Andreas Broeckmann on Mon, 16 Aug 1999 11:23:58 +0100 |
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Syndicate: [Balkansunflower-list] update 16 |
Balkan Sunflowers Update # 16 Volunteers Currently Balkan Sunflowers has a lack of volunteers. Please apply. Specifically, we need: Macedonia - 3 week volunteers starting Sept 3rd or Sept 24th Albania - 6 week volunteers starting Sept 3rd and onwards Kosovo/a/a - 4 week volunteers starting any date now.! We also need medium and long term volunteers to fulfil more of a co-ordination role for all three countries and for the international office. Details available from applications@mir.org. Who is doing what Macedonia Shutka We are doing seven classes English, organising children-activities, dance-classes and art, games at the playground. Cegrane Photography-workshop, esp. meant for young women, a camp newsletter, we work closely together with the local NGO, ADI, Association for Democratic Initiatives, English lessons, visiting families, children-activities together with other NGO's. Kosov@ The volunteers are working in Pristina, Peje and Gjacova with the Kosovarian Youth Council, on children¥s programmes, on playgrounds, in schools, a city park doing cleaning actions, better insulation for public buildings and sort out permissions and mine awareness education. Even squeezed into one sentence it is still too much work for the volunteers there. Albania Five summercamps started this week in different locations in Albania, with small teams of Balkan Sunflowers international volunteers working alongside the volunteers of the local organisers. Despite the heat the volunteers managed to make children play, sing and forget their thirst. And after these have finished we are beginning more long term community building work and education work in schools - more detail to follow. United States of America Balkan Sunflowers US is becoming legal! The coordination team in the US is currently working on obtaining a legal non-profit status of the US part of this blossoming initiative. The team is doing that - among others - for financial reasons (to make life easier sourcing grants and other donations). Meanwhile, the US BSF server has started to work. The team has e-mail addresses and the web site is under construction. Katarzyna from DC will be the person responsible for processing application forms of US volunteers. As one of US Coordinators, she's been doing this to some extent anyway :-) Germany Danae visited the international office last week to get to know personally the folks she has had on the other side of the telephone line for the last 3 months. She will come for a visit again next week to work on a fund application for a long term initiative to suport the Tetovo Youth Information Centre. The international office (the typist is kind of reluctant to say coordination office, after a discussion with Danae on what coordination means and what it involves) made another public presentation of BSF, with slides from Ramona, and speeches from most of the office team, with a too short speech from Danae about the projects in Macedonia. Finally the international office received the first and second phone call from the team in Pristina. >From the second phonecall the most important information unfortunately went somewhere to phone heaven, but not to the office. Such is the difficulty of communication with Kosovo/a at present! Training On Aug the 12th, US BSF has the first training session for prospective US volunteers. This event will take place in New York City as some of our vols fly to Europe from this city. With a brief history of Balkan Sunflowers founding, projects and accomplishments, history of Balkan conflicts, information on dealing with war trauma, practical issues like travel, accomodation, work in the field. Fundraising After some linking and writing Marilou was successful with a grant for 44.000 DM from the Dutch Refugee Council for projects in Kosov@. A friend and supporter of the international office carved and then auctioned a huge wooden sunflower sculpture raising 2400 DEM. Finances The international office managed to collect quite some debts since the existance of Balkan Sunflowers (around 7000 DM) and is now looking for people to guarantee those. Ideas and Plans >From 15 Sept. 1999 - 15 March 2000 we want to go on the road with a mobile "Mine and Weapon Awarness campaign" in Albania with video films, theatre plays with local pupils, creative writing training, sport and more creative activities,-non violent conflict resolution training, Mine-, Weapons- and UXO's awereness building. Together with War Child, Albanian Youth Council, Amurt and some other help we want to build up community centers and community activities all over Albania in poor parts of cities. As well as continue work with refugees in Albania, clear is that more will stay in Albania than most organisations thought. In Stenkovec 2 (refugee camp in Macedonia) we would like to work in a Children-home nearby our office/apartment. In Shutka we are looking for another place to do the games and lessons, as the number of children (and the noise) is growing everyday. In Kosov@ Balkan Sunflowers wants to do long term projects dealing with reconciliation A friend of the Belzig office offered to make a video on Balkan Sunflowers, equipment and skills are sorted. In case it gets finished any time the video can be of course used for fundraising, training and public relations, but we need approx. 2000DEM to finish this. Thank You Thanks to Volker for the computers, Antonius for the Sunflower, Bill and Madjana for the auction, all auctioneers for their participation, Ruediger for an article on Wam, Connection and Zeitpunkt (and Leila) for articles on BSF and again Volker for driving all the stuff down, and the� attractive female translator' for helping him through customs. List of Needs Long term volunteers, including two highly stable, sensitive and mature individuals, for projects with traumatised people in Kosov@ The international office team could do with an experienced fund-raiser, working in the office or elsewhere, with good communication lines to the office. A laptop computer for the international office to be able to continue work when not in Germany. Toner cartridges for HP 5MP for the international office. Miscelleaneous WE ARE MOVING FORWARD !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :-) :-) :-) (US Balkan Sunflowers Team in their internal update) for the co-ordination team, Belzig, Germany ----------------- Latest info about the Balkan Sunflowers: http://www.balkansunflowers.org apply as volunteer: http://www.mir.org/dataform our bankaccount always needs feeding: Accountnr: 160 160 1 Accountname: Balkan Sunflowers e.V. Bank Oekobank Frankfurt (Germany) Blz 500 901 00 Tel: +49-33841-30670 Fax: +49-33841-30671 ---------------------------------------------------------------- News from the | To subscribe: Send an E-mail to: Balkan Sunflowers | majordomo@ddh.nl and put in the text body: | subscribe balkansunflower-list ---------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------- News from the | To unsubscribe: Send an E-mail to: Balkan Sunflowers | majordomo@ddh.nl and put in the text body: (the new SunCokret) | unsubscribe balkansunflower-list ---------------------------------------------------------------- More on the project: http://www.ddh.nl/org/balkansunflower ------Syndicate mailinglist-------------------- Syndicate network for media culture and media art information and archive: http://www.v2.nl/syndicate to unsubscribe, write to <syndicate-request@aec.at> in the body of the msg: unsubscribe your@email.adress