global gatherings of democracy activists, scholars, policy makers, and donors. The World Youth Movement for Democracy is pleased to announce the launch of its Global Photo Contest. Fifteen semi-finalists (Five in each category: Building a Movement, Democracy in Action, and Youth Igniting Change) will be announced on 1 December 2011, and will have their winning photo published on the WYMD Web site. One finalist will be selected from each category through online open voting for a total of three finalists. The final results of the contest will be announced on 15 December 2011.

Timeline:

August 2011 – Launch of the Essay Contest
November 1, 2011 – DEADLINE!
December 1, 2011 – Announcement of 15 semi-finalists (five from each of three categories), and open online voting to select three finalists (one from each category).
December 15, 2011 – Three finalists announced

The purpose of this contest is to demonstrate understanding of the workings of democracy in your daily life by capturing images of democracy in action, youth igniting change, or the building of movements to create change for your community.

Visit World Youth Movement for Democracy

Good luck and brake your leg :)

1.4 billion reasons. Stop poverty.

1.4 billion people on our planet live in extreme poverty. The Global Poverty Project's mission is to increase the number and effectiveness of people taking action to see an end to extreme poverty.

About the project.

The Global Poverty Project's vision is a world without extreme poverty within a generation. Within the project there have been developed 1.4 Billion Reasons - a simple yet ground-breaking presentation, that is travelling the world, inspiring and empowering audiences in its path.

... so? ...and?

It is recognised that development is a complex field. The focus is on communicating issues and enabling action in the general public. To that end, the policy change objectives are:

• Aid Quantity;
  
• Aid Quality;
  
• Global Trade;
  
• Equitable Trade;
  
• Millennium Development Goals.

How can I be involved?

The Global Poverty Project is not after your money. Instead, it uses the presentation to explain how your everyday actions - in what you learn, say, buy, give and do - can be connected to the ending of extreme poverty. 1.4 Billion Reasons links audience members with leading aid and development organisations, so that each and every one of us can take action to end extreme poverty.

For more info check The Global Poverty Project

This is that case when PROACTIVITY is highly appriciated

What:

The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and the BMW Group are launching the BMW Group Award for Intercultural Innovation in support of the Alliance of Civilizations, under the auspices of the United Nations (UNAOC-BMW Group Award for Intercultural Innovation). The UNAOC and the BMW Group will select the most innovative projects that promote intercultural dialogue and cooperation around the world.

Why:
The partnership between the UNAOC and the BMW Group exemplifies public-private sector cooperation in building pluralistic and integrated societies as a key factor in preventing conflicts and contributing to prosperity, security and peace.

How:
Winners of the selection process will be announced at the Award Ceremony in Doha, December 2011, following which the UNAOC and the BMW Group will contribute resources to support development of the projects. Total amount of price pool will be USD 50,000. In addition, selected projects will become members of the World Intercultural Facility for Innovation (WIFI), a program of the UNAOC in collaboration with the BMW Group.

Who:

Preference will be given to small-scale projects with the potential to create a broader impact (implemented by organizations with 20 or less employees). Organizations must have been operational for a minimum of 2 years. Projects submitted within this call should have been launched already for 12 months minimum.

How:

Projects implemented by Civil Society Organizations (CSO). Projects must have an intercultural approach to diversity. Field of action must fall within one of the following thematic clusters:

- migration and integration;

- intercultural awareness;

- education for intercultural citizenship;

- the role of specific groups (faith-based; women; youth; media) in promoting intercultural understanding.

Projects must implement new approaches and methods to intercultural understanding.

When:

Hurry up, because time is running out! For more information check UNAOC-BMW Group Award for intercultural Innovation Application guidelines 2011.

It is YOU for Sustainable Development

Make your voice heard at the upcoming historical UN summit on sustainable development (also known as 'Rio+20')

World leaders on Sustainable Development:

On June 4-6, 2012, world leaders will gather in Rio de Janeiro for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development, the 20th anniversary of the groundbreaking Earth Summit of 1992. We hope they will agree on radical plans to move the world from the unsustainable production and consumption patterns that are killing our planet and the people living in it to a new, clean green economy – essential for any of our generation who are planning to live beyond 2050.

