Eng 5 conference documentation by Emin Fidan

5 Looking back at our achievements - Impressions from closing conference and the project of Swedish-Turkish cooperation within the youth field.

CONFERENCE DOCUMENTATION

Looking back at our achievements - Impressions from closing conference and the project of Swedish-Turkish cooperation within the youth field

Preface The Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs and the Department of Youth Services at the Directorate for Youth and Sports in Turkey has been working together in the project Youth Policy Cooperation between Turkey and Sweden between 2008 and 2010. One aim of the project was to increase knowledge of the living conditions of young people in both countries. Another aim was to demonstrate the potential of young people and increase their participation in society. The overarching aim of the collaboration has been to facilitate for Turkey’s process to enter the European Union, as stipulated in the strategies from Sida, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency which has funded the project. The project had five components with the following themes: concepts in youth policy, knowledge of young people’s living conditions, networking for people who work with and for young people, promotion of best practices for young people on the labour market, and awareness of provided social services and rights for young people. This compendium is an outcome of the closing conference of the project held in Istanbul, Turkey on December 7–9 2009. The conference was one part of the component “networking for people who work with and for young people”. In the compendium, two journalists have summarised the project and interviewed participants on different aspects of the cooperation. One journalist has focused on the conference itself and what took place there. The other journalist has had a wider focus on the project at large, looking at the value of international cooperation, learning outcomes and the EU aspect of the project cooperation is highlighted. Also, four representatives from each country (Swedish municipalities and local youth forums as well as Turkish youth workers and politicians) are interviewed about their impressions of the entire project. In addition to this compendium, those interested can find the programme, all power point presentations presented at the conference, speeches and a small video from the conference itself at the website www.ungenc.net, which has acted as the project webpage, and at www.ungdomsstyrelsen.se. To learn more about the outcomes of the different project components in Youth Policy Cooperation between Turkey and Sweden, please refer to four other compendia, which have been developed within the framework of this cooperation. They can be downloaded at various websites (www.ungdomsstyrelsen.se, www.ungenc.net, www.ghdb.gov.tr, www.gsgp.org.tr in English and Turkish versions). The compendia are: 1. Introduction to Youth Policy – Swedish and Turkish perspectives 2. You get what you ask for – Using surveys to learn about young people 3. Possibilities and opportunities – Best practices for young people on the labour market from Turkey and Sweden 4. Strengthen the rights of young people! – Summaries from three seminars on the theme Awareness of provided social services and rights for young people within the project Youth Policy Cooperation between Turkey and Sweden.

Content From Youth as “Citizens of Tomorrow” to “Citizens of today” – Sights on the Final conference of Youth policy cooperation between Turkey and Sweden.. 3 By Gülece Şenel, journalist (gsenel@aegee-ankara.org) Outcomes of the final conference – Workshops………………………………………………… 7 To meet and learn from each other is everything…………………….……………………….. 11 By Helena Gillinger, journalist Voices from the final conference in Istanbul.....………………………………………………... 15 Hello there Thomas Sass, Nacka Hello there Anneli Taavola, Kiruna Hello there Carina Seger, Sundsvall Hello there Therese Larsson, Kristinehamn (Interviews by Idah Klint, The Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs) Hello there İlknur TAŞDEMİR, Malatya Youth Centre Hello there Fatoş OKTAY, Researcher, Turkey Hello there Görkem BAĞCI, Youth Services Centre, Ankara Hello there Tekin BİNGÖL, Member of Turkish Parliament (Interviews by Gülece Şenel, journalist and Murat Şentuna, General Directorate for Youth and Sports)

From youth as “citizens of tomorrow” to “citizens of today” – Sıghts

on the fınal conference of youth polıcy cooperatıon between Turkey and Sweden By Gülece Şenel, journalist (gsenel@aegee-ankara.org) “Adolescents, teenagers, learners, new generation, emerging adults, consumers in market, political actors, troublemakers, threats to status quo, perpetrators, conservatives, radicals, hopes for change, energy of the community, peace builders.” All terms are ascribed to one particular group in society: ‘youth.’ Young people have often had two contradictory images in their societies. First one carries a negative connotation: youth is equated to ‘being deviant’ or ‘being source of trouble.’ However, recently this image has been challenged, especially by the positive youth development movement started in 1980s; societies moved “from seeing youth as problems to be fixed […] to viewing them as assets… and to embracing young people as full partners in community life.”1 The rise of the second view turned the spotlight onto youth’s involvement in social, cultural, political and economic life. Since ‘participation’ is considered to be the key to social pluralism and “the school for democracy, the essence of democracy and the prerequisite to developing a sense of belonging and citizenship”2, the organisations such as the United Nations (UN), the Council of Europe (CoE) and the European Union (EU) have put youth participation among their priorities and have been encouraging their member states to support and develop mechanisms of youth participation. Valuing youth as agents of positive change and acknowledging the importance of youth participation in achieving a better societal order, Sweden and Turkey, two CoE member states, have been cooperating in the field of youth policy since January 2008. With the project Youth Policy Cooperation between Turkey and Sweden, the Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs and the Department of Youth Services at the Directorate for Youth and Sports in Turkey aimed to promote young people’s active participation in their societies as well as increasing knowledge about their living conditions. Between 2008 and 2009, a total of 21 events have been organised and the project ended with a final conference that took place from December 7–9, 2009 in Istanbul. Around 110 people, most of them having participated in one of the 21 events, gathered together to learn and discuss the project’s results in the final conference. The conference was designed to communicate the project outcomes with not only participants of 21 events, but also other stakeholders such as the media, policymakers and related NGOs. The sessions in the first two days (7–8 December) were intended to serve this aim. Another objective of the three daylong conference was to sparkle further project ideas and to influence participants for future cooperation. Hence, the debates on the last day (December 9) were more a beginning for new partnerships (co-actions) than the end of the youth policy cooperation between Sweden and Turkey.

Kim, J. & Sherman, R. F. (2006). Youth as important civic actors: From the margins to the center. National Civic Review, 95 (1), pp. 3-6. 2 Lauritzen, P. (2008). Eggs in a pan: Speeches, writings and reflections. Hungary: CoE.

