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International Youth Training on Conflict Transform..
International Youth Training on Conflict Transformation and Negotiation Through Turbulence
Start date: Jan 10, 2015,
End date: May 9, 2016
PROJECT
FINISHED
The theme of this training was “International Youth Training on Conflict Transformation and Negotiation through Turbulence” Occurrences and events of the last couple of years, ranging from violent riot in U.K in 2010, violent protest in Spain, Bulgaria and Greece are constantly confusing young people as to the veracity of non-violent response to conflict. The sporadic violent confrontation in Ukraine beats everyone’s’ imaginations of how civil protest can degenerate to a civil war with thousands already dead and counting. This and many more was why international Youth Training on Conflict Transformation and Negotiations through Turbulence was very crucial at this material time. Today ‘s world is challenging for young people: the different and changing economic climate, skyrocketing youth unemployment, constant violent flash points across Europe with no clear end in sight. When there is despair, there is a natural attraction to use violence either to make a point or to assert oneself. During this dire situations and circumstances, youth workers play an important role in supporting young people in coping with personal, economic, social and intercultural conflicts. They facilitate constructive learning outcomes and stimulate reflective perspectives, supporting young people in recognizing conflicts as part of an important learning process. The project sought to train youth workers, youth leaders, and managers of youth projects in a standardized conflict transformation and negotiation skills. The training was a departure from the usual conflict trainings rather it used the John Paul Lederach model pioneered in 1980s which saw conflict as something that must not necessarily be resolved or managed but TRANSFORMED because conflict is natural and neutral. The project redirected youth energy from reacting to conflict but responding and engaging with conflict and gave them skills to analyse the WHY of conflict and able to follow the right approaches to conflicts transformation but because you can not transform any form of conflict without adequate knowledge of negotiation skills. The training fused these two important concepts and tools together. One of the aims of the training was to empower and equip young leaders and youth workers with negotiation skills. Its obvious everyone negotiates something every day. You negotiate with your family about where to spend the weekend. We have negotiated all these activities without having the skills or being conscious we were negotiating. But how does one become an effective negotiator? The project sought to make young people change agents and unarmed army of youth skilled in Conflict Transformation and Negotiation skills. Non-formal Experiential learning methods were used at the training. Young people were supported to be masters of their own learning. The approach was combined with participatory methods which allowed role plays, story telling and new creative methods at responding to pressures and frustrations which included Conflict Analyses. Lenses of Conflict, reconciliation, negotiation skills and team building.
OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT INCLUDED;
-The project trained 33 youth workers, youth leaders and youth in specific Conflict transformation skills.
- The project trained youth workers and young people in Negotiation skills in times of turbulence and at all times
- The project trained youth workers and young people on how to transform pressures associated with social and economic obstacles
- The project trained youth workers and youth leaders the fundamental principles of creators who takes the advantages of bad situations to create new and better opportunities
- The project trained youth workers and youth leaders in team building and team leading skills which will enable them to leverage diversity in a multicultural workspace.
The project took place in Brighton in U.K for a Period of ten days between 6th to 15th of October, 2015, accommodation was at Travelodge and training facility was at Community Base across the hotel .Partner countries were carefully selected, which includes Poland, Romania, Hungary, Norway, Italy ,Ukraine, Portugal and Spain and U.K. The participant learnt new skills of how to manage and transform conflict with negotiation skills during uncertainties and pressures. The project deepened participants understanding on the nature and the different types of conflict understanding and how to measure vulnerability which enhances mutual coexistence. The participants would learnt the necessary skills to train other people on conflict transformation methods, active citizenship, intercultural dialogue, conflict analyses and negotiation skills through non-formal education methods .The partners formed part of a new network of organizations of peace-builders and youth negotiators. This project has kick-started an ongoing revolutions of non formal experiential learning methods for creating change and working in a multicultural space with tolerance and