Your contribution VS all-expenses-paid trip:

In order to make difference, youth of the world are welcome to contribute new ideas for the youth submission into the Rio+20 process and comment/vote on existing ones. The author of the idea with the most votes will win an all-expenses-paid trip to Rio De Janeiro or New York to present the youth statement to the leaders of the Rio+20 process.

Join thousands of youth around the world on the Road to Rio+20, the global youth mobilization towards the UN summit: http://roadtorioplus20.org/

Be envolved in European Youth Congress 2011 in Slovenia

Let's build the renewable fuelled Green Economy now!

What?

The Heads of State Summit at Rio de Janeiro next year is possibly the most significant summit so far this century.
For in the midst of massive financial meltdown, rocketing youth unemployment (can you believe? - at 45% in Spain!) - and the ongoing threat of catastrophic climate change, Rio+20 offers governments a one-time opportunity to do the one thing that we, the younger generation, are going to be forced to do if this generation of leaders will not: namely - call time on the old, polluting, fossil fuel driven Brown Economy and legislate to create the clean, renewable-fuelled Green Economy.

Why?

Because fossil fuels are running out - fast! Peak Oil was passed in 2006 - Peak Coal, Peak Gas - pretty much Peak Everything will happen by 2050: we cannot going on using capital resources as though they are infinite! Will governments do anything about it? Probably not! At the UN in New York - talks broke down with no agreement and governments miles apart. The point is: it's not those old leaders who are going to suffer. It's us! - the youth of today.

Where?

All you have to do is to pay your trip to Izola, Slovenia (nearest airports, Trieste, Italy and Ljubljana; Railway station, Koper) - and your return trip from Izola, or London. All other costs for food and accommodation are covered by the EU sponsor. You can apply for both the Izola and Advocacy Trainings, or just Izola. Both will be amazing.

Check out www.roadtorioplus20.org for more information.

No more overfishing! Stop killing biodiversity

http://ocean2012.eu/

Stop violence against women!

Man Up is a global campaign to activate youth to stop violence against women and girls.

FACTS:

1 in 5 women will become a victim of rape or attempted rape in her lifetime.

1 in 3 teenage girls has suffered sexual abuse by a boyfriend, and one in four has experienced violence in a relationship.

Ages 15 – 44 violence against women is a major cause of death and disability.



"Violence against women stands in direct contradiction to the promise of the United Nations Charter to “promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom." The consequences go beyond the visible and immediate. Death, injury, medical costs and lost employment are but the tip of an iceberg. The impact on women and girls, their families, their communities and their societies in terms of shattered lives and livelihoods is beyond calculation. Far too often, crimes go unpunished, and perpetrators walk free. No country, no culture, no woman, young or old, is immune." (UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on International Women's Day 2009.)

More than a goal. End Polio

Bill Gates

Contrary to popular belief, I don’t spend a whole lot of time following soccer. But as I have travelled around the world to better understand global development and health, I’ve learned that soccer is truly universal. No matter where I go, that’s what kids are playing. That’s what people are talking about.

That’s why I’m so excited to announce a partnership our foundation is creating with FC Barcelona, one of the greatest clubs in the world. We hope that together we can bring more global attention to the promise of life-saving vaccines and the fight to end polio. FC Barcelona has a long history of being involved in social causes and an enormous global network of fans. We hope that once they learn more about the fight against polio, they’ll be just as fanatical about finishing it as they are about Leo Messi.

The facts are simple:

Thanks to a 13 cent vaccine and a phenomenal effort led by Rotary International to reach all children with that vaccine, cases of this devastating disease have fallen by 99 percent in the past 20 years.
Stopping the fight now is simply not an option. If we don’t do the really hard work to eradicate polio now, the disease will come back with a vengeance. Polio anywhere is a threat everywhere.

I can’t wait to learn a little more about soccer – or fútbol – by spending time with the team at Barça. And I can’t wait for them (and there are millions of them) to celebrate with us when the world reaches this global health milestone.

It's more than a goal. End polio.

