|
|
| Line 102: |
Line 102: |
| Youth Essay Competitions: To raise awareness about issues that will impact the future of Cypriot youth, and to develop critical thinking and writing skills, specific theme-oriented essay competitions will be organized. The Youth Center and the Y2P Project, both of which have experience in organizing grassroots educational and cultural activities for youth, will take the lead. | | Youth Essay Competitions: To raise awareness about issues that will impact the future of Cypriot youth, and to develop critical thinking and writing skills, specific theme-oriented essay competitions will be organized. The Youth Center and the Y2P Project, both of which have experience in organizing grassroots educational and cultural activities for youth, will take the lead. |
| Public Forums, Group Discussions and Promoting Media Literacy: Open forums and presentations will be organized in locations throughout the country on current and “hot issues” with the purpose of increasing public awareness, facilitating structured citizen dialogue and promoting media literacy. Citizens will also be given opportunities to participate in conflict resolution training programs, facilitated by a core group of senior trainers, through these public forums. | | Public Forums, Group Discussions and Promoting Media Literacy: Open forums and presentations will be organized in locations throughout the country on current and “hot issues” with the purpose of increasing public awareness, facilitating structured citizen dialogue and promoting media literacy. Citizens will also be given opportunities to participate in conflict resolution training programs, facilitated by a core group of senior trainers, through these public forums. |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| ==Media Literacy== | | ==Media Literacy== |
| Line 119: |
Line 117: |
| * [[Series of trainings to raise awareness on Media Literacy]] | | * [[Series of trainings to raise awareness on Media Literacy]] |
|
| |
|
| ==Pillar One: Media Literacy== | | ==Pillars== |
| ===JUSTIFICATION===
| | #[[MEDIA LITERACY]] |
| | | #[[NORTH-SOUTH ECONOMIC COOPERATION]] |
| ===Media literacy Training of Trainers, Nicosia and Limassol===
| | #[[IMPROVING THE CAPACITY OF CYPRIOT NGOS TO PLAN AND MANAGE BICOMMUNAL PROGRAMS]] |
| Understanding the media, and being able to comprehend how the media functions is a vital tool in today’s lives. The excessive use of the internet, new technologies, the ability of news media outlets to utilize those news technologies and the ability we are given to report news from all around the world in such a fas pace, all add up to the intended or un intended complexities introduced between the news and their recipients.
| |
| <gallery perrow="4">
| |
| file: HR_Classic_15.jpg
| |
| file:HR_Classic_12.jpg
| |
| file:HR_Limasso04.jpg
| |
| file:HR_Limasso03.jpg
| |
| </gallery>
| |
| | |
| | |
| Training the pool of trainers has just been the beginning of this project. The idea is to communicate this knowledge to all walks of life and engage the citizens in a different way of interacting with the media and news-media outlets. The public becomes not apathetic recipient of news, but an inquisitive citizen who asks and ponders and wonders on what is communicated to him/her instead of taking everything reported as a source of truth.
| |
| Around 10 trainings have been organized by the trainers; Characteristically:
| |
| ===The trainers train the young minds on Media Literacy - Grammar School Training - Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot Students creating their own newspapers===
| |
| <gallery perrow="4">
| |
| file: HR_GrammarSc_03.JPG
| |
| file: HR_GrammarSc_12.JPG
| |
| file:MediaLitNewsPaper_01.jpg
| |
| file:MediaLitNewsPaper_02.jpg
| |
| </gallery>
| |
| | |
| ==PILLAR TWO: NORTH-SOUTH ECONOMIC COOPERATION==
| |
| ===JUSTIFICATION===
| |
| A study by Robert Nathan Associates, a U.S. consulting firm, identified four factors that will “profoundly influence the institutional framework for Cyprus’ post-settlement economy: EU accession, the Annan Plan structures, financial assistance from the international donor community, and the ‘peace dividend’.”
| |
| Over the past four years, the Greek Cypriot economy, has made legal and policy reforms in the areas of banking, taxes, trade and market liberalization to align itself with the EU’s “acquis communautaire”. On May 1, 2004, the Greek Cypriot economy will become part of an expanded EU market of over 400 million consumers. EU entry will take place regardless of whether there is a settlement of the Cyprus problem, although the EU has expressed its preference for accession of a united Cyprus.
| |
| Evidence suggests that many in the Turkish Cypriot community agree. However, because of the current state of affairs, the Turkish Cypriot economy has not even begun to analyze the reforms that will be required by the acquis communautaire, nor to set any of these reforms in motion. Delaying a political settlement will only prolong the Turkish Cypriot community’s economic disadvantages. A settlement is expected to generate sharply increased financial inflows, especially in infrastructure development, tourism, housing and other construction.
