Youth Exchange „Bridge for Better Beginnings“ Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

The youth exchange „Bridge for Better Beginnings“is focused on spreading understanding, tolerance and peaceful coexistence among the young people from the Western Balkan countries. Our goal is to prevent condemnation, national or religion intolerance, deal with the past, continue with the process of reconciliation, but also support European integration – in the sense that only together we can prevent conflicts as it happened in the past and together try for peaceful solution in whichever conflict.

The youth exchange will be held in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the town Mostar, which actually inspired the creation of this youth exchange project, whereas it connects not only two sides, but also two nations and religions, but the situation, stability and peace in the region, and mainly in this town is still fragile and hopefully our project will help to create real “Bridge for the better beginnings”. The youth exchange will held for 6 days, and it will include 9 countries – Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia, FYRO Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo (under UNSC Resolution 1244/1999) + Czech Republic and Slovakia (from each country will be 4+1 participants). We have chosen Czech Republic and our country purposely, because we can be like a paragon of good relations, which also have not been so good one in the past. Our long term vision is to organize youth exchange about similar topic each year in every country of the former Yugoslavia, what bring up the possibility to join more young people and to build a better future together, overcome prejudices and develop tolerance to diversity. We believe in a new generation that will break the ice and continue to create history through tolerance and compromise without conflict.

Place: Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Dates: 22-29 August 2013
Participating countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia, FYRO Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo (under UNSC Resolution 1244/1999), Czech Republic and Slovakia
Participants: Young people from 18-25 (5 per country)
Deadline for application: 27 July 2013 at office@ceud.org