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Thomas

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Karantréning every day! – An alternative exercise programme of the Oltalom Sport Association during quarantine
Karantréning every day! – An alternative exercise programme of the Oltalom Sport Association during quarantine 1280 1023 our civic space

Karantréning every day! – An alternative exercise programme of the Oltalom Sport Association during quarantine

At OSA, like many other partners, for the time of the mandatory quarantine we are forced to suspend one of our most important activities: football training sessions. Nevertheless, we found a way to not only keep in touch with our players, but also give them the training experience: we moved these events to the online space!

The Budapest-based Oltalom Sports Association started to practice sports as a personality-shaping, therapeutic activity in 2005. One of the cornerstones of our activity is our football training held in the capital and in other locations in the countryside on a weekly basis. In addition to educating children about a healthy lifestyle, regular sport also offers useful leisure activities for players lacking stability and regularity in their life.

With the mandatory quarantine and the precautionary measures introduced in the meantime, we were unable to continue our training sessions. At the same time, our goal was to maintain and even improve the physical and mental health of our players. To this end, we have created our “Karantréning” programme, during which we run an online exercise programme six days a week, led and moderated by coaches represented by our own and some external organisations.

Those who want to practice sport can join us through the online video room we have created. We welcome not only our certified players, but everyone interested. Led by a trained coach as well as a social worker, our trainings run for an average of 40-45 minutes. As we also teach participants new exercises and movement elements, we considered it important that in addition to the coach presenting the exercises, our social worker also participates in the session, in order to give feedback on the correct implementation of the exercises and possible areas of improvement.

To achieve our goal, in line with the spirit of civic space, we have created a platform on which the transfer and education of different approaches and working methods – from strength training and ball exercises to yoga practices – become accomplishable. In order to create as diverse training opportunities as possible, we provided our players with various sports equipment, such as fitness rubber bands.

For this purpose we have involved some of our partners, including the German Brandenburgische Sportjugend, the Czech Fotbal Pro Rozvoj and the Indian Slum Soccer, with whom we have been cooperating for many years in various projects. In addition, Ádám Szabados, a football freestyler, Hungarian champion and a world record holder football juggler, also held trainings with us.

The number of participants usually ranges from 5 to 15. For many of them, the accuracy and regularity of the exercises were significantly improved. In addition, thanks to strength training, the amount of exercises performed has also increased. One of the key members of the participants, Orsolya Katzer, also commented on the online training: “I really enjoy quarantine training for two reasons. Almost every night instructors and training associates “move” into my living room for an hour, helping me to get through this hard period. In addition, with a variety of exercises I am able to keep my body and soul in shape.”

When our “OSE Quarantine” programme was launched, we tested various video chat applications, looking for the most suitable one for our programme. In addition to high quality, it was expected that the social worker would be able to turn participants’ microphones on and off – so that they could hear constructive feedback from the social worker on how to perform their movements – and highlight the coach’s camera image.

After trying several apps, Google Meets proved to be the most convincing. We were pleased to find that our participants were open to different forms of motion, too, so we recommend everyone to incorporate yoga exercises into their workouts, in addition to strengthening exercises, and even hold a separate full-length yoga class!

From the very beginning of the coronavirus situation, we considered it a priority to preserve the physical and mental health of our players and to help them do sports at home. Our quarantine training programme is perfectly suited to achieve this goal.

Written by OSA

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6th April – A day to celebrate the contribution of sports towards peace and development!
6th April – A day to celebrate the contribution of sports towards peace and development! 2560 1240 our civic space

6th April – A day to celebrate the contribution of sports towards peace and development!

Since 2014, the 6th April has been named the International Day of Sports for Development and Peace. It has been created by the United Nations to acknowledge the positive contribution of sports towards social change, community development, peace and understanding between cultures and people.

For many children and young people around the world, sport represents the unique platforms for positive socialisation and development. It has been recognized as one of the major contributors to the Sustainable Development Goals by the United Nations. It is a fundamental right and a meaningful tool to create interaction, raise voices and develop civic competences.

Together with the partners from the Here to Stay project we strive to maximise the positive contribution of sport in the development of individuals and communities. The sport in itself has always proven to be an authentic space for gathering, expression and healthy behaviour. In this regards and thanks to a number of dedicated interventions, our commitment is to increase the positive outcomes of sports.

Firstly, we provide free and equal access to young people, who may not have the means to join an affiliated sports activity. The activities provided are offered regardless of the sportive ability, gender or social background. We are devoted to create an equal playing field in all of the activities we offer.

Our intervention also allows the young people to develop themselves during their practise of the sport, through a number of approaches that guides the participants to better communicate with each other, to find compromises, to reflect on a situation, to determine their own rules but also accompanies the participants in giving each other constructive feedback and positive encouragement. We are therefore also addressing a gap in the traditional schooling system, where children are often too confined in a firm and non-progressive model of education that rarely allows them to progress differently than in a competitive and individualistic mind-set.

