Italian delegation report 1

Report on Youth Delegation to Tuscany Region in Italy

Youth spring across ethnicities: a new social alliance to empower youth of minorities in North Iraq and KRG EuropeAid-European Commissions DIC-MED/2013334-829

Center name: Youth Center delegation Date:10-19/Decemberr/2015

Subject : Delegation to Italy Reported by: Salar Ahmed & Rana Al Bayati

The delegation in Iraq and KRG visited Tuscany region in Italy between 10 th -19th of December 2015 within the project of “youth spring across Ethnicities” , the project funded by European Union and implemented by Al Mesalla ORG. for Human Resource Development, UPP and ARCI and some other local institutes, association and organizations in each of Italy and KRG, including IID, Yazidi Solidarity, Municipal of Valdera , Table of peace …etc.

The purpose of the delegation to: 1. Exchange information and ideas and to transfer the situation and crises and also the situation of IDPs and Syrian refugees.

2. The situation of the youth and women situation in the region.

3. Minorities in Iraq and the risks are facing.

4. The situation of the cities and villages after ISIS crises.

5. How to involve youth in the youth center and how to benefit from experience in Tuscany region.

Below is the agenda for the delegation to Italy: 12345678-

Azra Jwad – Christian from Mosul/Qaraqosh Haneen Maki- Bahai Minority / Baghdad Basam Salim – Yazidi Minority from Mosul/Basheqa Rana Abdul – (Arab-Turkman-Kurd) from Mosul Resan Edo- Yazidi from Shxan/ Mosul Fuad Abdullah – Kurdish muslim from Kirkuk Fathi – Director from Ankawa Youth Center Salar Ahmed- project coordinator

Below is the agenda for the delegation:

SCHEDULE OF THE IRAQI DELEGATION IN TUSCANY 11-19 of December 2015

Day

hour

place

MEETING REASON

REFERENCES FOR THE DEFINITION OF PROGRAMS

11.00

Partners of Martina Pignatti, Arrival of Welcome at the airport. project in Civil Carla Cocilova, Pietro delegation Supper and explanation society Pertici of weekly program.

15.00

Meeting with Welcome and formal the Mayors Pontedera board of the meeting with Giovanni Forte Union of Politicians Municipalities

Friday 11.12

Night

Saturday 12.12

PERSONS OR INSTITUTION TO BE MET

9.0013.00 a.m.

Dinner

Pontedera (PI)

1st training session (4h): Participative and inclusive approach. How Carla Cocilova Sara Bandecchi (ARCI to draft a comprehensive action Servizio Civile) Giovanni Forte plan. Example of programs addressed to Monica Baldini youth and created by a system of consultation between institutions and civil society.

16.0018.00

18.3024.00

12.00

Meeting with Meeting a concrete and active experience Youth Fornacette association of youth association To be confirmed (PI) Comitato XXV Aprile

Vicopisano Circolo ARCI (PI) Ortaccio

Lari (PI)

Sunday 13.12 Afternoon

Monday 14.12

9.0013.00

Social lunch and meeting with Associazione la Rossa

Meeting with the members of the circle.

Sharing the idea of community center.

Explaining how to build Carla Cocilova a comprehensive and collective program of activities. Dinner and public initiative in the circle.

Knowing an association and sharing the project purposes and activities

Carla Cocilova

Free

Pontedera

1st training session (4h): Participative and inclusive approach. How to draft a comprehensive action Carla Cocilova plan. Example of Giovanni Forte programs addressed to Coop.Arnèra (social youth and created by a cooperative staff) system of consultation between institutions and civil society.

14.3018.30

2nd session (4 hours) Team building and team working activities. Different practical and concrete Coop.Arnèra (social techniques to build up cooperative staff) a group (as staff team and as youth group)

Pontedera

Morning and Empoli afternoon

ARCI Empolese Valdelsa and Association Agrado (Youth association working with youth)

3rd session (8 hours) Youth involvement and community approach: theory, programs and some concrete examples

Tuesday 15.12

21.00

Wednesday 16.12

Pontedera Population

Students and teachers

9.00-11.00 Pisa 11.30-12.30

Public initiative about Iraqi situation and presentation of the project Meeting with High schools

