The teams of the Community Development Centers at the Amalipe Center in the implementation of projects in the municipalities of Novo Selo, Sredets and Kaspichan, exchanged experience and good practices

In implementation of the activities under projects BG05M9OP001-2.018-0006-2014BG05M2OP001-C01 in Sredets municipality, BG05M9OP001-2.018-0036-2014BG05M2OP001-C01 in Kaspichan municipality and BG05M9OP001-2.018-0015-2014BG05M2OP001-C01 within the projects Community Development Centers made a “virtual” exchange visit to present experiences and good practices.

Through the online audio and video conferencing platform Zoom, they were able to present their experience gained over the past two years, share the hardships they have gone through and the successes they have achieved! Moderators of the meeting were Atanas Atanasov – expert, local community development; Galina Decheva – expert, intercultural education and guest lecturer – Yonka Danova – expert, educational activities. The meeting, in strict compliance with the anti-epidemic measures, was attended by representatives of the parents’ club at the school in the town of Kaspichan, who watched the presentations presented by the teams. At the beginning, the experts from Amalipe presented the partnership of the organization with 12 municipalities in the implementation of projects under the integrated procedure Socio-economic integration – Component 1, as delegated activities to the center are work with parents, and especially for these three municipalities – work with youth. The application of the methodology for work in the community, developed over the years, is applied in these 12 partner municipalities during the last almost two years of successful cooperation in the implementation of the project activities.

Community Development Center – Novo Selo was the first to present its presentation, which in chronological order showed where they started in the beginning and what they have achieved so far. They shared their hardships and greatest achievements. Educational mediators Veronika Petrova and Gabriela Petrova told about the field work, consultations with parents and community surveys, case work and work during the state of emergency, and the youth coordinator Pamela Veselinova presented the activities of the youth club and the activation of young people.

This was followed by the presentation of the team from the municipality of Kaspichan on project BG05M9OP001-2.018-0036-2014BG05M2OP001-C01. The educational mediator – Zeliha Redjeb and the youth coordinator Temenuzhka Milenova presented their experience and accumulated results during their work in the municipality. They also presented exemplary resolved cases of a student at risk of dropping out, who with the joint efforts of the entire project team was successful and the student continued to study at the school. Each such resolved case, which has predetermined someone’s destiny and helped the child have a chance for a better future, makes the work of mediators significant and this inspires them to continue, they said.

The educational mediators Mariyka Racheva and Nedka Assenova also presented their experience, together with the youth coordinator Badema Gradeva from Sredets municipality under project BG05M9OP001-2.018-0006-2014BG05M2OP001-C01. The team is engaged in the implementation of three activities, which are related to community work, work with parents and activities with young people. It was interesting to present the similar activities that each team has implemented in a different way and has managed to become recognizable in the community in which he lives and now people can rely on them.

They shared their pride in the fact that Roma students are the flag bearers in the high school in the town of Sredets and this shows that children do not give in when they put effort and work – the meaning of the work of educational mediators.

At the end of the meeting, everyone shared what he is most proud of what has been achieved so far, what was his most difficult moment and greatest achievement. Together they shared the problems in the individual municipalities and the approaches they find for solving them. In different municipalities the implementation of otherwise similar activities turns out to be very different, depending on the environment in which they are, the support they receive and the team work they manage to implement.

“Together hand in hand – we work miracles” – concluded Veronika Petrova and as a wish for more active work and achievements, the participants wished her new meetings живо live, not in front of the screens!