The conference started with the speeches of Mr. Faruk Nafız Özak (the State Minister responsible for Youth and Sports, Turkey), Mr. Christer Hallerby (State Secretary, Ministry of Integration and Gender Equality, Sweden), Mr. Jan Truszczynski (Director General for DG Education and Culture in the European Commission), Mr. Ralf-René Weingärtner (Director of Youth and Sport, Council of Europe). In his speech, Mr. Özak highlighted the prominence of Turkey’s membership to the EU as well as the reforms made regarding youth and civil society within the course of the accession process. Mr. Hallerby gave information about the situation of youth and youth NGOs in Sweden and mentioned the new framework on youth policy developed by the EU during the Swedish presidency. Mr. Truszczynski (EU) and Mr. Weingärtner (CoE) underlined the EU and CoE perspectives on youth issues. The CoE’s approach ‘Nothing about youth without youth’ was very much appreciated by the participants of the conference. Following these speeches, Ms.Emmy Bornemark, Project Leader of the project from the Swedish side at the Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs, briefly introduced the project; Youth Policy Cooperation between Sweden and Turkey. She defined five areas of cooperation: 1. Concepts in youth policy, 2. Knowledge of young people’s living conditions, 3. Networking for people who work with and for young people, 4. Promotion of best practices for young people on the labour market and 5. Awareness of provided social services and rights for young people. The project outcomes in each field were addressed during the final conference. In the afternoon, Prof. Dr. Peter Waara from Uppsala University (Sweden) and Assoc. Dr. Hakan Ercan from Middle East Technical University (Turkey) took the floor to talk about youth’s involvement in labour market. Both underlined youth unemployment as a severe problem. Accordingly, since ‘youth’ is a specific period in life span during which identity formation occurs, long-term exposure to unemployment would inevitably demotivate young people and ‘culture of being unemployed’ would lead to ‘culture of being marginalized’. Four simultaneous workshops were organized under the topic of youth employment: ‘Personal Entrepreneurship’, ‘Youth Employment’, ‘Disabled Youth is a Source in Europe’, ‘Towards a More Comprehensive Society- No Barriers’. Each was based on the outcomes of previous events realized within the course of the youth policy cooperation project. Employing non-formal education methods, all workshops were aimed at drawing attention to a specific aspect of youth employment. The morning of second day was separated to the theme ‘knowledge on young people’s living conditions.’ Mr. Jonas Bjälesjö (Lund and Linnaeus University, Sweden), together with Mr. Lars Berglund (Municipality of Nacka, Sweden), Ms. Christiane Rüdiger (Municipality of Sundsvall, Sweden) and Mr. Ali Said Bedük (Kırıkkale University, Turkey) explained the survey results. The surveys were conducted with the purpose of finding out what knowledge the various municipalities and towns had about young people and what knowledge is needed. During the conference, youth centres' directors from Turkey very often stated that the surveys helped them to better understand the needs of young people, with whom they work and to increase the efficiency of youth centres for young people. “Awareness of provided social services and rights for young people” was the theme of afternoon sessions. Similar to the first day, four simultaneous workshops (‘From facts to decisions I’, ‘From facts to decisions II’, ‘Social rights and responsibilities of young people’, ‘Are youth councils necessary in a democratic society?’) were held in this respect. Prior to the workshops, Ms. Charlotta Öberg (Save the Children Youth Sweden), Ms. Dilek Kumcu (The Agenda is Child Association, Turkey), Mr. Görkem Bağcı (Youth Services Centre, Turkey) and Mr. Oskar Eriksson (The National Council of Swedish Youth Organisations), through their creative and interactive presentation, endeavoured to draw attention to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as to youth rights. They asked the participants to dream children and young people’s situation in 2020 and their own roles in achieving such a development. The phrase of Mr. Tekin Bingöl, member of the Turkish

parliament, exemplified how influential the sessions and workshops were: “I will try to bring the Convention on the Rights of the Child to the parliament’s agenda.” The last day was dedicated to reflection on future plans. Ms. Christiane Reinholz-Asolli from IJAB-Germany provided an outsider point of view by explaining the status of German youth work and the bilateral agreement on co-operation on youth policy signed with Turkey in 1994, while Mr. Mehmet Caner Demir, Delegation of the EU to Turkey, highlighted the problems in youth employment and the European Commission’s renewed framework for youth policy. In her informative speech, Ms. Aygen Aytaç, Coordinator and Lead Author of the National Human Development Report of United Nations Development Programme, gave some numerical figures regarding youth in Turkey and accentuated the power of youth, especially when opportunities are provided. She also mentioned the importance of comprehensive youth policies in benefiting from the ‘window of opportunity’ Turkey has for the upcoming 15 years. The “window of opportunitiy” is a unique one-off situation in a country when the demographic population growth rate declines, but at the same time the work force increases. Turkey could with the right measures achieve an efficient use of demographic window of opportunity if Turkey ensures possibilities and opportunities for young people, sufficient investment in their education and increase in the rate of youth participation in labour force.

In the sessions titled as “Turkish and Swedish Perspectives on Youth Policy” and “Time for a Dialogue”, the speakers talked about not only best practices examples, but also the current youth related agenda of Turkey and Sweden. Mr. Adnan Gül, Director of Youth Services Department, Turkey, briefly explained what has been done in youth centres and for youth development in the recent years. He also heralded that a comprehensive youth policy is being drafted to fulfil Turkey’s need in this respect. While Ms. Eva Theisz, Director of the International Affairs department, the Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs, gave information about the Swedish youth policy, Mr. Per Nilsson, Director General, the Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs, addressed the hidden areas of young people’s conditions and the requirement to figuring these out for reinforcing youth development. In the closure, both Mr. Nilsson and Mr. Gül expressed the project’s contribution to Turkish and Swedish youth work. They emphasized that ‘cooperation is essential for youth policy to get the whole picture of young people’ and ‘this project was only a beginning for future co-actions.’ Throughout the conference, the participants learned more about the differences Turkey and Sweden have regarding their youth policies. Youth work is a relatively new field in Turkey; hence, the cooperation between these countries gave Turkey a chance to benefit from Sweden’s experience. On the other hand, as Ms. Lotta Jarvenius Rössner and Ms. Emmy Bornemark from the Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs stated, the project was also informative and educating for Sweden. “For instance, Turkey is really good when it comes to youth employment. I think Sweden can learn a lot from that and the different ways of structuring entrepreneurship supports. Also, in Turkey, in youth centres, they have a system, where the staffs travel around to meet each other. That is one good example that we, Sweden, should learn from; because we do not always have such a good knowledge about what is happening in other parts of the country when it comes to youth issues.” said Ms. Bornemark The final conference showed that the project Youth Policy Cooperation between Turkey and Sweden has been successful not only in reaching its aims of increasing knowledge on young people’s living conditions, demonstrating the potential of young people and promoting their participation in society, but also in creating a mutual learning platform for both countries. Moreover, the project helped the participating organisations develop capacities for such international cooperations and the final conference gave the participants a chance to plant seeds for future projects. To conclude, Sweden and Turkey see youth as agents of positive change and this three year-long project should be regarded as their intention to learn from each other’s experiences and improve