The sport can also be an effective tool to prepare young people towards employment and gain essential soft skills, which are more and more demanded on the job market. Training and playing can teach participants to make better decisions as they face different choices on and off the pitch, to adapt to new situations as they experience changes in a game plan and in life, to control their emotions as they can undergo through peaks in frustration or stress during a match or at school, or simply to better reflect your opinion in public after a match as with colleagues at work. The panel of skills that can be taught through sport is vast and provides an ideal preparation for the active and responsible life at work, in society among peers and family.

We are therefore unanimously convinced as a consortium of European partners of the tremendous power that sport can have on the lives of young people around the world. We are celebrating this day with prospect, as we are facing an exceptionally challenging time for the practise of sport and looking forward to be back on the fields as sport is here to stay!

Written by INEX

 

 

 

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The lessons we took from our research
The lessons we took from our research 925 349 our civic space

The lessons we took from our research

In earlier stories (Focus groups, Research Report) we’ve discussed a variety of aspects of the research conducted within the Here To Stay programme (Full Research Report). In this story, we will focus on some of the recommendations that came out of the research. In the final report, these outcomes are structured as ‘thoughts for youth workers’ and ‘final recommendations and lessons learnt’ that specify more on NGOs as a whole. The outcomes were inspired by both relevant literature and the wisdom and experience of youth and youth workers participating in the research. 

Thoughts for youth workers

“If you come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together” Lila Watson, Murri visual artist 

Tell them who you are
When implementing a programme aimed at children and youth, tell them who you are. Say something personal about yourself and your organisation. But more importantly, tell them why you are here, in their world. Tell them what you are planning to implement and how you hope this will improve their lives

Listen
Ask them for their opinion: no matter what the subject is, you can always ask children and youth for their opinion (in age appropriate ways). If your programme is about school, ask them about their opinion. If it is about sexual and reproductive health rights, they surely want to talk about it. Not only does this convey that you take them seriously, it also reminds yourself why you do the work that you do and keeps you focused on the right topics. Especially listen to those who face hardships or live in ‘toxic’ environments. This is not a passive process, but a very demanding, active, and dynamic activity, that requires a lot of energy, understanding and patience.

Be reliable and flexible
Children and young people are still growing up, in preparation for being (hopefully) responsible adults. Besides growing up they have a lot to do school, relationships, chores, sports, and all the other social, emotional and physical challenges that life throws at them. This takes time and energy. So, when engaging children and youth, take this into account, and appreciate any time or energy they can give to you or to the project. At the same time, be reliable yourself, don’t make promises you can’t keep and follow up on any agreements made. You are a role model but cannot force anything upon youth.

“They are looking for a place of confidence, trust and non-judging; and a safe environment where they can be treated equally and as competent persons.” Youth worker from Czech Republic

Breaking the bubbles
You play an essential to break the ‘bubbles’ [social, occupational, ethnic, political] which young people occupy, to build bridges; not only between young people, but also between them and adults, services and public spaces. Be careful however, not to create isolated bubbles when doing youth work.

Final recommendations

It takes special people
The participating NGOs are staffed by highly motivated people. They are guided in their work by strong feelings of justice, fairness, equity, anti-oppression, and inclusion. This value system helps them to reach out to new audiences and build bridges with excluded groups, which they do not perceive as ‘others’, but as equals, albeit, living in more dire circumstances. They are ‘respectful listeners’ and give priority to the needs and wishes of these groups. As such, they are carriers of significant knowledge and experience.

The importance of validation
NGOs such as the participants in this research project often work in the margin of societies. Their work is hard, successes are not always immediately obtained or visible, ‘elevator pitches’ do not work, there is a constant struggle to obtain financial support, sometimes dismissed as not important. Yet their work is of utter importance and should be recognized and validated as such. Projects like these have that effect. It is made clear that efforts are essential for well-functioning democratic societies.

Sports, arts, and culture are powerful tools
Used creatively and innovatively sports and arts appeal to young people, wherever they are and whatever situations they face. The choice of possibilities in sports and arts is more extensive than usually assumed and should be not informed by mainstream values but rather by the preferences and means available of the target audiences

“Sports has the strongest calling power for young people. The main reason for this is the possibility of movement in which they can conduct tension. In civic spaces in all three areas, arts, sport and culture, it is important that participants experience free self expression, belonging and acceptance. Giving and receiving acceptance is very important to them. In civic spaces, young people are specifically looking for activities in which they experience these feelings.” Youth worker from Hungary

‘It takes a village’
Successful interventions are the result of strong support if not the involvement by a wide group of stakeholders, especially at community level. Sometimes these stakeholders must be made aware that they have indeed, or should have, a strong interest in creating and opening up civic spaces for everybody. Such stakeholders should, therefore, not only comprise youth workers, politicians, but also shopkeepers, schools, training institutions, taxi drivers, media people, other NGOs, religious leaders, researchers, etc. Building partnerships, advocacy and awareness raising are indispensable elements of a successful intervention. This is very much to ask, and often NGOs do not have the capacity [e.g. personnel, time, resources, networks] to accomplish it.

