CISV

Hi everybody ! Today I would like to let you discover a NGO of which I am a part since I am eleven.

This NGO is called CISV(Children International Summer Villages) and was created after the Second World War by the American psychologist Dorris Allen in order to educate and inspire action for a more just and peaceful world. 

For Dr. Allen and the CISV organisation, children and youth were seen as the ideal starting point for peace education. Programmes were developed which offered young people opportunities to meet their peers from other countries, to form intercultural friendships and to learn about what life is really like where they come from. Local programmes give people the chance to learn about the cultures in their own communities and explore important themes related to peace and understanding. Each year is dedicated to one specific theme: diversity, human rights , conflicts and resolution , sustainable development .

The CISV uses an active,experiential “learning by doing” approach to deliver a peace education which makes learning fun and let's say memorable !

Once you are a CISV member it is a whole processus starting at eleven years old that you discover :

• 11years old: Village, delegations composed of four children and one adult "Leader" from 10–12 countries come together for a four-week programme with simple activities that indirectly promote peace and understanding of each other.
  I had to opportunity to discover Brazil for a monce . I think it has been one of the most rewarding experience in my life. Being with only new people for a monce at the age of eleven gives you self-confidence, independence and makes you completely open-minded. It was also during this experience that I discovered the importance of the English language !
  
  
• (12-13y),(14-15),(16-18) or 19+years old : Youth Meeting, from 1 to 3 weeks, for 25-35 participants coordinated by adult staff. For youth 12–15 each delegation consists of six young people, and an adult leader. People at the age 16+ travel alone.
  During a Youth Meeting we explore aspects of a theme that affects us all, share our perspectives and learn from each  other. We also think about how you can use what you gain from your experience - new understanding and planning and communication skills - beyond the camp in your school, college or community.
  Two years after my first camp I went to Costa Rica for 3 weeks, I discovered a new part of the world and completely new people. Thanks to my village I new a little more how to debate and act in a group! I did another Youth Meeting a year ago in Austria for a week.I ws a little bit anxious regarding this camp, I was used to long camps with a lot of time to get confidence and make friends but here I only had one week. So I just went for it and it was one of the best CISV experience ! I met incredible people with whom I'm still in contact today from China, The US, Spain, Poland, Austria, Brazil, Italy, Germany...
  
  
   
  
  
• 14-15 years old: Step Up, a three-week programme Delegations include 4 participants and an adult leader. In Step Up's participants can think of new rules for the camp, these will be discussed and voted upon in a so-called 'camp meeting'. Also, the delegates are largely responsible for putting together activities to promote social and leadership skills. Each delegation consists of two boys, two girls, and an adult leader.
  I did my Step Up in the US, Ohio Columbus. During this camp each participant becomes more and more independent .You learn how to live in community and how to take descisions as a group. During this camp I discovered that I had a very “Europeen way of seeing the world”, to me a Republic was the best way for a country to be and I realized that I was judging a lot of country I did not know anything about just because of what I had heard about them. This experience has increased my desire to study and live in different countries and to work in international relations. 
  
  
   
   
• Interchange: Involving only two countries, this programme spans up to two years. A delegation of 6–12 youth, aged 12–14, is selected from each participating country. In the programme one delegation will travel to visit for two or four weeks with the other's family. After those weeks and a little time in between, the delegations reciprocate.
• Seminar Camp: A three-week programme for youth 17–18 in which there is one or more (but not more than four) delegates from each participating country. Seminar Camps have a more direct educational approach, and youth are encouraged to form opinions on various world issues. Usually youth-directed, this program has only thirty participants in total.
  I am very excited to have been selected to participate to a Seminar this summer for a monce in Germany ! I will tell you more about it once I'll be backk !
• International People's Project: CISV's newest international programme is open to people aged 19+ and is three weeks long. Participants participate in hands-on work contributing to a community project.
• Mosaic: Mosaic is a programme that consists of projects with educational content, developed by local CISV Chapters worldwide. These projects empower individuals to be agents of change, reach out, and involve as many people as possible.
  The Mosaic programme is very interesting to me since it complements what we learn and what we debate about during the different camps. CISV is not only discussions it is also a way of acting.

I would love to present CISV  to you if you are interested or if you want to know more send me an emaaaaaaail : malkalouayache@gmail.com

(Don't worry Mrs C. all the people on the pictures have signed a right to image:)