Formal meeting Municipality with Pisa representatives Municipality

Assessora M.Chiofalo

16.00-19.00

Pisa, UPP office, ex Opera Cardinal Maffi

21.00

Pisa

Meeting with University student students and representatives Martina Pignatti civil society and associations representatives of Pisa Participation to an event organized by Population students Martina Pignatti networks about international situation

morning Thursday 17.12

afternoon

FREE DAY

Meeting with school or youth TBC association

morning Friday 18.12

Visit of Florence Participation to a public initiative

18.00

Morning

Pontedera Partners

6 pm

Departure

Saturday 19.12

Evaluation and follow up

****************************************************************************** Planning for delegation activities with each of UPP and ARCI

The delegation arrived to Pontedera noon time on 11th of December 2015, and in same day had the first meeting to discuss the agenda with each of Carla from ARCI Association and Martina from UPP and to address the role of each

individual from Iraqi delegation and the association, organizations and municipal that planned to visit, also discussed logistic issues related to the delegation.

Meeting with president of Municipals in Valdera and some Mayors

In the same day the delegation met with the Mayors board of the Union of Municipalities and also the president of 12 municipals in Valdera Mr, Giovanni Forte, the Mayors welcome the delegation and explained why it is important to meet such a delegation from Iraq, in order to understand better the situation in Iraq and Kurdistan Region after recent crises including the war against ISIS, and also explained the work in the municipals of Valdera.

The delegation clarified some important points as they came from different part of Iraq and half o0f them were internal displacement people who left their places because of the ISIS attach in Iraq, also explained the situation of youth in Iraq and why it is important to have youth centers in the region in order to promote youth from different background for peace-building, tolerance and coexistence.

Each individual in the delegation gave short speech about different issue related to the whole situation in the country including immigration, refugees, youth, minority and of course the violence occur after all crises heated the country, and women issue was part of discussion and there were some question from audience came to welcome the delegation about some unclear issues.

On 12th of December 2015 there were the first training for the youth and delegation on Participative and inclusive approach, How to draft a comprehensive action plan, for Example of programs addressed to youth and created by a system of consultation between institutions and civil society, the leaded by each of Carla Cocilova from (ARCI Servizio Civile) Giovanni Forte(the president of Municipals in Valdera) and Monica Baldini.

The session started with the detailed explanation about the youth center and how the youth and volunteers work in the center and the ways that the center encourages youth from different background to involve within the activities in the center.

Carla and Giovanni explained how the system of the youth center and association work and how could benefit from their experience and translated into the reality situation in Iraq, and also Monica Baladini explained how the system works that to involve everyone in the process in using democratic Methods.

On the evening of 12th of December 2015, the delegation meet with the members of the circle sharing the idea of community center in Vicapisiano, Explaining how to build a comprehensive and collective program of activities.

This even was opportunity to meet with one of the ARCI circles and discus our project and situation in Iraq and KRG, also was time we heard how people worked in Kobani crises, especially the initiatives who support the people in Kobani and the way they are working with the Kurdish Syrian youth in the city.

On Sunday 13th of December 2015, the delegation participated in the Social lunch and meeting with Associazione la Rossa in Lari , in order to Knowing an Social Lunch was a association and sharing the project purposes and activities.

meeting the delegation exchanged the idea and shared information with the local communities in presence of some refugees from Africa

The delegation shared their idea and opinion with people in the event and there were speech by Salar Ahmed to introduce the member of delegation and the project of “Youth Spring Across the ethnicities� to the people in the event and also the people welcome the delegation in the Lari.

Training session: Participative and inclusive approach. How to draft a comprehensive action plan.

Example of programs addressed to youth and created by a system of consultation between institutions and civil society.

On 14th of December 2015, the delegation participated in the session to plan to address how to work with youth and children in the centers with the trainer Helga, the trainer worked with the youth on how to involve and encourage youth in the activities and in the center, and also discussed some methods that had been implemented in the youth centers in the past.

Agardo Youth Association, working with youth

On the same day on 14th of December 2015, the delegation visited Youth association (Agardo) in Sovigliana in Employ City to discuss Youth involvement and community approach: theory, programs and some concrete examples.

The plan for meeting the youth center to exchange experience and ideas between both centers, the delegation met with the staff, trainers and volunteers in the Agardo center, plus of the Mayor of the center, the first day of the meeting starting with the welcome and introduction of the both centers, and also was detail explanation about the center partner and how they write and apply for the projects.

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On 15th of December 2015, the delegation participated in the second session of training with the trainer Helga , and it was practice

activities how to deal with youth and how to direct them in academic way to lead other volunteers, the youth from delegation participate with Helga in deep trainings and discussion to build their capacity and to understand more how to work with youth and children.