further. This project is an indicator that both countries value young people not as ‘citizens of tomorrow’, but ‘citizens of today’ and it is known that countries develop only when they pay attention to their youth population’s needs, capabilities and also dreams…

Outcomes of the final conference – Workshops In December 2009 the final conference of the Swedish-Turkish cooperation project was carried out in Istanbul, Turkey. During the three day conference, eight different workshops showcased the outcomes and results within the different strands of the overall project. The Swedish municipalities were each involved in two strands, whereas all the Turkish municipalities were involved in all the strands depending on availability. 1. “Personal Entrepreneurship – own your future At this workshop we will discuss the definition of entrepreneurship. What are the differences in the basic conditions in society and what are the success factors in day-to-day work when stimulating personal entrepreneurship? Facilitators: Mr. Matthias Mellgren, Communicare, Sweden Ms. Nenne Theorin, Tensta-Spånga Municipality, Sweden-Tensta-Spånga Belediyesi, İsveç Mr. Michael Frejd, Tensta-Spånga Municipality, Sweden-Tensta-Spånga Belediyesi, İsveç This group discussed entrepreneurship in three phases, the definition and differences in entrepreneurship and success factors for stimulating entrepreneurship. The facilitators presented their definition of entrepreneurship – to find out what you want and to have the ability to act. The main similarities and differences in basic conditions in today´s society that was identified were support structures in both countries, such as Arbetsförmedlingen, ISKUR, Nyföretagarcentrum/ALMI/Vinova/Ung Företagsamhet, and Kosgeb. Both countries have high percentage of unemployment among young people, whereas differences include Sweden having a more individual based approach versus Turkey a patriarchal based family approach. Success factors for personal entrepreneurship. The group had different opinions whereas Turkish participants stressed public awareness –and importance of knowledge, to have a structured survey of needs – the individuals’ needs and will is considered, and to focus on collaboration instead of competition between different organizations, hence focusing on solutions – i.e. Creating opportunities that answers to needs. On the other hand, Swedish participants success factors pointed out other values of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial minds with the humour and prestigelessness, sense of pride from the participants, well planned methods, common and clear goals and the importance of the right person at the right place, committed staff. The facilitators own success factors were: Individual coaching and support is necessary, Create possibilities for young people to get experiences, Let the young practice in safe settings and projects to get courage to go their own way and follow their dreams, Give the young people responsibilities, Have and show confidence for the young peoples’ own resources 2. “Youth employment”” How is the situation for young people in the employment sector in Turkey and what kind of career opportunities do a young person have? Facilitators Ms. İlknur Taşdemir, Malatya Youth Centre, Turkey Mr. Ali Sait Bedük; Kırıkkale University, Turkey During the workshop Youth employment, the participants discussed the differences and similarities between the countries that had been highlighted throughout the project. One main difference was how the different societies look at young people and their contribution to the labour market. Nearly all the participants from Turkey meant that youth are not seen as a resource for society, but more as threats.

The Swedish participants stressed that although there is lots of possibilities for young people in Sweden, it is nevertheless difficult for them to enter the labour market. The participants came however to the conclusion that a broad social network is often crucial for young people in both countries when it comes to enter the labour market. 3. “Young people with disabilities are a resource in Europe” There are a large number of young people that have difficulties entering the labour market in Europe today; and this is due to different kinds of disabilities. We see young people with disabilities as a resource and this workshop will present some good examples of our work in this topic. Facilitators Mr. Berndt Jendrny, Kristinehamn Municipality, Sweden Ms. Lena Lago, Basta Yes Education, Sweden Mr. Anders Holmberg, Academy of Democracy, Sweden One part of the project component Youth and the labour market was directed to young people with disabilities and their access to work in the two countries. The workshop Young people with disabilities are a resource in Europe started off with a discussion of the concept of disability, which showed differences on how one look at this in Sweden and Turkey. In Turkey, there are regulations that say that companies must have a certain number of employees with disabilities. The continuous discussion focused in particular on the discrimination of persons with disabilities. A specific example was the question that in Sweden a teacher in a wheelchair would be able to obtain employment, something that is highly unlikely in Turkey. In Sweden there is also the possibility to plead any unequal treatment and discrimination to the Discrimination Ombudsman, an element not available in Turkey. The participants in the workshop stressed the need to shift focus, not to see disability, but the many opportunities the person has to offer. 4. “Barrier-free towards a more inclusive society ” How important is "employment" while inclusion and integration of disabled people are considered? What are the reasons that make employment of disabled young people so difficult? We want to share some good examples and experiences on how to reach a barrier-free society in both countries about the employment of disabled young people. Facilitators: Ms. Özlem Doğan, Youth Services Department, Turkey Mr. Görkem Bağcı, GSM-Youth Services Centre, Turkey In the workshop Barrier-free towards a more inclusive society, the participants highlighted the cooperation between municipalities and associations as a success factor in order to facilitate employment for young people with disabilities. This workshop also highlighted the concept of empowerment. Researcher Peter Waara said: "Many discussions start off at the structural and the community level but rarely focus on the individual. It is exactly the opposite in the case of empowerment. When you start working with individuals, with no regard to the structure, in the end this also affects the community level. Motivated individuals working together in a group will hopefully also affect the structure, both at municipal and state level. Even though no structure has been influenced, change can happen at both the individual and societal level". All participants agreed that success generates success, and also that everyone involved must have confidence in and believe in the activities carried out. Each and every individual’s potential and possibility should be in focus. Furthermore to find the balance between the needs of the individual and the organization's opportunities, and a safe environment and enough support is a necessity for success. In short, a successful organization sees and uses the potential of the individual.