The risks, opportunities, and unknowns of the online world
Many youth workers welcome social media as a useful civic space for young people ‘living in the margin’, plead for enabling them to get the means and the wherewithal to ‘be on line’, but at the same time, is worried about the impact of ‘fake news’ and is looking for ways to protect young people against it.

“The online world, this is the space they occupy, they are there all day. They use a variety of spaces online and live in another world. Online, you have to communicate very quickly, differently, catch them in a second (you can also lose them in a second). Catch and keep their attention and you can discuss ‘wider’ things concerning their well-being and ‘space’.” Youth worker from the Netherlands

Written by ISA

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Covid-19 Affects Civic Space in Hungary, Poland and El Salvador
Covid-19 Affects Civic Space in Hungary, Poland and El Salvador 700 350 our civic space

Covid-19 Affects Civic Space in Hungary, Poland and El Salvador

Utrecht University research shows how measures to combat Covid-19 have limited people’s freedoms and rights in Hungary, Poland and El Salvador.

Covid-19 affects the lives of many. But the responses of governments to fight the pandemic may have even more profound consequences. This is not just an issue of health or of the economy, but also of rights and freedoms. In many places, measures taken have heavily affected civic space – that is the freedom people have to express and organise themselves collectively. Two new in-depth country cases studies in Utrecht University’s research project Civic Space under Attack, led by dr Chris van der Borgh and prof dr Antoine Buyse, track what happened in Hungary, Poland and El Salvador in the past half year.

In a nutshell, the review of measures taken show that where civic space was already under pressure before the outbreak of the pandemic, the situation was exacerbated by the measures to fight Covid-19. Sometimes as side effects of restrictive lockdowns, states of emergency or polarizing political discourse, but very often also by using the need to fight the disease as a cover to curtail civil society and curtail critical voices all in one go. The case studies track how civil society and citizens were affected by such government measures and shows how people managed to reclaim space for debate in creative ways, from protesting in cars to creating new online spaces.

Poland and Hungary – comparing two illiberal regimes
Research student Adam Dargiewicz looked into the measures taken by two European illiberal governments in Hungary and Poland. His analysis shows that the emergency powers deployed in Hungary carry a higher potential of becoming weaponized against independent societal actors than in Poland since their scope is more far-reaching. the pandemic in both countries might lead to the solidification of the already existing anti-civil society tendencies rather than to the development of a completely new approach. But, the situation in both countries vividly shows that organizations, grassroot movements and journalists presented great resilience and creativity, and maintained their capability to uphold and rearrange civic space. 

El Salvador
Research student Welmoed Barendsen investigated the volatile situation in El Salvador. While the government’s response was rapid, it was also very strict (mandatory lockdowns, containment centres) and unpredictable and the means deployed were at times violent and based on unclear legal grounds. The populist president has tried to discredit virtually everyone (academics, religious leaders, human rights activists, business leaders and journalists) critical of his policies. At the same time, this report also shows that civil society actors continue to defend, contest and conquer civic space, from journalists distributing food to crowdfunding campaigns. In the context of democratic backsliding in El Salvador, which started well before Covid-19, the pandemic seems to have had had an accelerating impact.

Earlier, the project produced a bibliography with the newest reports and literature on the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on civic space. This offers a systematised overview with a summarising introduction on the key issues involved. Many of these also feature in the now released case studies.

Story by Utrecht University

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Working together to tackle Covid-19
Working together to tackle Covid-19 2560 1707 our civic space

Working together to tackle Covid-19

Currently, people and countries all over the world are tackling the COVID-19 pandemic. Worldwide measures are being taken to prevent the virus from spreading further. This resulted in lock down situations worldwide. These measures have unfortunately influenced ISA’s work in different ways. However, there is much we as a team can and will do to keep on working on our mission and support the world to overcome this crisis.

During the first months of the pandemic, the ISA team has worked hard on creating a COVID-19 awareness plan for both West and East Africa, in order to protect the thousands of young people and their families who we want to impact through our work. We believe we need to take responsibility and play a role in ensuring everyone is properly informed, stays physically active and has a healthy lifestyle at home. ISA’s youth and coaches are local advocates of this awareness plan to increase the awareness through different activities and initiatives carried out by and for them – and their communities. Through them, ISA hopes to impact the community by: correctly informing and convincing our partners, colleagues, coaches and communities about COVID-19 to ensure that the awareness increases and thus keeping the ISA family physically active and healthy. Through this awareness plan, we aspire to see ISA partner organisations, coaches / mentors, youth, families and communities become role models and advocates within their communities.

