In Srebrenica, from 8th to 11th January, a meeting was held of an informal youth network – DOMINO. Around 20 young activists from Srebrenica (Bratunac), Jelah, Visegrád and Tuzla attended this meeting.
Driven by the idea which was born through the work of The Complete Freedom of Truth, an international youth cultural and arts programme led by Opera Circus UK in Srebrenica in August last year – and the consolidation of the same in Visegrád in November – the young people, who, together with their youth organizations and informal groups are active members of the DOMINO network, initiated the idea of this meeting. During this meeting, which was held over two days, the young people worked on creating a strategic document of the network itself, which will serve to further realise their goals and results, and the mission and vision of the network.
The meeting was organised by Sandra Đurić, a young leader from Visegrád, and supported by Tina Ellen Lee from the UK, director of the The Complete Freedom of Truth – the project on which this idea was born. Financial support came from the OSCE Mission to BiH, with additional support from local hosts in Srebrenica and Bratunac, restaurant owner Bato who provided space for the realisation of all the activities, and Almir Ramic – project manager and youth worker for the Unique Organization of young JOM, Jelah – as coordinator of activities. All of the young people have worked together to create a single document, strategies for their future work and cooperation.
During this meeting, which was held over two days, the young people worked on creating a strategic document of the network itself, which will serve to further realise their goals and results, and the mission and vision of the network.
Young activists led all activities themselves, as facilitators and motivators. After sharing their opinions about the current operation of the network, organizations (informal groups) and individuals in some ways revised all the positive things, as well as the challenges they faced, and then began strategic planning. They created questions for a survey to be conducted in our four cities, which will provide a clear insight into the needs of young people in our local communities, cities, districts and municipalities. This will be for future work on the design and implementation of cultural and artistic activities, which will meet the needs of all young people in the fields of culture, art, activism and quality time.
One of the workshops was networking with potential partners, current partners and other organizations, informal groups and individuals who could contribute to the successful operation of the network. We performed CANVAS analysis, and determined a clear vision and mission of this informal network of young people from four BiH cities. We created future activities and objectives of the network, and the results and indicators that will show what will be achieved by all these activities. We also created a number of teams to implement and monitor future activities and tasks.
The next meeting is planned for mid-March in Jelah, which will be for working on performances that will be presented each night to an audience.
With thanks to the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Opera Circus, Bato's Restaurant, Cafe Malboro, the Youth Centre and Youth Council of Srebrenica and the community of Srebrenica for their care and hospitality.
Domino Youth Network
Visegrad, Jelah, Tuzla, Srebrenica, Bratunac
Bosnia & Herzegovina
Photography: Mladen Kojic, e-srebrenica