5+6. “From facts to decisions” I Why is it important to know about young people’s living conditions? What do we do with that knowledge? Two Swedish municipalities and one Turkish province described the process, the results and how to use the result in future planning. Facilitators Mr. Ahmet Gürol Karayılmaz, Provincial Directorate, Zonguldak, Turkey Mr. Thomas Sass, Nacka Municipality, Sweden Ms. Carina Seger, Sundsvall Municipality, Sweden “From facts to decisions” II Facilitators - Kolaylaştırcılar: Mr. İbrahim Dikici, Provincial Directorate, Muğla, Turkey Mr. Anders Johansson, Nacka Municipality, Sweden Mr. Lars-Ove Johansson, Sundsvall Municipality, Sweden One of the main parts of the overall project was to increase knowledge of young people. All municipalities and regions that participated in this strand, conducted a survey for young people in their area. During the two workshops, From facts to decisions I + II, the participants shared their experiences, the results and outcomes of these processes. An identified success factor was good and thorough preparation before carrying out the survey. It is of importance to have a plan for how to use the results and to explain the questions in order for those that will answer the questionnaire. Another key factor for success is to involve and motivate the people, often teachers, handing out the questionnaires. The participants also considered that it is essential to inform and disseminate the survey results to everyone concerned and to the local community, so that the results will be knowledge based and thus function as a good basis for policy decisions. The municipalities in Sweden who conducted the survey felt a "questionnaire-fatigue" among schools and youth, the participants from Turkey, by contrast, had a difficulty in getting young people to take the survey seriously. But everyone involved agreed that they now had much more knowledge about young people's aspirations and living conditions in their cities and communities. They also had knowledge of the not so successful activities that exist in the youth centres and how they can overcome these shortcomings. Both workshops encouraging final words were that "if the survey is carried out properly it can really make a difference to young people!" 7. “Are youth councils necessary in a democratic society?” Since youth councils were established they have been widely discussed. When youth councils raise their voices to speak, are they then representing all young people? When the local government body has a need to collect the opinions of young people, is it then correct to only talk to the youth council? Most youth councils have also a close connection to the local official body so they might be seen as part of the official structures. In what way does that affect the youth council’s relation to other young people in society? And, finally, should the youth councils be independent? Facilitators -: Ms. Silvia Kakembo, Swedish Association of Youth Councils? Mr. Jimmy Rindhé Gerdsdorff, Youth Council, Sundsvall Municipality, Sweden The group introduced the current situation for youth councils in Sweden and which challenges they are facing, for example having to choose between being youth organizations or a system for participation. A recent report issued by the Swedish Association of Youth Councils shows that within the Swedish context young people are interested in the same political issues as adults and wish to participate in the same way as adults. The speakers also elaborated on what they see as the future for Swedish local youth councils and the belief that youth councils function best as independent youth organizations. Discussions included how municipalities can work in order to establish well functioning systems for participation and why it is so important to separate these systems for participation from the youth organizations. The participants also engaged in the form, the law and identity belonging to persons active in local youth councils and the framework surrounding them in different local contexts.

8. “Social rights and responsibilities of young people Young people have a key role to play in decisions that affect their lives on local, national and international level. A commitment to youth participation is a basic human right that lies at the heart of youth citizenship; which seeks to empower young people with their skills, knowledge and confidence to take charge of their lives so they can be active, responsible citizens. This is only possible if we have feasible youth policies. Facilitators -: Ms. Tülin Şener, Ankara University, Turkey Mr Murat Şentuna, General Directorate for Youth and Sports, Turkey During the workshop Social rights and responsibilities for young people, the key word was empowerment. The participants in the workshop highlighted the importance of working with this concept so that more young people are able to take part in society and influence their local community. The way young people are able to participate and influence the society varies in the different countries from simply expressing their views to participate in decision making at different levels and also to initiate concrete actions. A comparison of youth perspectives on youth policy in Sweden and Turkey was presented. Young people's participation in Sweden focuses on themes such as segregation, lack of participation and children's rights, whereas Turkey focuses on the importance of informal learning, a challenging social situation for the youth population and the need for a youth policy in general. In Sweden, the center of attention is more on the individual compared with Turkey, which have greater focus on the community. The workshop summed up a number of findings related to this theme: • • • • • •

The conditions for youth participation are very different in the two countries Active youth participation is a responsibility for both youth and adults The current economic crisis has an impact on youth issues at all levels Globalization can have both positive and negative effects on young people's lives and their conditions for participation in society. The technological development creates great opportunities for youth participation. Small steps can lead to big changes.

Conclusions The closing conference and the different workshops reflected the successful work of the cooperation project. All participants were very positive about their involvement and said that they had learned an enormous amount, both about the other country and the living conditions for young people living there, as well as about themselves and their own local community. The majority of participants highlighted the many benefits of participating in an international project, including new perspectives on their organization and their work, as well as inspiration for continued development of youth policies at local, regional, national and international levels.

To meet and learn from each other is everything By Helena Gillinger, journalist The future will tell us what long-term outcomes the project Youth Policy Cooperation between Sweden and Turkey will have. What is clear today is that the cooperation already has made an impact on those who has been a part of it. Personal impressions of different kinds, new ideas, initiated partnerships, professional and personal revelations, and – for the future – revised policy objectives. For Çağla Duman and Nathalie Andersson, participation in the bilateral project was of great importance – but their experiences differ a lot. Çağla Duman is 22 years old and she lives in Aydin in western Turkey, where she shares a house with some friends of the same age. She studies sociology at university and will finish her studies this summer. She has participated in the bilateral cooperation with Sweden since April 2008, when she was contacted and asked by the authorities to participate in the project. She was chosen due to her involvement in a local youth centre and also the characteristics of her studies. Nathalie Andersson is 20 years old and lives in Kiruna, in the very north of Sweden. She moved there a few years ago; because the city holds the only space gymnasium of Sweden, where she just completed her secondary studies. Now, she works sporadically in assisting disabled people, but her plan for the future is to be a social worker and work with young people within the municipality. Nathalie got the chance to participate in the youth policy exchanges with Turkey as she then was the president of the local Youth Council. She has participated in the project, since March 2009 and during that time, she has visited Turkey twice. – I was surprised that the country is so modern, Natalie says. I thought there were mostly rural areas in Turkey, but it is almost the same as in Sweden. She expresses herself in a drastic way and perhaps she did not really expect to find that Turkish people live in huts. However, her comment still says something important about the beliefs that prevail in Sweden, despite globalization and the flow of information. Also, Çağla’s response, when she is asked about the impression during the cooperation with Sweden, tells us something about prejudice. – We have very different cultures, but there is human caring in both countries, which I understood during this time, she says.