100 Questions About Islam

UN Alliance of Civilizations, British Council and top US universities release timely video series: 100 Questions About Islam Debates on the role xenophobic anti-Muslim rhetoric played in influencing Anders Breivik have abounded in the aftermath of the Norway attacks. Separately, the role of Islam in democracy is being widely discussed as uprisings in the Arab world continue apace. In this context—and ahead of the ten-year anniversary of 9/11—a new and timely video series, launched by the UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and the British Council, seeks to provide insight on these and other current issues around perceptions of Islam and Muslim communities. 100 Questions About Islam aims, above all, at being a digital resource for the general public. It is a joint endeavour by the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations’ Media Program; the British Council’s Our Shared Future project, and was produced by students from the University of Missouri School of Journalism during a symposium hosted by Georgetown University’s Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. Videos What is the Muslim youth community like? What do polling data tell us about the Arab Spring? The entire collection of videos can be found at the following sites: http://vimeo.com/groups/100questionsaboutislam http://www.youtube.com/100qsaboutislam

YEN recognises the value of youth engagement in tackling youth employment challenges at all levels and is committed to promoting youth participation. The Secretariat actively supports this commitment in a number of ways, including developing and implementing youth participation mechanisms; mobilizing youth groups in Lead countries; and conducting workshops to build the capacity of youth groups to participate effectively in the National Action Plan on youth employment process. This page acts as a gateway for youth participation in YEN and other youth employment activities. ENJOY!

About YEN

The Youth Employment Network (YEN) is a partnership of United Nations, International Labour Organization, and World Bank. YEN was created in 2001 to mobilize action on the commitment of the Millennium Summit for decent and productive work for young people. YEN is a global platform to prioritise youth employment on the development agendas and to exchange on policies and programs to improve employment opportunities for youth. The Network includes development agencies, governments, the private sector, youth groups and other NGOs.

YEN is managed by a permanent secretariat hosted by ILO in Geneva. The secretariat is primarily a provider of innovative and value-added services for the Network. A specific focus is given to Africa, where the secretariat has a regional offices in Dakar, Senegal and Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.

The major achievements of YEN to date include:

• Revision of the Lead Country Network: 17 countries have recommited to the network since major revisions were made in 2009.

• Mobilisation of 10 Million USD in 2009 from various donors to support activities of the Network.

• Development and dissemination of various publications and advocacy products on youth employment.

• Training of over 1500 youth representatives as advocates on youth employment.

For more information, click on this link

World Breastfeeding Week - 1-7 august 2011

• Talk to me! Breastfeeding - a 3D Experience

  WABA is pleased to announce the World Breastfeeding Week theme for 2011 focusing on engaging and mobilising youth intergenerational work with the catchy slogan of: "Talk to me! Breastfeeding - a 3D Experience". The theme deals with communication at various levels and between various sectors.
  
  

• Why 3D?

  When we look at breastfeeding support, we tend to see it in two-dimensions: time (from pre-pregnancy to weaning) and place (the home, community, health care system, etc). But neither has much impact without a THIRD dimension - communication!
  
  Communication is an essential part of protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding. We live in a world where individuals and global communities connect across small and great distances at an instant's notice. New lines of communication are being created every day, and we have the ability to use these information channels to broaden our horizons and spread breastfeeding information beyond our immediate time and place to activate important dialogue.
  
  This third dimension includes cross-generation, cross-sector, cross-gender, and cross-culture communication and encourages the sharing of knowledge and experience, thus enabling wider outreach.

For more informations:
http://worldbreastfeedingweek.org/index.shtml

Worried about youth employment

Fact Sheet: Youth employment


• In 2009, about 81million young people were unemployed, the most ever.

Across the globe, the economic crisis has had a dramatic impact on the challenges
facing young people seeking jobs. Between 2008 and 2009, the youth unemployment
rate has seen the largest annual increase on record, reversing the pre-crisis trend of
declining youth unemployment rates since 2002 and rising to 13 per cent in 2009.

• In 2008, an estimated 152 million young workers –or nearly 25 percent of the
world’s working poor– were living with their families on less than US$1.25 per
person per day.

Unemployment rates, however, reflect only the tip of the iceberg. Young people are
prone to work longer hours under informal, intermittent and insecure work arrangements
characterized by low productivity and earnings and reduced social protection. Young
workers are more exposed to poverty than other age groups.

