Variety is the Spice of Life

Aims & objectives

- To examine how culture and gender norms and attitudes affect development of personal identities in different societies, provision of equal opportunities and obtaining personal freedoms
- To rethink and deconstruct current practices regarding cultural norms and gender boxes by tackling them through “cycle of life” events (birth, adulthood, death)
- To prepare youth workers and youth organizations to mainstream intercultural dialogue and gender perspective in their everyday work in order to support the process of social cohesion
- To develop competences and encourage young people to use creative and innovative approaches for promotion of pluralism and active democratic participation of youth while acknowledging different cultural backgrounds and gender diversity on local and international level

Target group & international/intercultural composition of the group & team

Team: Serbia, UK/Montenegro, Bosnia, Macedonia.
Group: 17 participants from 12 different countries, programme countries, Western Balkans and Eastern Europe Caucasus.

Training methods used & main activities

The vision behind the programe “Variety is the spice of life – try walking in my shoes” is an open-minded and tolerant society providing equal opportunities to all no matter of the background or personal characteristics. The process is designed to build capacities of youth workers which will enable them to strive to this vision by adding intercultural dialogue and gender diversity as transversal issue in their everyday work: questioning current and promoting new practices by (re)thinking and (de)constructing cultural and gender norms in local communities.

Participants will have a task to research about cultural and gender norms in their societies related to cycle of life: birth, adulthood and death as well as social/marital/heritage rights related legislation. With this, we want to set the ground: capacity building training course on intercultural dialogue from gender perspective. To tackle topics of cultural and gender norms, practices in various societies (regarding origin, religion) and defining new approaches, methodologies and activities that will ensure (de)constructing current ones and (re)thinking new ones.

Outcomes of the activity

12 workshops on exploring gender in 12 different communities. Ultimately a manual on good practice for working with the concept of gender in youth work

Your tasks and responsibilities within the team

Lead trainer, design of programme, implementation of programme. Co-work with other senior trainer and coach 2 junior trainers.

I worked on this training for 7 days days as a full time trainer.