ICA Ukraine ‘Open Youth Forum’ launches a wave of good changes

Ukraine Youth ForumHere is what happened at the Youth Forum «Open Youth Forum 2016″. This event took place for the first time, so the organizers, participants and guests of the Forum actually have something to share, but their smiles say more!

It was very important for organizers to choose really motivated participants for the Forum. Because there were more than 240 young people who were registered and most of them wanted to change something in better way so firstly we looked on their motivation list. So we choose 70 best of the best young people who really want to became better than yesterday.

The main purpose of «Open Youth Forum 2016″ was and is – youth leadership development and new projects in 5 areas: social assistance, education, media, ecology and culture. Youth Forum lasted three days, from 4 to 6 July, during which time everyone tried to take her up to change everything around him better.

The first day of the Forum was focused on familiarity and understanding of himself. Ukrainian and American organizers held a conference that resembled a conversation over tea, as they tried to break down any barriers between the organizers and participants. Everyone was free to ask questions in one company.

On this day, participants had the opportunity to meet extensively in class Eugene Fyedyechkin, mountain guide and coach for team building. Through various exercises and rallied young people learned more about each other.

The participants visited training ” Leader and formation goals ” of an experienced psychologist Daniela Puertas. As the leader – a person who encourages and motivates the team to act implementing the common purpose and goal setting requires specific skills and knowledge, then training the participants looked for sources of motivation every direction analyzed the objectives and priority for implementation.

Richard Fursman (Minnesota, USA), who teaches at the University of St. Thomas themes of leadership and organizational development, is co-founder of GSG Global Synergy Group, and continue for 6 years he worked as city manager (City Manager) city of Maplewood, Minnesota, held an interactive training “Values leader.” Richard told the participants of the Forum of the four leadership principles that he understood throughout their lives, based on the teachings of Harry Jensen Kremer.

The first day visits were evening guests in 5 areas: social assistance, education, media, ecology and culture. Each team came competent in their topics, people who were also mentors of new projects. In the evening conversations mentors and participants better acquainted with each other, shared their experience in their field and started to look for common goals for new projects. In particular, our guests are: Valentina Glebova, Nadija Kopanytsya, Christina Yablonska, Olena Lukina, and Olga Filippova.

The result of the first day was that the participants dealt a more learned about leadership and its values. Under the influence of productive training and saturated relevant information in the evening the youth tried to generate ideas for their own projects.

Also participants of «Open Youth Forum 2016″ did not pass entertaining part of the day, because the Youth Forum visited Lviv RockOns group, which gave all new energy and mood.

On the second day of the Forum, participants turned their hand at learning teamwork and more communicate between each other. Young people visited the event ” We are different, we are the same ” by Irina Fursman, ToP-certified facilitator, founder of ICA-Ukraine. When participants destroyed together personal and cultural barriers and become more united and friendly.

Also participants attended the training “Team, roles in the team” from the facilitator, trainer development – Karla Hill-Donisch, owner of “Hill & Company”. At the training, participants learned correctly allocate role in the team that everyone was “in place” to feel all the thrill and enjoyment of his work – because then the project will certainly be successful.

Relay of teambulding after Karla intercepted Nadija Kopanytsya, director of advertising agency “S Promo”, a specialist in marketing and management, professional designer-decorator. Nadija will hold interactive sessions ” Team work, facilitative leadership ” in which participants were able to create small projects and try themselves as organizers, as teenagers and young people learned to allocate responsibilities in the team.

Also, after a hard and effective work of the participants had a party where they all hang down to the full and enjoy communication with each other.

As a result, the second day of the youth learned how to properly allocate responsibilities in the team, because every role is important.

The third day participants became crucial, because on this day they were creating projects by using professional facilitators. In general facilitation – is such a method of collective problem solving. Through facilitation is the ability to maximize the potential of each group member and facilitator not exercise any influence on the decision of the group. The entire responsibility for decisions also are members of the Forum. As a result, young people each of 5 areas created new projects that will implement after the Youth Forum. Participants confirmed that it is thanks to this format of communication and work as facilitation, they feel that they are a member can hear and speak and act! It’s important to allow young people to act!

“Results were presented 5 projects in various fields: education, culture, social services, media, ecology. The team that represented the direction of” Education “, offered educational project aims to” teach young people to learn. “The team” culture “within the next 356 days will know yourself and culture of different countries through their photo project – the online resource where members see daily photos of this team. The team “Social assistance” wants to create a one-week camp for orphans and disabled children to help them adapt to this world. The team “Media” came up and will implement an online platform for career counseling for youth, which will help the students of schools and school leavers decide what they would like to do in life. Team “Ecology” is planning to implement the project “Eco-reality” – festival of purity, which can not only gain knowledge on environmental issues, but also to apply them in practice. ” – Writes about Youth Forum magazine “I’m a student.”

At the end of the third day of the Forum and presented the youth created projects.

On the official closing was said a lot of words from the organizers and participants, but the essence of the words is: “You have certainly hear about us, because we – young people who want to change society and the world for the better!”

Who if not us? When if not now?

The organizers are grateful to everyone for their support and faith in us. Organizers team want to thanks a lot to all of you who helped us with the Forum: organizers GSG (Global Synergy Group) and Young Leaders of Ukraine, our sponsors Rotary International, Ukrainian Galician Foundation, Big Idea, Business Community Club, ICA-Ukraine and Yarych. Thank you all!

According to what we once believed in himself and the people believed in us – now we can believe in a new youth who is ready to change the world for the better, because now we have more!