• Youth unemployment rate rose from 11.9 percent to 13.0 percent between
2007 and 2009, an increase of 7.8 million.

Creating jobs for the millions of young women and men entering the labour market
every year is a critical component in the path towards wealthier economies, fairer
societies and stronger democracies. It is not only the quantity but also the quality of jobs
that matters. Decent Work is the best way young people can realize their aspirations,
improve their living conditions and actively participate in society.

• Young women have more difficulty than young men in finding work. The
female youth unemployment rate in 2009 stood at 13.2 per cent compared to
the male rate of 12.9 per cent

The best labour market entry path for young people remains a good basic education,
vocational training or higher education and initial work experience.The development of national action plans on youth employment that are
focused on these elements can guide countries to translate national commitment into
action.


For further reading:

• ILO Youth Employment Programme (YEP)

• Resource Guide on youth employment

• ILO Global Job Crisis Observatory. Online information resource, regular
updates. Section on youth employment.

• Youth Employment Network (YEN)

Youth, Dialogue and Mutual Understanding debated at UN Headquarters on 25 and 26 July

The United Nations General Assembly will hold a High-Level Meeting on youth at UN Headquarters in New York, on 25 and 26 July 2011, as the highlight of the International Year of Youth. The overarching theme of the Meeting will be “Youth: Dialogue and Mutual Understanding”.

The event will be opened by Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations Secretary-General, Joseph Deiss, President of the General Assembly, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, former President of Brazil, and a youth speaker. The first day will include two consecutive interactive thematic panel discussions, which will be followed, on the 26th of July by two plenary meetings of the General Assembly.

The thematic panel discussions will address key issues affecting youth development:

Panel 1: Strengthening international cooperation regarding youth and enhancing dialogue, mutual understanding and active youth participation as indispensable elements of efforts towards achieving social integration, full employment and the eradication of poverty;
Panel 2: Challenges to youth development and opportunities for poverty eradication, employment and sustainable development.
The High-Level Meeting will also feature numerous side events which will enable youth organisations and partners to inform and exchange on their respective work.

Irina Bokova, UNESCO Director-General, is invited by the President of the General Assembly and will participate as a speaker in panel discussion 2. She will be accompanied by Pilar Álvarez-Laso, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences.

The results of the High-Level Meeting will be presented and discussed during the 7th UNESCO Youth Forum in October 2011.

The meeting will be webcasted live and there will be live-tweeting from the account @unyouthyear on both the 25 and 26 July, using the hashtag #youth11. The link to the webcast will be shared on Monday morning on the UN Youth Year Facebook and Twitter channels. UNESCO’s Twitter account @unescoNOW will retweet selected posts from the High Level Meeting.

22.07.2011
Source: Social and Human Sciences Sector

Women against Violence

Up to 70% of women experience violence in their lifetime. This is intolerable. Violence against Women can, and must, be stopped.

Contribute to fight this scourge by joining the United Nations and create a newspaper ad that says “No to Violence against Women”.

Under the banner Create4theUN, we are, once again, reaching out to the European creative community, professionals and non-professionals, to invite you to participate in the 2011 European competition.

To engage European citizens we are working with UN Information Centres across Europe and with major newspapers in each country.

The three prizes have been donated by partners in three European countries: Spain, Italy and Portugal. The thirty short-listed entries will be sent to a jury of experts.

Urban arts and design youth competition

As part of its policy to engage young people in promoting socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities, UN-HABITAT is inviting youth worldwide to submit original artworks, digital designs and imagery envisioning their future cities. The artistic artworks will be under the theme “My Vision of an Ideal City”.

The International Urban Arts and Design Competition acknowledges and celebrates the contribution of visual arts and designs in sustainable urban development. The competition will showcase the diversity of future cities as envisioned by young people.


Who can take part in this competition ?

The Competition is open to youth from around the world under two categories:
Category 1 is open to individuals aged 15-24
Category 2 is open to individuals aged 25-34



The Award :

Four winners, two from the global north and two from the global south, will be awarded a cash prize of USD 500 each
Eight runners-up will be presented with a USD250 cash prize each

The winners and runners-up will also receive UN-HABITAT gift items and their works will be featured online on the UN-HABITAT website, the Global Youth Helpdesk and the Urban Gateway. The winning entries will also be displayed at exhibitions during UN-HABITAT’s events.


