P.A.C.E. - Peace and Conflict Education is a regional project implemented by Youth for Peace in cooperation with the Balkans Let's Get Up! Organisation from Serbia and Udehtim i Lire from Albania. The implementation of the project is supported by the Regional Youth Cooperation Office - RYCO and the European Union.

Objectives of the project:

  1. To build capacities of youth workers and CSOs in the field of peace building and reconciliation with emphasis on capacities to foster effective implementation of peace education contents and values
  2. To create favourable environment where youth from the three parties can gather and go through transformative experience of dialogue and understanding “other side”

The project will be implemented over a period of 7 months in which two trainings for trainers in the field of peace education will be organized in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as youth exchange in Albania. In addition, one of the outputs of the project, will be creation of a peace education manual for trainers with a special focus on the Western Balkan.

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From 10th to 15th August 2021, Krujë (Albania) was a host of youth exchange within the P.A.C.E. - Peace and Conflict Education project. The youth exchange brought together 19 participants aged 18 to 25 from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. The exchange was held at the Panorama Hotel and the organizer of the exchange was our partner organization Udhetim i Lire from Durres. During the 5 days of the exchange, participants had the opportunity to talk and learn about topics from the area of peace education. Some of the topics discussed were identity, prejudices, and stereotypes in the context of the Balkans, conflict management and resolution, confidence-building and reconciliation, gender and peace-building, the situation in the Western Balkans.

In addition to workshops, participants had the opportunity to visit Durres, tour the city with a local guide, spend time in the Youth Center where the premises of Udhetim i Lire are located, as well as be guests in the municipality of Durres, meet the mayor of Durres and Director of Youth, Culture, Religion and Sports Department within this municipality. During the day spent in Durres, participants also were creating messages related to Youth Day, which is celebrated on the 12th of August all over the world. Besides the regular daily program, participants attended evening sessions where they discussed the role of young people in promoting peace, presented their customs, traditions, and culture they come from, and made gifts that they later handed to each other.

P.A.C.E. - Peace and Conflict Education is a project implemented by Youth for Peace (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Udhetim i Lire (Albania) and Balkans Let's Get Up! (Serbia) with the support of the Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO) and the European Union.

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In the period from July 23rd to 28th, 2021, the second training for facilitators within the P.A.C.E. - Peace and Conflict Education project was held in Sarajevo. The training gathered 15 young facilitators from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia.

During the training, participants had the opportunity to learn and exchange experiences on topics in the field of peace education, but also to get acquainted with the methods, tools, and facilitation techniques that are most suitable for peace education. The first two days of the training were dedicated to getting acquainted with the field of peace education as well as what types of peace education exist. Some of the topics participants discussed with the facilitators during the 5 days were identity, prejudices, and stereotypes with a focus on the Balkans and beyond, construction and deconstruction of narratives, conflict analysis and transformation, and the use of dialogue as a way to resolve conflicts.

In addition to thematically oriented workshops, participants also discussed what facilitation means, what their style of facilitation is, as well as how to create and facilitate workshops in a team. During the last two days of the training, participants worked in teams on creating their own workshops, which they then had the opportunity to implement and get feedback from other participants and training facilitators. The training ended with an evaluation session, a discussion about further possible engagement in the project, and a reflection on what was happening in the past few days.

Youth for Peace in cooperation with the Balkans, let's get up! and Udhetim i Lire, and with the support of the Regional Youth Cooperation Office - RYCO and the European Union, invites you to participate in youth exchange within the P.A.C.E. - Peace and Conflict Education project.

If you are a young person aged 18 to 25 coming from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina or Serbia, if you want to meet and socialize with young people who come from the region and if you want to talk about topics that connect us, but also divide us in the Balkans then the Regional Youth Exchange is the right place for you!

The exchange will be held from August 10th to August 15th, 2021, in Durres, Albania. The number of places is limited and a total of 21 participants will be selected for the exchange, 7 from Albania, 7 from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and 7 from Serbia. All costs of transportation, accommodation, food and materials for work are covered by the organizers.
Hurry up and send your application by July 25th, 2021, at 23:59 via the application: https://forms.gle/nWcZnxLP9TBFu5519

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During the period from June 18th to 23rd, 2021, Belgrade hosted the first training for facilitators within the P.A.C.E. - Peace and Conflict Education project. The training brought together 15 young facilitators and trainers from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. During the training, participants had the opportunity to learn and exchange experiences on topics in the field of peace education, but also to get acquainted with the methods, tools, and facilitation techniques that are most suitable for peace education. Through 5 days of training, participants together with facilitators through interactive exercises and through a participant-oriented approach discussed the topic of identity, stereotypes, and prejudices in the Balkans, construction and deconstruction of narratives, analysis, and transformation of conflict, and use of dialogue as a way to resolve conflicts and facilitate communication between people.