Personal experience of great importance Personal experiences are of course only one part of the whole picture, and certainly not the main purpose of the cooperation. But the essence of the exchange has in fact been meetings between people. The general consensus among the participants – whether they are politicians, officials from the municipalities, people from public institutions or involved youth – is that the personal impression and encounters with people from various backgrounds have been the most rewarding and significant factor. From these personal meetings not only new ideas, practical and theoretical knowledge, but also a deeper understanding appears as well as awareness of the need for change, organisational democracy and mutual understanding. Along the way, there have been misunderstandings due to language, shown in the evaluations held after the workshops. At times, it has been frustrating to not be fully able to make a clear point and to understand all sides of the subjects. Mostly this has been problematic during the social context of leisure time and tea breaks. Interpretation in Turkey is generally considered as first class and the importance of good interpreters cannot be underestimated, as revealed in the evaluations. To follow the lectures and the reasoning in English was sometimes difficult for some of the Swedish participants,

who were supposed to know the language well enough to participate fully in the seminars. However, sometimes it is more important to have the right person present even if that person cannot make himor herself understood in every nuance. At times neither has the cultural dimension of the cooperation always been smooth among the participants. For instance, during a meeting, the Turkish delegation reacted to some Swedish participant's clothing, which they perceived as ”holiday clothing”, and the apparent Swedish nonchalant behavior, something that the Turkish delegation thought suggested lack of interest from the Swedish side. Although the Swedish society in general has a less formal dress code than the one in Turkey this observation is not totally wrong. Although the Swedish group was full of enthusiasm, hard work and dedication, it has sometimes been clear that the Turkish participants, especially among the youth, has taken the work more seriously than their Swedish counterparts and they have also seen their personal involvement in the cooperation as an opportunity to really make a difference. This difference in attitude was reflected when Natalie Andersson and Çağla Duman was asked about what expectations they had before they went into the cooperation. ”None at all“, was Natalie Andersson's short answer, while Çağla Duman underlined the great opportunity she hoped for: “It would be a personal chance to get influence as well as a chance to change youth policy in Turkey”. – I felt it was so important, that it was a huge step towards an institutionalized youth policy in Turkey, she says. Unfortunately, she no longer believes that policy will change in the way that she hoped, when the cooperation started. Not in the near future. She thinks that she experienced so much stagnation and conservatism among politicians and policy makers during the cooperation, that she doesn´t dare to believe in a rapid change. – There is no one in Turkey who is capable of formulating youth policy today, she says. Policy makers still see the youth policy in terms of protective legislation and nothing else. But in future it may change. And of course, the cooperation has been a good thing. It is good to show how it could be. Concrete examples are good and on a personal level, my expectations were fulfilled. She says that she has learned enormously from the cooperation and that her vision has changed and has been strengthened during the process. When she finishes her studies next summer, she wants to work as a youth leader for two years to save money for conducting a masters degree abroad, maybe in Sweden. She wants to learn social politics and in the future, she would like to work politically to encourage social development in Turkey. What impressed her most in Sweden was the state's role in the struggle against unemployment, and that it is the state and not the family that has the overall responsibility. During a panel discussion at the final conference in Istanbul, Çağla Duman strongly criticized the paternalistic system in Turkey: “To improve the situation on the labour market in Turkey, we must invest in education for all, women as well. We must struggle against gender inequalities and that includes investing in child care. That is very important. We also need to break men's dominant position in our society”, she said showing all the authority she has gained during the last two years. And she received long applauses from the audience. Nathalie Andersson also has shown a lot of energy and enthusiasm during the youth policy cooperation with Turkey, but she did not have as much to gain from this type of exchange as her Turkish friend. Nathalie was very impressed by the fact that Çağla has almost completed her studies already, even though she is so young. Nathalie points out the obvious fact that young people in Turkey do not have the same opportunity to reflect and plan the future or just to contemplate as a young Swedish person might do. – No, says Çağla Duman. You have to take responsibility here, especially if you do not come from a family with a lot of money. If that is the case, you get no second chance.

EU – an important factor in the project When comparing the two countries, it is clear that Sweden is more advanced when it comes to the issue of youth policy. In Turkey, which Çağla Duman quite rightly pointed out, youth policy has so far been about having a legislation that protects young people from drugs. Now, with Turkey’s status as a candidate country for the EU membership, the cooperation between the two countries is also about to align Turkish policies to the European norm. Both Sweden and Turkey benefited from the knowledge regarding the opportunities the EU offers individuals, municipalities and institutitions. The participants have been invited to use financial and other resources in this respect. This information has been integrated naturally in the project process of the bilateral cooperation and thus, benefited participants from both countries. At the final conference in Istanbul representatives from the EU were also present. The cooperation between Turkey and Sweden was praised and Jan Truszczynski, Director General from the European Commission's Directorate- General for Education and Culture, said that a lot of Turkish young people are already involved in various EU youth programs. He called on all young people present to continue the work that already exist and are running. At the final conference, Turkey was represented at a ministerial level and the responsible minister, Mr. Faruk Nafiz Özak, underlined the important role the EU plays in Turkey. The Swedish State Secretary, Christer Hallerby, said in his turn that over 100 000 Swedish people have a Turkish background, which also facilitates and reinforces the importance of cooperation between the countries.

