Peace is the Way — Training Course

📅 13–24 September 2025 (travel days included)
📍 Thessaloniki, Greece

🌍We are looking for 20 participants — 4 per partner country — from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, Greece, Kosovo and Spain (residents of those countries and travelling from there)

🎯 Target Group: Youth Workers, and Active Youth, engaged in local advocacy actions

⌛ Deadline of application: August 4th

Apply by clicking here: https://forms.gle/hHFvwRqgfbu8rsK18

LET US TELL YOU ABOUT THIS PROJECT

The training course “Peace is the Way” aims to empower youth workers and youth engaged in local advocacy actions with the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values necessary to become active promoters of peace, non-violence, and human rights in their communities. By engaging in a comprehensive learning process rooted in non-formal and experiential education, participants will explore the concepts of positive peace, conflict transformation, non-violence, intercultural dialogue and art for change-making.

The course will provide a safe space for participants to critically reflect on peace, discrimination, othering, and prejudice, and to deconstruct systems of hate through the lens of identity and human dignity. Youth workers will be equipped not only to understand peace on a theoretical and personal level, but also to translate it into practice through creative expression and community-based actions.

Ultimately, the training seeks to inspire and empower youth leaders who can actively foster inclusive, resilient, and peaceful societies by challenging violence in all its forms and inspiring others to do the same.

Objectives:

• To deepen participants’ understanding of positive peace, conflict transformation, peacebuilding, and non-violence in both local and global contexts.
• To explore and critically reflect on concepts such as identity, prejudice, discrimination, othering, the pyramid of hate, and intercultural dialogue.
• To build participants’ capacities to explore the role of art in promoting peace, using arts and creative expression as a tool for dialogue and social change.
• To strengthen youth workers’ facilitation skills through mock sessions and active participation where they propose and deliver peer-2-peer sessions.
• To encourage self-reflection and the development of peace-oriented attitudes and behaviors, empowering participants to become multipliers of peace.
• To support participants in creating action plans for disseminating their learnings and initiating peace-focused projects within their communities.

PROFILES OF PARTICIPANTS

• Members/Staff of NGOs involved with youth work activities
• Individuals working in the youth field taking important roles as leaders in various youth activities and programs in their communities
• Active Youth Engaged in Local Advocacy Actions with special interest on peace, peacebuilding, non-violence, human rights and conflict tranformation
• People active as Trainers, Educators, Facilitators, Activitsts
• People able to communicate in English (this is the language of the training course)

Let’s talk about COSTS

We believe in the power of education and the right for equal opportunities. This is why, thanks to the EU funding, we are able to provide this training for free. The accomodation and meals will be covered by us.

Travel costs:

For your travel costs we are able to reimburse you, after the training course (this process might take up to two months), according to the erasmus+ distance calculator (from your hometown to Thessaloniki, Greece): https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/resources-and-tools/distance-calculator

What is green travel: Travel that uses low-emissions means of transport for the main part of the travel, such as bus, train, bike, or car-pooling.

To complete the reimbursement process:

• You need to be active in all activities of the training course, including the online preparatory meeting.
• You need to provide us with all the original, hardcopy, boarding passes, invoices, receipts and tickets.
• You need to complete the submission of the official evaluation that you will receive in your email.

Travel Arrangements

Welcome to Thessaloniki!

After arriving at SKG Airport, head to the arrivals area. You’ll find the airport bus stop outside on the right (there are signs).

Take the X1 bus and get off at the ‘Kamara’ stop. RentRooms (address : 9 Konstantinou Melenikou) is just a short 3-minute walk (about 230 meters) from there. We look forward to seeing you!

🏠Accomodation: Rent Rooms

The rooms may be mixed (shared between 4–8 people). Other guests also will be in hostel so being respectful during quiet hours will be necessary. Bathrooms are also shared. You will need to bring your own personal towel and shampoo, and to have in mind that there is no elevator and no washing machine in the accomodation venue.

What to bring?

🌱Your water bottle. Let’s try to be as sustainable as possible, no need to use multiple plastic bottles every day!

🛀 Your personal towel, sampoo and body wash.

👟 Slippers and walking shoes.

👒Sunscreen and hat.

💊 Any necessary medications (e.g., prescribed medicine, allergy medicine).

⭐Your enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

🎫Activity venue: Balkan Heart

Who are we?

United Societies of Balkans (U.S.B.) is a non-profit, non-governmental organization based in Thessaloniki, Greece working in the field of youth mobility, participation and facilitating youth awareness about social issues. It was founded in 2008 by the inception of a group of active young people who wanted to address the social issues which affect the youngsters in the Balkans and Eastern Europe.

📧 Contact

If you have any questions write to:

• Andreas Boutsoukis: andreas.boutsoukis@usbngo.gr
• Alexia Anastasiadi: alexiaan@usbngo.gr

Preuzeto sa: medium.com