How do you take part ?
1. Go to the UN-HABITAT website at www.unhabitat.org/urbanarts and complete the online form with your personal details provide a brief description of the art or design work you will be sending.
2. Once you have completed the form, send us soft copies of your art or design work to urbanarts@unhabitat.org. These may be digital designs, scans or photographs of your work. Your work should depict your vision of an ideal city and may be a computer design or an artistic impression of your future city.

3. Acceptable formats include JPEG, PDF.

4. If you are shortlisted, you will be subsequently asked to send your original works with instructions on where and how to submit these.



Selection Process :

In selecting the winners the jury will be looking for originality, creativity and visual appeal. The jury will also be looking for relevance to the theme of an ideal city including features of socially, environmentally and economically sustainable cities.

The International Year of Youth (IYY) Strategy Partners

Dear Friends,

In the run up to the International Youth Day and during the HLM on Youth taking place in New York next week, the International Year of Youth Strategy Partners are launching the campaign: COMMIT: Put Youth at the Heart of Development

A petition has been set up for young people from across the world to sign their name in support of the call to action below. Please encourage young people from your networks and organizations to 'like' the campaign Facebook fan-page and sign the petition, which can be found here.

The International Year of Youth (IYY) Strategy Partners
The Youth Coalition, Advocates for Youth, Global Youth Coalition on HIV/AIDS, International Planned Parenthood Federation, YouAct, Y-PEER

World Urban Campaign

UN-HABITAT, the United Nations agency for human settlements, helps the urban poor by bridging the urban divides and transforming cities to cleaner, greener, safer, smarter and more equitable places with better opportunities where everyone can live in dignity. UN-HABITAT works with organizations at every level, including all spheres of government, civil society and the private sector to help build, manage, plan and finance sustainable urban development.

The World Urban Campaign is a new tool in this quest and it seeks to ensure that the world stays alert to the problems of rapid urbanization and all its ramifications, especially in the developing countries. The campaign is also intended to promote learning from one another and emphasize how we have and will encourage sustainable development in urban places.

We made it BIG in Amasya, Turkey

WHEN? WHAT? WHERE?

From 04.07.2011. – 11.07.2011. two volunteers from PRAXIS - Benjamin VIENNE & Elina EGLITE participated in a Youth Exchange program "We Are The World For Future" in Amasya, Turkey. Participants from six countries - Turkey, Romania, Hungary, Greece, Lituania and Poland - gave their contribution to aid works that can be done by European countries to people or countries that need help.

HOW IT ALL STARTED?

Call from our EVS mentor in Greece at 9:00am: "Guys, I have good news – would you like to go to Turkey next week to participate in a project "We Are The World For Future””? And everything else was like in a dream – too fast and too good to be true. But we could handle the situation pretty easy – set up a meeting with other Greek participants (Dimitra, Artemis and our team leader Georgios), talked through things what must be done before our arrival to Turkey and discused our added value to the project.

WE ARE IN AMASYA, FINALLY!

Despite some inconveniences in Thessaloniki airport and muck-up with airplane tickets, in last minutes we finally managed to take off and land in our dream: Turkey... First people we met was Lituanians who welcomed us and involved in ice-braking activities.

WOW! We were in Turkey and enjoyed every single minute: common breakfast, rides to most beautiful places in Amasya, intercultural nights, common swimming activities, volleyball match, picnic near brilliant green Borabay lake, outdoor games, open roof buss, most unique separating night and last but not least – project activities.

WHY YOUTH EXCHANGE?

It’s such a great way to meet new people, share experiences, practice different language skills, try out how good you are out of your comfort zone, find out about different culures and eventually – it’s the best, most proactive and most valuable way to spent your free days out of your hometown.

DREAM BIG

For us it was Amasya in Turkey. What could be your destination? It all can come true, I mean – why not?