Added value for Sweden and Turkey Although Sweden has a more elaborated youth policy than Turkey, Turkey had several good examples to show the Swedes – not least in the labour market area, where vocational schools and apprenticeships impressed the Swedish participants. In other components of the project, as the one about the acquisition of knowledge about young people and one that dealt with rights of young people, Turkey had a lot to learn from Sweden. In the component of knowledge acquisition, Turkey implemented a survey at regional level with almost 4 600 youngsters responding, using a Swedish model. In this case, the benefit of cooperation, therefore, was very very concrete in terms of getting a first picture of the situation for young people. The first survey mainly concerned matters of leisure and study, but new surveys are planned and there will be questions about the influence of young people and their active participation in society decision making processes. Also, the Swedish municipalities that participated in this component implemented the survey and that has already led to changes in at least one of the municipalities. The possibility of individual freedom in Turkey, perhaps even more for young persons, however, is still open for further development and improvement. But perhaps this project component dealing with young people´s rights – with a kind of necessity – became part of a process of increased awareness on the importance on human rights, equality and personal freedom in Turkey. This process would then be similar to what Sweden has experienced from the mid-90s to 2010 – from “problematic” to a more resource based approach on youth. Sweden has a history of well-developed youth policies but the country also has much to learn. The political agenda has changed in recent years and so has the reality. For the municipalities it is important to streamline the work and be careful about expenses. Participating in bilateral collaborations like this provides an opportunity to benefit from resources and to grasp the opportunity for improvements. At a national meeting with the involved Swedish municipalities, the benefits of having the municipal activities externally highlighted were regarded as an added value. Questions and concerns from the Turkish part gave perspectives on the activities and evoked reflection. Something reflected during the national meeting was whether Sweden could learn something from the Turkish attitude towards young people. Are we providing too much help to young people and thus taking away their own creativitiy and initiative, and self-confidence? The international cooperation also gave the Swedish municipalities the opportunity to discuss youth issues on the political agenda at local level with higher status, thanks to the international dimension of the project. The youth policy exchange between Sweden and Turkey has largely been characterized by meetings, by interpersonal meetings at the local, national and international level. There have been meetings between politicians and local officials, among young people and adults, between academics and youth

workers and between people of different political affiliations. Meetings have been the most important and the most memorable part of the cooperation. All involved seems to agree to this. Çağla Duman learnt that not only the Turks – but also the Swedes – are warm, friendly people. Nathalie Andersson now learnt that Turkey is not only rural, but also urban, with modern cities with a diversified nightlife, cafés and restaurants, and major shopping malls. Several collaborations around various projects have been launched, and participants from both countries share their reflections and experiences with each other using social media on the internet. The die is cast, and the future may tell us what obstacles and opportunities the outcomes of the project will face...

Voices from the final conference in Istanbul... Hello there Thomas Sass, Nacka! What has been positive about the project? – It has been both very useful and fun! I believe that the project cooperation has added value both for Nacka municipality as well as for us who participated, but we've also had great fun in the meantime. Although many things differ in Sweden and Turkey, I think we have much to learn from each other. – The youth centres we visited during the project often had very simple premises, but there were many young people there and especially many young girls. In many local meeting points in Sweden, it is often the guys who dominate. One explanation why there were so many girls in the youth centres in Turkey was that since the state is running these centres as “those that you can rely on” as parents, that they are considered to be safe places they can send their daughters to. It is an interesting aspect when compared to Sweden where “youth centre” in some groups may have a stigma and where some parents in Sweden do not want their youngsters to go to the local meeting place or youth centre.

Is it something that has been less positive about the project? – At the beginning of the project, there were some problems with the interpretation at times, it is actually rather difficult to work or attend a workshop if you do not understand each other. Some meetings "drifted away", I mean, it wasn’t run as planned and I feel the meetings lost focus at times. But I think this is part of cultural differences between us, in Sweden we often follow the planned program, while the Turks have a tendency not to do so fully. This may create frustration on both sides. – I also know that "our" young people from Sweden were a bit disappointed as there was quite a large age difference between them and young people from Turkey who were older and often went to university. Maybe the organisers could have planned from the beginning a youth exchange with more adolescents the same age. Maybe also we could have organised separate workshops for young people. – However, these things have really been on the margin, the overall impression of the project is very positive.

What have you learned in your work with the various project components? – We took part in the first project component that focused on youth policy concepts. I think it was a very necessary work that has a value in its own; we must have the opportunity to discuss what we really mean to understand each other's views and starting points. This has helped us better understand the Turkish delegations during the project. – We also prepared and carried out a survey in Nacka during the project component ”better understanding of the young”. It was a very instructive process in which we received great support from the Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs and the researcher associated with this part of the project. We were forced to look at our activities and try to develop a more cross-sectoral youth policy work in our municipality. This led us to clarify for ourselves what we do for young people in our municipality. We conducted focus group interviews and test pilot surveys in preparation of the survey.

A success factor for our work was to chair the Leisure Committee with the project team, so we had a direct link and feedback with the local politicians. – The entire project process approach has been useful for us. The method to enter into contracts and undertake to submit reports on what we've continuously achieved helped a lot, and the project thus got a serious approach. We therefore had a mandate and the time to work on the project at local level. Another important aspect of the mandate is that we got a decision from the local Leisure Committee that we would participate in the project. This decision facilitated the work on the project as it had legitimacy from the politicians. – But maybe we didn’t understand enough the magnitude of the project when we started. In retrospect it feels as if the project grew and widened with time, but it may just be my picture. If we would redo or continue the project, I think that it would need more preparation at the initial stage.

Are you planning any future projects with partners from Turkey? – We've got some ideas and good contacts for the future. But first we need to summarize this work and digest this project. In a future project, it is important that we put attention to the English language and to get the interpretation working. I also think it is important that we maintain contacts with our new partners within Sweden that we have met through this project. International collaboration is useful when developing your own working methods, but we can also get lots of valuable input when cooperating with other municipalities in Sweden to develop our own work.

What would you say to a civil servant or politician in a municipality who are hesitant to participate in international projects? – You get so much back! International work is a development that the own municipality benefits from. We, who have been involved in this project, have received both training and personal development, while the local municipality has received knowledge of new methods, which in turn developed the work. I really hope that employers see it as part of the municipality's development, too. Thomas Sass is Programme officer for leisure and youth in Nacka municipality

Hello there Anneli Taavola, Kiruna! What are your experiences of the cooperation project with Turkey? – The project has given us a lot, especially when we had the opportunity to discuss the different parts of the project with our partners in Turkey. It is through meetings when new questions are raised that we can identify similarities and differences between countries and how we work with young people. – We have gained an increased knowledge of Turkey as a country and the cultural aspects of our countries that differ. For example, when people in Turkey say family that means the extended family/relatives in a Swedish context and I feel that Turkey is more committed to quality of life than Sweden. You get a new perspective on your own life and how we live in Sweden. For example, we unhesitatingly put our elderly relatives in homes when perhaps we could have taken more time to take care of them ourselves.

