“Belgrade May Convening: Deepening youth participation at the grassroots”

At the convening in Serbia in May 2022, BRN members focused on meaningful youth participation and how it relates to their work supporting migrants and refugees, as partners of Global Fund for Children in Reducing Violence Against Migrant Children in Southeast Europe initiative

The convening – which also included workshops on wellbeing and communications – was part of an ongoing collaboration between members of the Balkan Refugee Network. Most of these organizations are also partners of GFC’s Reducing Violence Against Migrant Children in Southeast Europe initiative, which supported by the Swedish Postcode Foundation.

For the youth participation workshop, led by Nino Ugrekhelidze, a feminist activist and Spark Fund panelist from Georgia, the Balkan Refugee Network members invited youth volunteers and young people who work for their organizations to participate.

Jasmin Redjepi, the General Secretary of the North Macedonian organization Legis, said he appreciates that young people bring new ideas and creativity. “They’re our main way of changing the future,” he said.

Lovorka Šošić, a Communications Coordinator at the Croatia-based Centre for Peace Studies, said she values the unique perspectives young people contribute to her organization. “They have a different point of view,” she said.

“For us, it’s exciting to participate in things we’ve never done before and things we didn’t think we could do,” said Drilon Ismaili, a youth volunteer with Serbia-based Asylum and Refuge Centre (ARC). “It’s not always easy, but it’s better if you show up and step out of your comfort zone.”  

Merita Jahiji, a Legal Advisor at ARC, shared that when she first started trying to recruit volunteers at local high schools, she didn’t anticipate many students would be interested. “I was not expecting them to be really open and active and to even know that much,” she said. “And then we went there, and it was an amazing experience.”

Now, ARC has a team of high school-aged volunteers who participate in cultural exchange activities that enable migrants and locals to learn from each other.

Rados Djurovic, the Executive Director of Serbia-based Asylum Protection Center, shared that when he and other young professionals co-founded APC in 2007, it was a challenge to find funding because many funders were afraid to invest in a youth-led group. “This is common for Serbia, I would say, that young people are not getting a chance at all,” he said.

Toward the end of the day, the members of each organization brainstormed ideas for deepening youth participation in their work. The proposals included engaging youth volunteers and young refugees through language and cultural exchange workshops; engaging youth volunteers in advocacy efforts;