Second day in Agardo Youth Association to introduce them with activities and plan of the youth center in KRG and how the plan work

The second day of the delegation visit to go back to Agardo Association Center on 15th of December 2015, the meeting was to introduce Agardo Association with Youth center in KRG, and how new developed the plan to involve youth in the center and the methods to organize activities in the center and outside centers in the IDPs camp.

The delegation present two PowerPoint by Each of project manager Salar Ahmed and coordinator for Erbil Center Fouad Abdullah about the establishment of the youth centers and how to create safe place for youth to visit it in daily basis and the service provided freely by the center to the youth.

The delegation participated in the session with people from Pontedera, politician, Associations and activists to talk about Iraqi situation and present whole project “Youth Spring across Ethinicities� in order for people in the region to understand more about the situation in Iraq before and after ISIS war and all other crises, including flow of the IDPs toward Kurdistan region which estimated by more than 1500000 people from other Iraqi cities , also each of the member of the delegation spoke about their minorities and components and their cities.

Meeting with people from Pontedera and politician

Meeting with schools: On 16th of December 2015, the delegation dived in to two groups in order to visit secondary schools as there were two meeting in same time in two schools for that was necessary to dived delegation to cover as much as many schools in same time.

The meeting was about to tell students what we do in the youth center and also to explain for them general situation for youth in our country also to give them some of the example about the schools in Iraq and how to encourage them in the Youth Centre and transfer the activities of the youth center to the schools.

There were time of discussion and questions asked by the students in order to get more information about real situation and the situation of the IDPs girls in the camp and outside camp also local community, the student union in the schools shoed the delegation how the process of

involving youth and students work in the schools to involve youth in the decision making, also it was exchanging T-Shirts with logo of the center with schools.

Meeting with University students in UPP office The delegation meet with University students in Pisa inside Main UPP office in order to discuss youth situation and also to answer students questions and concerns about multiple issues in Iraq and Kurdistan related to the women, IDPs, refugees, students and youth.

Participation to an event organized by students networks about international situation

The delegation meet with big number of people from organizations, associations, students unions and others interested to know more about Iraq and Kurdistan region, the discussion started and lasted for more than two hours, at the beginning it was presentations from some members of the delegation about the situation in Iraq, especially Mosul city, the discussion mainly was about Ethnic and religion minorities and how they effected of ISIS attack in the region, people in Italy want to know exactly what is happening on the ground, as we heard from them, they don’t believe much media and the stories telling in the media, the delegation tried to transfer the correct information and news about what happening in Iraq and Kurdistan and the war effected people life.

Formal meeting with Pisa Municipality In the afternoon of 16th December 2015, the delegations meet with Mrs., Maria luicia from Pisa Municipal and people from women union we discussed the process of the project and the work in the Youth Centers in Kurdistan region, the discussion lasted more than 1 hour.

Pisa municipal promised to support us if we have any proposal working in schools and with the youth, then Al Mesalla ORG. for Human Resource Development have been awarded with prize form Pisa Municipal, this prize is given to individual, organizations and Association who has role to improve women issues in the world.

This year this prize awarded to Al Mesalla ORG. for its role working with local, IDPs and refugees women in KRG and for the service the organization provided to those women.

Participation to a public initiative On Friday 18th of December, 2015, the delegation participated in the public events organized by ARCI, there were different subjects discussed, one of them related to Iraq and Kurdistan region and the presentation was two parts, first; about the situation in Iraq and youth Centre and the second part was about why people in Iraq immigrate toward Europe, as there are many risks on their ways.

Evaluation and Follow-up

At the last day of the delegation trip it was meeting with each of Martina from UPP and Carla from ARCI and Piatro from Table of peace to evaluate all the activities and the trip agenda and other issues related to the delegation, was focused on the following points: 1- We all agree in that in general the trip for the delegation was successful and the activities this year was perfect, it was only few notice we could work on it to make it more better.

2- The most positive things about the trip was working directly with youth centers in Tuscany region and live with them and work to gather to find out weak and strong points and how we could make activities more effected.

3- Exchanging experiences with other organizations, Associations and individuals

4- Training sessions was great for the future we could make it better if it is practically more than theory, as it is not difficult to get those articles through internet, but the practical exercises will learn youth a lot.

5- Political and social events were important too in order to give them right message from Iraqi people and to make them understand the situation and the reality of the crises and problems directly from the delegation.