What have you missed in the project? – We, from Kiruna, feel it was a pity that we did not have the time or opportunity to show our city and municipality. There are some prejudices that polar bears are walking in the streets and so on, and the only thing that really can remove this image is of course to visit us. – Kiruna differs so much from large parts of Sweden and it would have been interesting to show Kiruna for the Turks. We also have some similarities to parts of Turkey; because we both have a large minority population. It was great to hear that our Turkish partners were aware of the Ice Hotel, it shows how strong the brand is and that made us proud.

What have you learned from your participation in the various project components? – When we discussed rights and responsibilities issues, this was really an eye opener on what different conditions youngsters live under in the two countries. I felt that the young people from Kiruna, who participated, were more humble in their situation at home and appreciate Sweden in a very different way now. In Sweden, young people can actually make contact with politicians and make their opinions heard, which really is not an evident matter for the young Turks. – Through the project component dealing with labour market for young people, we got concrete proposals on how to think in terms of disabled people. To be more sensitive towards the persons needs, if you are not comfortable working with people, maybe you feel more secure if you work with animals instead. It may sound like an evident matter; but I do not think that this is always kept in mind in Sweden. – We learned more about the situation of young disabled people in Turkey and once again we got the feeling that we should be more grateful for what we have in Sweden. It is often said that there are many people who “fall in between” in the Swedish system, but in comparison with Turkey, we still have a social net which captures many when it really is needed.

How do you continue your work now when the project ends? – We are planning a youth exchange with a province of Turkey and Kiruna, a project that would not have happened unless we had met through this cooperation. There has been a lot of interest from our Turkish colleagues to continue to cooperate and we are positive about this.

â&#x20AC;&#x201C; We will also carry out an internal evaluation of our participation in this project and we plan to disseminate the experiences gained and our knowledge with the help of our politicians and in schools. Anneli Taavola is a youth worker in Kiruna municipality

Hello there Carina Seger, Sundsvall! What has been positive about the project? – To participate and cooperate with people from another culture, and also with people from other Swedish municipalities, focusing on common issues. During the project, we have learned a lot from each other and we also had the opportunity to contribute with our skills on what we know and do. The project has also given us the tools to continue our work with youth issues in our local municipality.

What has been less positive about the project? – Language barriers. It has been difficult to build relationships to continue exchanges with Turkey as there are difficulties in communicating in English. Interpretation was needed in most situations, which complicates things.

Similarities/differences between Swedish and Turkish youth policy? – Sweden has a more comprehensive system to work with youth issues. We are further advanced in this sense. In Turkey, they probably would like to develop this in the same direction, but it is difficult due to a more hierarchical structure in society.

How do you view the intercultural learning? Has this been enhanced through this collaboration? – I think so. We have learned more about how things work in Turkey and why it works in a certain way. Hopefully, also the Turkish participants have learned something from us that they can take home for further use.

What have you learned in your work to gain greater knowledge of young people in your municipality? – In practical terms, we have learned a lot about how to design a questionnaire with relevant and thoughtful questions that allow for answers from which you can get useful information. Also, the importance of including questions that are not directed or controlled in any way. The difference between us and the Turks in this work was that they wanted answers to more detailed questions and we asked more general questions.

How have you documented/spread your work on this project? – Young people that have responded to the survey, the Leisure Committee, the local crime prevention council in our neighborhood, the different youth directors in the youth department and the media have taken note of how we worked on the project, the results of the survey and how we intend to work further with the result.

How have you used the project's website? – Hardly at all. We were supposed to upload information about the progress of our work at home, but it was so difficult that we sent the material to the Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs, who uploaded the information on the web page.

How will experiences gained from the project influence your local work in the future? – We will continue to work on the survey results we got and make changes of identified “insecure parts” of the residential area. To keep the dialogue with young people alive, the surveys should be repeated. It would also be interesting if we could plan a youth exchange between youth from our youth centre and a youth club in Turkey; but as previously mentioned, language barrier is an obstacle.

What would you say to a civil servant or politician who hesitates about the benefits of international projects? – Do not hesitate! It gives so much back! Carina Seger works in the youth department of the Culture and Leisure administration in Sundsvall

Hello there Therese Larsson, Kristinehamn! What do you think has been positive about the project? – It's been such a good mix of participants, youth representatives, civil servants, politicians and researchers. And it has been so inspiring! You get the energy to continue and develop your own work at home. I think that all participants, young and old, have had a great opportunity to participate in the project and everyone have been taken seriously in the project.

Were there differences between your work and the Turkish youngsters work? – They are so incredibly engaged! I do not mean that we, Swedish adolescents, are not engaged, but we've worked a long time with youth empowerment issues and maybe do not need to fight as hard. I got the feeling that we sometimes think that there is “someone else” to do things for us, while the young Turks may have very little for free; and they are really driven, well-prepared and educated.

What has been less positive about the project? – As the different municipalities have been involved in the different parts of the project, it has been difficult to keep up and follow the process sometimes. It was also difficult to get an overview of what the others did.

How do you spread the work on the project in Kristinehamn? – Our local press has been very interested and wrote articles about the project. Now, we plan to inform our politicians, once that the project is completed.

Are you planning any new partnerships with Turkey in the future? – We are acting as hosting and sending organisation within European Voluntary Service (EVS) and where we will try to involve Turkey in the future. I think there are lots of other ideas in the pipeline, there is great interest in any case; but nothing is concrete at this time.

What would you say to someone who is hesitant to participate in international projects? – Do it! Do not hesitate, it gives so much; intercultural exchange, broadening horizons and the ability to reflect upon your own life and work. Therese Larsson is active within Kristinehamns Youth Forum

Hello there İlknur TAŞDEMİR, Malatya! Could you please share your positive experiences and thoughts about the project? Through the project, I had the opportunity to meet and get to know Swedish young people. Also I think that going to Sweden and seeing their lives close-up for a short time improved my perspective. In my observations and exchanges with all young people participating in this project from Turkey, I got the impression that they had more self-confidence, had developed a new perspective on Europe and its people, and had been positively affected in their creativity with regard to ideas and projects. I also think that the compendia on activity reports prepared for the final conference were very beneficial.