In addition to thematically oriented workshops, participants also had the opportunity to learn about what facilitation means, what their facilitation style is, as well as how to create and facilitate workshops in a team. During the last two days of the training, the participants worked in teams on creating their own workshops, which they then had the opportunity to implement and get feedback from other participants and training facilitators. The training ended with an evaluation session, a discussion about further possible engagement in the project, and a certificate award ceremony that the participants handed out to each other with messages about what they could learn from each other during the training.

Below are some of the impressions that the participants shared with us during the evaluation process:
„I met other participants from the region and I learned from their experience and their good practice. A great opportunity for networking between young people that work in the field of peace and conflict education.“
„It is important that we understand each other. Sometimes is not comfortable to 'wear somebody's shoes' but we have to in order to understand and feel each other identity, habits, pain, joy, tradition.. and that is what is gonna help us get close to each other. We need each other and we have to live together.“
„I am at my Master degree in peace studies and so that’s why it is challenging for facilitators to tell me something I didn’t know before. However, I still heard something new and something different and learned new approaches on the “old” topics. I am very satisfied.“

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Youth for Peace in cooperation with Balkans Let's Get Up! and Udhetim i Lire and with the support of the Regional Youth Cooperation Office - RYCO and the European Union invite you to participate in the project P.A.C.E. - Peace and Conflict Education. Participants from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia have the opportunity to be part of regional training for facilitators in the field of peace education. The training will be held in Sarajevo, from July 23rd to 28th, 2021.

After the training, participants will have the opportunity to further engage in the project and the opportunity to cooperate with partner organizations.

The number of places is limited and a total of 15 participants will be selected for the training, 5 from Albania, 5 from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and 5 from Serbia. All costs of transportation, accommodation, food, and materials for work are covered by the organizers.
Applications can be sent no later than July 5th, 2021 to 23:59 via the application form.PACE 2 16 9

Youth for Peace in cooperation with Balkans Let’s Get Up! Organization and Udhetim i Lire - Liberi di Viaggare, and with the support of the Regional Youth Cooperation Office - RYCO and the European Union invite you to participate in the project P.A.C.E - Peace and Conflict Education. Participants from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia have the opportunity to be part of regional training for facilitators in the field of peace education. The training will be held in Serbia, from June 18 to 23, 2021. 

The activities will be led by facilitators with years of experience in the field of peace education. After the training, participants will have the opportunity to further engage in the project and cooperate with partner organizations. The project aims to educate participants on the topics of peace education and create and improve skills to facilitate peace education programs.

The number of places is limited and a total of 15 participants will be selected for the training, 5 from Albania, 5 from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and 5 from Serbia. All costs of transportation, accommodation, food, and materials for work are covered by the organizers. Applications can be sent no later than June 3rd, 2021 to 23:59 via the form.

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Youth for Peace in cooperation with the Balkans Let's Get Up! Organisation from Serbia and Udhetim i Lire from Albania will implement the project "P.A.C.E. - Peace and Conflict Education" in the following 7 months. The project is supported by the Regional Youth Cooperation Office - RYCO and the European Union.

The kick-off meeting of this project was held on March 25, 2021, via the Zoom platform. The meeting was attended by representatives of all three organizations. During the meeting, the representatives of the organizations got acquainted in more detail with the project and what will be realized during the implementation. Given that the epidemiological situation is still unfavorable and the measures in force in Albania, BiH, and Serbia do not permit gatherings, the organizers decided to start field activities in June, if the situation allows.

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In the meantime, the partners will work on creating a program that can be offered to participants in an online format, if the situation with the coronavirus remains unfavorable and gatherings and travel are prohibited. The partners believe that the in-person meeting among the participants is of great, if not crucial importance in order to fully realize the goals of the project, so they will do everything in their power to hold the in-person meetings, respecting all measures, but above all thinking about the health of both - participants and staff involved in the implementation of activities.

In the next two months, the partners will work on the preparation of upcoming activities, creating two possible scenarios, but will also closely monitor the situation with the coronavirus in the region and implement activities accordingly.
More information coming soon on the website and social media of the project partners.