https://svitac.org

Staff: Gordana Varcaković, Dina Vošanović, Miloš Popić, Sanjin Vošanović

Local volunteers: Eldar Bešić, Amina Omerović, Teodora Krsmanović

‘Weltwärts’ volunteers: Jonathan Ludwig, Simon Müller

‘ESC’ volunteers: – 

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ON-GOING PROGRAMME

• Culture and Art Diversity around the World – Includes Language, Art&Crafts, Music, Drama, and Sports workshops from Monday to Friday (4-14)
  • Standard and Conversational Language workshops – English, German
    • I love English – English workshops for 15-30
    • “Lasstuns Deutsch sprechen!/Pričajmo njemački!“ (Let’s speak German) – German workshops for 15-30
  • Music workshops – samba, guitar for 15-30

  HIGHLIGHTS ON THE MONTH’S ACTIVITIES

  • This month was festive and busy but went quickly since we had so many exciting things happening with the school holiday which started at the end of the month. However, our volunteers still had an opportunity to hold several presentations in the high school and talk with the students about education and the German educational system, the protection of the ecological system of the aquatic world, and the international, non-profit organization for the preservation of the sea – Sea Shepherd. Our participants learned many new things and practiced new and old rhythms during the music activities. International volunteers have been doing a lot of different daily activities and they focused on different things (e.g. supporting online activities, promotion of the organization through social media).
  • About 145 participants regularly attended Svitac’s (Firefly in Bosnia’s) activities in December. Participants were aged between 4 and 30 years old. The youngest and the oldest participants attended Culture and Art Diversity around the World workshops and English/German conversational workshops.
    • Younger group – They continued with various topics: ancient Greece, the culture of Egypt, geometric shapes, the New Year holidays, and winter vacation. The youngest participants enjoyed the creative part and modelling fun items (e.g. decorations for the New Year tree, and various animals that they made out of paper). The group continued with music workshops, practicing rhythms, rehearsing songs, and dance choreography which they performed at the New Year Event. The group continued to learn the Latin alphabet practising writing the letters C, Ć, D, Đ, and Dž. They did warm-up exercises and yoga for children, and every Thursday they danced, did sports, and practiced reading and listening to stories. In the English, German, and Turkish language workshops they learned words related to household, daily routine, weather, and holidays. All workshops are implemented with an educational visual method with pictures and video; informal educational workshops aim to develop creativity, memory, motor skills, empathy, socialization, and tolerance for diversities. The highlight with the younger group was the Human Rights Day workshop where they talked about some of the basic human rights, such as freedom, peace, justice, life, and equality.
    • Older group –  They discussed the following topics: human rights, peace, freedom, climate changes and volunteering. In this way, we want to provide young people with a safe and neutral space, where they can express their opinions and express positive and negative emotions, without fear of condemnation. In the Language Workshops, the group worked on practising everyday communication, reading and translating short texts, phrases, grammar, school homework, and interesting projects. The highlight with the older group was the workshop for International Volunteer Day when they discussed why one should be a volunteer and what volunteering means to them.

ANNUAL EVENTS

• New Year Event 2023 – This event was held on 20th December at the Youth centre and organized with the support of international and local volunteers, alongside Svitac’s (Firefly in Bosnia’s) staff. The participants had an opportunity to participate in the program, various games, and fun activities and enjoy the snacks and refreshments. The New Year Party was attended by 120 participants.

ESC, WELTWARTS AND OTHER VOLUNTEERS’ PROGRAMMES

• In December, Svitac (Firefly in Bosnia) very much appreciated the collaboration with 2 Weltwärts volunteers from Germany.
• Sending ESC and ‘Weltwärts’ – Five volunteers from Bosnia are doing their service in Germany, France, Poland, and Spain (2-12 months).

MEETINGS and PRESENTATIONS

• Svitac’s (Firefly in Bosnia’s) staff continued to attend regular monthly meetings with the youth centre coordinator and the other NGOs based in Brčko. The purpose of the meetings was to discuss conditions and schedules for the continuation of centre activities.
• Svitac’s (Firefly in Bosnia’s) staff attended the meeting with Ambassador Julian Reilly, director for Europe receives the Ministry of Foreign Affairs GB, Victoria Billing, and head of the Embassy’s Political Department, Helen Flewker. With representatives from the NGO and activists fighting for the rights of vulnerable groups, inspiring conversations were held on taking further steps towards greater inclusion as the only path to stronger democracy and more opportunities for all.
• Svitac’s (Firefly in Bosnia’s) representatives attended the conference on the occasion of the International Day of Volunteers organized in Brčko District by PRONI Centre for Youth Development. The conference consisted of three thematic panels, the main focus of which was volunteering as a tool for progress. The goal of the conference was to inspire young people to think about the importance of volunteering, careers, their mental health, and other things that improve their personal and professional development.
• Svitac’s (Firefly in Bosnia’s) ESC volunteers attended the Annual Event for returned ESC volunteers in Belgrade, Serbia. The event was organised for the volunteers who finished their ESC projects and returned home, in the period from December 2022 – the end of October 2023. The event aimed to provide space for ex-volunteers to meet and share their volunteering experience and stories, network with the other volunteers, acknowledge and celebrate personal achievements in their projects, recognize competencies (Youthpass and beyond) gained within volunteering projects, and envision how to use volunteering experience for further personal development and projects.
• Svitac’s (Firefly in Bosnia’s) representatives attended the signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding which officially marked the start of the implementation of the project “Socio-Economic Inclusion in Brcko District BiH” between the Czech Development Agency, the Government of Brcko District BiH/Development and Guarantee Fund of Brcko District BiH and CARE International. The goal of the project is to increase social inclusion and create sustainable employment opportunities in the Brcko District of BiH, with a special focus on marginalized and vulnerable population groups.

“Volunteering takes heart! We take part of our free time to help others, which is priceless in the times we live in!”  –  Amina, Teodora, Jonathan, Eldar, and Simon, who brighten up the everyday lives of our youngest participants! Happy International Volunteer Day!