What aspects of the project were missing or needed improvement in your opinion? In view of project objectives, the activities were well-planned (in both Turkey and Sweden). However, I think the time allocated to the activity of sharing best examples of Youth Employment was inadequate. (The biggest factor for this was the abundance of unnecessary comments and inefficient use of the available time). Since in this process the Swedish participants did not include any public sector representatives on Employment, I could not get much information on the state’s approach to the matter. In general, it was nice that the NGOs shared their works and best practices, but still there were some question marks for me at some points.

What have you learned and how are you planning to use your newly acquired knowledge? In the project, I took part in the activities where we defined the concepts in the area of youth and shared best examples in youth employment. During my participation in the activities in Sweden and Turkey, I learned about the Swedish youth, and to a lesser extent their cultures and values, as well as the concepts related to youth, the youth structure of the country, the employment policies, what young people go through during transition from school to working life, and finally the best practices of nongovernmental organizations working in this area. As the Malatya Youth Centre, we became partner to the Swedish Communicare’s project. During this process, I conveyed what I learned about Sweden and its structure to our young people. I also think that the people I met from Swedish NGOs are likely to prove beneficial as future project partners.

Do you have any ideas on future project partnerships? Our Youth Centre became a partner to the project prepared by the Swedish Communicare organization, and the project has been accepted by the Swedish National Agency to carry out a youth democracy project within Youth in Action. On 25-30 April 2010, a team of 24 young people will come to our province from Sweden to discuss democratic living conditions. In September, young people from our Youth Centre will go to Sweden. In future projects, Sweden will be invited as partner and we will endeavour to take part in their future projects. İlknur TAŞDEMİR is a youth worker in Malatya Youth Centre

Hello there Fatos OKTAY, Ankara! Could you please share your positive experiences and thoughts about the project? Although general information on the project was given during the conference, I would like to share my opinions on the Final conference, in which I participated, instead of the whole project process. I think that the conference contributed in enabling participants to look at youth policies from different angles. A strong foundation has been laid for high-level cooperation with Sweden. In addition, with the participation of representatives from the Council of Europe and Germany, the ongoing cooperation with Germany and the Council of Europe was raised to a higher dimension. That a survey on knowledge about young peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s living conditions was conducted under the project was important in terms of reinforcing the approach of drawing a roadmap in the light of the data obtained in surveys/ researches.

What aspects of the project were missing or needed improvement in your opinion? Again, I would like to answer this question within the context of the Final conference. Events of this type no doubt contribute to the ability of politicians and bureaucrats to regard youth policies from different angles, and also in raising awareness on the subject. In terms of progressing faster towards a holistic youth policy, it would have been better if more representatives from different political parties and especially from the ruling party Turkey could have been persuaded to participate in the conference. It is not really satisfying when politicians/decision-makers only show up at the opening ceremony of various events with all too familiar statements.

What have you learned and how are you planning to use your newly acquired knowledge? Again, I would like to answer this question within the context of the Final conference. Events of this type no doubt contribute to the ability of politicians and bureaucrats to regard youth policies from different angles, and also in raising awareness on the subject. In terms of progressing faster towards a holistic youth policy, it would have been better if more representatives from different political parties and especially from the ruling party in Turkey could have been persuaded to participate in the conference. It is not really satisfying when politicians/decision-makers only show up at the opening ceremony of various events with all too familiar statements.

Do you have any ideas on future project partnerships? Not yet.

Fatos OKTAY is a researcher.

Hello there Görkem BAĞCI, Ankara! Could you please share your positive experiences and thoughts about the project? First of all, seeing good examples in the area of youth policy and coming together with NGOs of a country, Sweden, where different policies are in place is very important in terms of affecting a mutual improvement in visions. Exploring different cooperation areas is very important for improving the youth policies of both Turkey and Sweden. Seeing different examples of practice will help NGOs to explore their own realities and produce different activities in the light of these realities. In my opinion, the most important outcome of the Cooperation project is the discovery of new possible partnership areas which will enable NGOs to develop their own visions by mutually sharing their experiences.

What have you learned and how are you planning to use your newly acquired knowledge? In the organization where I work, we have started to produce new projects with organizations which I have met via this project. I think we have started a good partnership process with organizations in Sweden. Furthermore, by sharing with my organization the knowledge I have acquired during the visits to Sweden, I am able to include these new ideas and these newly acquainted organizations in our new projects.

Do you have any ideas on future project partnerships? We have developed strong ties with the Swedish National Youth Council in particular. We have already started to bring many projects to life together. Görkem BAĞCI works as a youth worker in the GSM-Youth Services Centre, Turkey

Hello there Tekin BİNGÖL, Member of Turkish Parliament Could you please share your positive experiences and thoughts about the project? The cooperation between Turkey and Sweden has been very influential for youths of two countries in getting closer and getting to know each other. The project’s long duration and implementation in both countries also helped the participants to learn more about their own countries. Through this project, the participating young people that come from different regions of Turkey, had the opportunity to draw attention to youth related issues in their regions. The small group discussions, followed by a discussion within in a bigger group during the sessions, enriched the project content. Moreover, the inclusive methods such as open space technologyused within the course of the project differentiated the project from other youth projects.

What aspects of the project were missing or needed improvement in your opinion? I have not noticed any severe lack in the project. A greater participation of parliament members would have been good; but this was due to a lack of attendance by the invited parliament members, not from the organisers.

What have you learned and how are you planning to use your newly acquired knowledge? I plan to communicate the project outcomes and the methods used during different sessions with our party’s youth branch and recommend them to utilise these in their own projects. Moreover, I think that a greater number of young people should take part in such projects from now on.

Do you have any ideas on future project partnerships? I believe that such international projects are very beneficial and should increase in number. Therefore, as a politician, I would like to express my support to youth related projects and highlight the necessity of participating in such cooperations.

What are you recommendations to politicians in the field of youth? As a politician, I am aware of youth’s problems both in Turkey and in the world and youth should be supported in every aspect. Opportunities that will help young people to develop competences and get educated, to learn more about both their own and other cultures should be provided. The necessary work should be done in this respect. Tekin BİNGÖL is a member of the Turkish parliament for the Republican Peoples Party (CHP).

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