YouthBank International News

<div class="page traditional" style=" background-color: #fff; "> <article> <header> <h1 style=" color: #000;">From Istanbul to Minneapolis… YouthBank has no boundaries! </h1> </header> <div class="main"> <img src="/uploads/53870f5f8209d.jpg" class="title-pic" alt=""/> As Nilay Küme prepares to join the YouthBank International delegation for a visit to Chicago and Minneapolis, she reflects on her aspirations and expectations. <img src="/uploads/53871e713ebad.jpg">By Nilay Küme, TOG, TurkeyNilay was born in 1987 in Izmir, Turkey. She graduated in International Relations and started working in different civil society organisations. Nilay is currently working for the Community Volunteer Foundation. Her responsibility is to encouraged young people to come together and run their own social responsibility projects in different rural areas and support youth associations while implementing the Youth Bank Programme. If I had been told two years ago that I would be introducing the YouthBank model to an international audience at the Minneapolis conference in June 2014 as a member of the YouthBank international delegation I would not have believed it. But here I am, packing my bags and reflecting on the exciting experience ahead of me. The trip is about introducing the YouthBank model to an international forum including interested organizations, potential funders and young people as well as taking the opportunity to share experiences, refine our approach and enhance the quality of the support offered to YouthBanks across the world. And of course, the visit will highly benefit my own work in the field of youth activities. In a nutshell, I am expecting to brainstorm, learn and share, and network. Brainstorming - Even though there is only one ‘YouthBank model’, it is adaptable to the local social dynamics. So when explaining the model to other organizations, it is likely that they will discuss the ways in which the YouthBank model adapts to their own countries’ circumstances. Brainstorming will be conducing to exploring the various ways in which the YouthBank model fits all social, political and economic conditions as young people will exchange ideas and learn from each other’s experiences. Learning and Sharing - The organizations which will come together in Minneapolis will share their own youth work models and explain how projects are implemented in their own countries, so I would expect to learn and share different working methods and models. Networking – I am sure that following the conference, strong friendships and relationships will have been developed and that we will reunite at further international meetings and summer camps with organizations.As a person who has been involved in YouthBank for two years, I can see the YouthBank model promoting the development of young people in each of the above fields.So when my turn comes to present the YouthBank model to an international audience of young people, I will tell them that YouthBank promotes active citizenship for young people in general, starting from helping them to understand what is happening in their community, followed by raising awareness of their individual influence on resolving issues and the responsibility that comes with it. I will tell them that the YouthBank approach fosters mutual understanding between young people who come from different backgrounds, improves communication, team-leading and motivations skills, develops pro-active attitudes and develops sense of common responsibility for the future of their local communitiesI will tell them that joining YouthBank is the most wonderful experience through which strong friendships are born, essential skills are developed, lessons are learned and true and meaningful contribution to the well-being of your local community can be achieved.    </div> </article> </div>

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Issue 3