For more information visit www.praxisgreece.org

Youth Exchange - Amasya

From 4/7/11 to 11/7/11 two volunteers from Praxis - Benjamin VIENNE & Elina EGLITE participated in a Youth Exchange programm "We Are The World For Future" in Amasya, Turkey.
Participants from 6 countries - Turkey, Romania, Hungary, Greece, Lituania and Poland - gave their contribution to aid works that can be done by European countries to people or countries that need help.

Take look, how it all was done!

World Summit Youth Award

The WSYA selects and promotes best practice in e-Content. It demonstrates young people's potential to create outstanding digital contents and serves as a platform for people from all UN member states to work together in the efforts to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

7 Billion is an opportunity

There are problems that can, and must, be solved. As an individual, you can play a key role in creating a sustainable world characterized by balance and peace. You are part of a big, interconnected community where actions taken in one country or region can have an immediate impact on the other parts of the globe.

Refugees in Greece

Refugees in Greece

Refugee Day - Monday 20 June 2011

Young Palestinian refugee wins UN film competition

A short film based on the story of a Palestinian refugee family returning to their ruined home in a conflict-ravaged camp in Lebanon was today declared the winner of a film competition organized by the United Nations to mark World Refugee Day.
The film by 25-year-old Tahani Awad from Nahr el-Bared refugee camp in Lebanon impressed the panel of judges with its powerful, yet understated portrayal of the experience of the family, according to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which organized the competition.

The theme of the contest, which was open to young Palestinian filmmakers across the Middle East, was ‘My World.’

“We invited young Palestinian refugees to show their talents, and to tell us about their world and their lives because the refugees, and in particular, our young students deserve a chance to speak to the world,” said Filippo Grandi, the UNRWA Commissioner-General, at a screening of the winning entries.

“What we received was an incredible glimpse into the reality, creativity and potential of people who have so often been marginalized and ignored but who are increasingly making their voices heard,” he said.

Over the next few weeks UNRWA will feature a selection of entries on its website and YouTube channel, starting with Ms. Tahani’s film.

UNRWA is mandated to provide services to 4.8 million Palestinian refugees living in Gaza, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and the West Bank.

In his message to mark World Refugee Day, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged the world to consider the plight of the millions of people forced from their homes and who, in most cases, want to return to their places of origin to start lives afresh.

“Let us never lose sight of our shared humanity,” said Mr. Ban.

He noted that whereas traditionally the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) supported those fleeing conflict or persecution, people are increasingly forced to leave their homes as a result of extreme poverty, environmental degradation, climate change and the growing and complex interrelationship between those factors and conflict.

“The burden of helping the world’s forcibly displaced people is starkly uneven. Poor countries host vastly more displaced people than wealthier ones. Anti-refugee sentiment is heard loudest in industrialised countries. This situation demands an equitable solution,” said the Secretary-General.

Praxis activities for the Refugees Day

We, the Praxis volunteers are preparing two events for the Refugees Day on 20th of June.

First of these is a photo exhibition that will be displayed on Sunday 19th of June at Freedom Square in Serres. Send your 20x30 photos about Refugees Day until 16^th of June to

PRAXIS

Selefkou, 8

62123, Serres

Add a title, short description of the photo and the author.

The second event is a film projection. We'll project Waltz with Bashir and Hotel Rwanda on Monday 20th of June at 21.00 at Freedom Square in Serres.

Activities in Serres

In the Stadium of Serres, on Monday 19 2 films will be projected related with the Refugee Day

1. WALTZ WITH BASHIR, 2008. ISRAEL

In June 1982, the Israeli army invaded South Lebanon after Israel’s northern towns had been bombarded for years from the Lebanese territory. The Israeli government’s original plan was to occupy a 40 km security zone in Lebanon in order to “cleanse” the missile range used by the Palestinians against Israel’s northern towns. In fact, the Israeli Minister of Defense at the time, Arik Sharon, developed a fantastical and ultra-imaginative plan: to occupy Lebanon as far as Beirut, including Beirut, and to appoint his Christian ally, Bashir Gemayel, President of Lebanon, thus eradicating the threat to the State of Israel from the north and expanding and increasing the front against Syria, a country that also borders on Lebanon and was always considered Israel’s cruelest and most tenacious enemy. Sharon and senior military leaders were actually the only ones who knew about the plan. While the Israeli government approved a 40 km range operation only, the IDF thrust full speed ahead all the way to Beirut.