| |
| The Turkish Cypriot economy is in a period of “severe stagnation”. Its weak performance is attributed to three major factors: (i) a banking crisis in 2000; (ii) a 60% devaluation of the Turkish lira by Turkey in February 2001 that caused a massive decline in purchasing power for Turkish Cypriots; and (iii) growing uncertainty regarding a peace settlement, which has inhibited individual investment. Most of the real growth in the Turkish Cypriot economy during the past several years has been in the services sector, especially transportation, communications, business and personal services. One success story in terms of economic growth has been tertiary education. With five universities serving 23,000 students from the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East region, higher education has become a major foreign exchange earner for the Turkish Cypriot economy, although the quality of education provided through this system needs improvement.
| |
| Many believe that long-lasting peace will only be achieved in Cyprus when the economic difference between Turkish and Greek Cypriots is minimized. Both the UN and the EU are now making available, for the first time, funds for projects to encourage joint business ventures, especially business activities that will contribute to the economic development of the North. However, the supporting infrastructure for business people to effectively form such partnerships and to absorb and benefit from these new opportunities is still lacking.
| |
| This project will deploy a team with experience in business development to actively work with potential joint business venture candidates, supporting them from beginning to end to apply, manage and benefit from such opportunities, and to ensure that they are equipped with the necessary skills to succeed.
| |
| ===North South Economic Collaboration===
| |
| <gallery perrow="4">
| |
| file: SEDC2004_05.jpg
| |
| file:SEDC2004_08.jpg
| |
| file:SME_Conf_2.JPG
| |
| file:SME_Conf_3.JPG
| |
| </gallery>
| |
| ==PILLAR THREE: IMPROVING THE CAPACITY OF CYPRIOT NGOS TO PLAN AND MANAGE BICOMMUNAL PROGRAMS==
| |
| | |
| | |
| ===JUSTIFICATION===
| |
| | |
| Over the past decade, numerous conflict resolution and related training workshop opportunities have enabled about 20,000 Greek and Turkish Cypriots to develop close and friendly interactions (about 10,000 participants from each community). This may explain why so many thousands of people (especially in the North – where a relatively higher proportion of the population benefited from these training opportunities) have demonstrated such an impressive degree of maturity, responsibility, kindness and friendship towards their fellow Cypriots from the other side of the Green Line. The experiences that Cypriots had during the first few days of the opening of the Gates will always be dominated by extraordinary memories of people embracing each other, handing over photographs and personal objects that they had saved for 30 years, and sincere expressions of caring human behavior. Was this behavior simply an outburst of suppressed positive feelings among Cypriot compatriots, or the result of the initiatives of peace groups that prepared the ground for this day?
| |
| | |
| Over the past decade, primarily because of many citizens’ desire to become actively part of a solution, and partly in response to the availability of grant funding to support bicommunal programs from donor agencies, NGOs in Cyprus have blossomed. However, most do not have professional staff, relying on volunteer labor and the leadership of a small group of very committed senior peace builders and volunteer professionals. While a handful have begun to diversify their sources of funds to include donations from local businesses or wealthy individuals, most rely on short-term small grants (usually one year) from UNOPS, the U.S. Embassy and the EU. These grants typically cover basic project expenses with little operational support. While this support has been critical, it has also led to a proliferation of short-term training projects (many of which lack any structures for follow-up) and other ad-hoc projects.
| |
| | |
| Individually, these projects have been successful in advancing bicommunal relations; however, collectively they are most often neither sustained, or part of a longer-term strategy for integration and equitable development of the two communities on the island. Often, just as a project has built momentum, the funding cycle comes to an end and key people (especially young professionals) must be let go.
| |
|
| |
| Given the change in climate over the past year, what is the responsibility of the peace movement now, and how will the work of the next generation of peace builders and others interested in reconciliation and cooperation be sustained? The answer lies in whether the movement and its supporters in the donor community can create programs that are able to deal with issues of peace and reconciliation in more durable and efficient ways. Only strong and well-managed NGOs will be able to respond effectively to the present and future challenges to peace, reconciliation and bicommunal cooperation in Cyprus.
| |
| | |
| First, well-organized NGOs that have proven their capability in project management and facilitation have the responsibility to deliver more applied conflict resolution courses and mediation services to a broader base of Cypriots. To do so, it will be necessary to tie together the network of peace builders, senior trainers and young professionals that has already been created, and to ensure that these courses and services are accessible in several locations throughout the island.
| |
| | |
| Second, it is necessary to build the capabilities of more NGOs, especially those in Northern Cyprus, and to support new structures that will create synergies between projects throughout the island. Such synergies will promote more active learning from previous achievements as well as challenges and failures, and will also serve to evolve the next generation of bicommunal programs. To achieve this, NGOs need operational support to enhance their project management and planning skills and infrastructure, to retain dedicated and well-qualified people, to learn and network and to launch new, innovative programs.
| |
|
| |
|
| ==Respecting bicommunality== | | ==Respecting bicommunality== |
