Between 8-15 February a group of three participants (Slavjan Stojanov, Ardita Vejseli and Dimitar Chukovski) attended the Seminar “Quo Vadis Europea?: Solidar Youth” in Berlin, Germany. Here is what Slavjan has to say about the event:
Where we are going, Europe will follow!
Every question, no matter how small it seems actually concern us all, it’s something like the butterfly effect. No question can be properly answered if the questioning and the answering is happening only from one standing point; no question can be properly answered if the questions and the answers are happening only with the ones similar to you (or God help us all if they are only in your head :)). To ask/be asked the questions and get/give the answers you have to go in different places, talk to different people.
This time the question and the topic of this international project was: Quo Vadis Europea? Berlin was this time the place where Estonians, Latvians, Greeks, Germans, Poles, Portuguese, Spanish and Macedonians asked what Europe was marching toward. For one week on this seminar, from the morning till the evening, youth workers were debating this question, especially focusing on what is happening to solidarity these days in Europe, what challenges the good practices of solidarity, and what we can do to initiate and preserve solidarity. The question becomes even more challenging when we start thinking how we as youth workers, a role that we choose to play in society, can use this role to initiate and promote solidarity among youth, no matter how big the challenges of today are. I know all this seems like pathetic and empty words, and it is as long as you sit on the side and wait for the “big ones” (government, mayors, and all other elected representatives) to do the job, but when you decide that you are directly responsible and affected by all that, then you will step in the game and see how realistic and needed this debate is.
Many years ago, slowly but surely, I understood this and I accepted my role, and that’s why till today as a youth worker, founder and president of the NGO SlasT Educaton, I work every day on these issues, and when there is free time from work I use my time again to volunteer with other NGOs who are good in this field. CID from Kumanovo is one of those NGOs, and I thank them for the opportunity that they gave to a few Macedonians to contribute on preserving solidarity on European level.
Of course, not all was work and saving the world during this week, there was a lot of free time, but I chose not to write about that part. I mean, you can guess what is going on when 30 young people from all around Europe will get together in crazy Berlin. I’ll give you a hint: it was fun!
Slavjan STOJANOV