In August, two months after war broke out and the IDF was still waiting on the outskirts of Beirut for the command to penetrate the city, a treaty was signed with the Palestinians according to which all Palestinian combat fighters would be evacuated from Beirut on ships to Tunisia. In return, the IDF would remove the threat of penetrating the city. While giving a speech at the Phalangist headquarters in East Beirut, Bashir Gemayel (The President) was killed by a massive explosive charge. To this day it is unknown who was responsible for the murder, but the assumption is that the assassination was orchestrated by Syrian or Palestinian factions or that they collaborated thereon.

That afternoon, Israeli troops penetrated a region in West Beirut that was mostly populated in those days by Palestinian refugees, and they surrounded the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps. Towards evening, large Phalangist forces made their way to the area, driven by a profound sense of revenge after the killing of their revered leader. At nightfall, Phalangist forces entered the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps aided by the IDF’s illumination rounds. The declared objective of the Christian forces was to purge the camps of Palestinian combat fighters. However, there were virtually no Palestinian combat fighters left in the refugee camps since they had been evacuated on ships to Tunisia two weeks earlier. For two whole days the sound of gunfire and battles could be heard from the camps but it was only on the third day, September 16th, when panic-stricken women swarmed the Israeli troops outside the camps, that the picture became clear: For three days the Christian forces massacred all refugee camp occupants. Men, women, the elderly and children, were all killed with horrific cruelty. To this day the exact number of victims is unknown but they are estimated at 3000.

News of the massacre shocked the entire world and a spontaneous protest of hundreds of thousands Israelis forced the Israeli government to create an official inquiry committee to investigate the liability of Israeli political and military authorities. Minister of Defense Arik Sharon was found guilty by the committee for not having done enough to stop the horror once he became aware of the massacre. He was dismissed of his duties and prohibited from serving as Minister of Defense for another term. This did not stop him from being appointed Prime Minister of Israel twenty years later.

International Refugee Day - Call For Action

International Refugee Day (20.06.2011.) is a European-wide campaign that highlights the issues facing refugees from a non-governmental perspective.

UNHCR is the UN Refugee Agency and they work to protect refugees and solve their problems all over the world. In more than six decades, the agency has helped tens of millions of people restart their lives. Today, a staff of some 7,190 people in more than 120 countries continues to help some 36.4 million persons.

Here s some links on the refugee issue:

http://www.unhcr.org

http://fortresseurope.blogspot.com/

http://www.clandestina.org/indexa_e.html

http://www.proasyl.de/en/home/

www.ecre.org

http://omadadikigorwnenglish.blogspot.com/

http://www.gcr.gr/en

World Enviromental Day in Serres

Birds in India: Kingfisher

About the Kingfisher in india

appearance : Common Kingfisher is 17 cm in length and weigh around 30- 34 g. Their wingspan is 30 inches long. Their underparts are bright orange in colour with the white bib. Their wings are bluish green and the tail is bright blue in colour. They have blue head with the white mark on either side of it. They have short legs which are colored in orange. The wings and tails are short while the bill is long and pointed.

Presence in India : Common Kingfisher is mostly found in the state of Haryana in India Common Kingfisher can also be spotted in the Corbett National Park, Bandhavgarh National Park and Sundarbans National Park in India.

Habitat : Common Kingfisher prefers to live near streams, slow flowing rivers, ponds and lakes.

Diet : Common kingfisher feeds on aquatic insects, small fish and prawns. They mostly hunt during the morning or evening hours.

Reproduction : Common Kingfisher usually mate during the spring season. Males try to attract the females with the fish in their beaks. The females lay 6 – 7 eggs. Eggs are incubated for about 20 days. Fledging period rests from 23 -27 days. They do-not build nests, they place their eggs on a litter of fish bones and disgorged pellets. Both the males and females bring food for the young ones and take care of them. Young ones are somewhat blue to pale red in colour. Most of the Kingfishers are territorial.

Conservation status : Least concern. They are present in large numbers. They are usually found near the streams, lakes and pounds. Their population has seriously declined due to the cold weat