Nothing works at terre des hommes schweiz without young people. Young people are not only our target group, they are also actively involved in our projects. Many of them are members of the International Youth Network IYN.
Together, they stand up for a global culture of tolerance: Young people from Africa, Latin America and Switzerland act freely and independently in the International Youth Network (IYN) of terre des hommes schweiz. The network offers young people from our project countries the opportunity to exchange views on social issues, methods and activities, build friendships and experience mutual solidarity. A current example of this is Global Action Month (GAM), which took place in November. The IYN campaign is organized annually and once again brought together numerous young people from our project countries last month. Under the motto “Say No to Violence: Let’s Break the Silence”, the IYN campaigned for respect and peaceful coexistence with events, on social media and live on site. “With actions like these, young people contribute to the prevention of violence on the ground, collectively raise awareness and show solidarity with other regions of the world,” says Jeyani Thiyagaraja, our coordinator for the IYN in Switzerland.
Youth commitment united
As part of the GAM, a meeting also took place at terre des hommes schweiz in Basel, to which the members of the IYN of Terre des Hommes Suisse traveled from Geneva. The young people spent two days together with a varied program: After a tour of the city on the topic of “violence prevention”, the participants took part in a workshop. They met up with young people from the terre des hommes schweiz projects and attended the imagine film festival together. Training was also offered on the topic of “Youth participation – involvement and participation of young people in projects”, which was met with great interest. At this meeting, it once again became clear that when it comes to the rights and interests of young people, it is crucial for success that the target group itself is involved. Only when young people are taken seriously as actors can their self-confidence be strengthened.
Active exchange
The international delegates of the IYN regularly exchange information across national borders: They meet at least once a month for a video call with live translation. They discuss the current situation in their countries and their commitment. Together, the international delegates organize online communication with the outside world on social media. The theme for Global Action Month is also discussed and decided on every year together with the young people in an international exchange. The youth network is growing: next year, two more project countries, South Africa and El Salvador, will join the IYN.
Author: Valerie Wendenburg, Media and Communications at terre des hommes schweiz