“If sport teaches us anything, it is that teamwork is essential and that together we are stronger. In the same way, we shall overcome COVID-19 if we work together. Likewise, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a pathway towards a sustainable future for all, leaving no one behind, with peaceful and inclusive societies, and a healthy planet. We can only get there by working together. Sport plays an important advocative role in combatting the spread of diseases and highlighting the importance of international solidarity. In times of crisis, fear and anxiety can consume us. Alone, it seems, we can do very little, but working together, we can do so much. Even though sporting events have come to a halt for now, athletes, major and small sports leagues and community sports organisations deliver messages of positivity — connecting us with each other. Sport is bringing people and communities together, helping us find common ground, regardless of ethnicity, religion or political affiliation” (UN, 2020).

Together we need to stay strong, follow the given measures and fight this pandemic. Through different measures ISA is helping our family to stay healthy. With enough commitment from everyone, we can efficiently fight this pandemic!

Written by ISA

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The unique power of football can improve the world: the Oltalom Sport Assosiation (OSA) wants to release this power!
The unique power of football can improve the world: the Oltalom Sport Assosiation (OSA) wants to release this power! 2560 1707 our civic space

The unique power of football can improve the world: the Oltalom Sport Assosiation (OSA) wants to release this power!

With the help of football, we make the lives of disadvantaged adults and children fuller. Through regular trainings, homeless people living in deep poverty, young people living in correctional facilities and refugees are given the opportunity to shape their destiny with the help of our sports and social services (job search, language training).

We are building a bridge between conflicting social groups with our Fair Play football Roadshow tournament. In the matches of our cross-border series of events, important local actors, municipalities, police officers, local clubs and teams from disadvantaged communities shape the rules of their game through democratic dialogue to take the spirit of a cooperative community with them when they leave the field and they return in their everyday life.

Behind the above ideas is a vision for community building. As a civil society organisation, this plays a central role in the life of OSA too. The community, as a retaining force, has help and support for the target group, in this case young people and young adults, due to several aspects:

  • Opportunity to belong somewhere
    Young people experience a sense of belonging somewhere. This doesn’t always come naturally.  Some young people and young adults don’t experience this at all due to their family background and/or current situation. The opportunity to belong somewhere gives them security. Young people can experience that where they go to, the young workers, and another young people are waiting for them, and turn to them with joy and openness. This creates the opportunity for communication.
  • Possibility to connect
    By involving youth in the organisation of programmes for young people and young adults, they can experience and develop their own competencies. Many of them lack positive reinforcement after their actions. To offset this, their involvement in the implementation of programmes for young people helps a lot. After that, they talk about what was good for them and what they could do better next time.
  • Opportunity for free expression
    In many cases, young people don’t have the opportunity to freely express their thoughts in an athmosphere where they are listened to and not criticised for their thoughts, their point of view. This is another aspect at which our programmes can really make a difference.
  • Opportunity to get better at something
    The self-organised programmes ran by OSA involve young people and young adults. The primary goal is to show and teach young people what it means to take responsibility for themselves. Feedback after completing a task helps them understand what it means to take responsibility for themselves and their peers.
  • Opportunity to make connections
    They meet young people who are in a similar situation, so they can experience that they are not alone in the situations they find themselves in. At the same time, they can see examples of the possible roads that lay ahead of them. Working together with older, more experienced people for a few years, could inspire and motivate young people to progress and improve their lives.
  • An opportunity to support the development of an orderly lifestyle
    With the weekly trainings that young people visit week by week, it is possible to incorporate fixed points and programmes in their lives that give a framework to their everyday lives. It gives a system to their lives. An important aspect is that a commitment to these programmes develops when young people feel comfortable with them.

Finally: the pandemic
The pandemic situation has generated some significant changes in the life of OSA. It inspired the organisation to look for new paths, with a focus on involving and retaining young people in regular training sessions. Even stronger, more supportive communication is needed in which players feel they are not alone. Among the existential and other challenges and crises that appear in their everyday lives, the supportive athmosphere becomes even more important. It is therefore important for civil society organisations to be present in the lives of members of their target groups when they need them. This is reflected not only in the fact that NGOs carry out activities that support their daily lives, such as food donations or clothing donations to the beneficiaries (as OSA does on a regular basis), but also in creating a supportive atmosphere in which young people feel that they are not alone. Perhaps the biggest benefit for NGOs in recent times has been finding new solutions to this and incorporating them into their day-to-day work.

Written by OSA

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Bulgaria Policy Brief
Bulgaria Policy Brief 2560 1707 our civic space

On February 5, we posted a story about the sexual education of youth in Bulgaria. Through this story, you get insight in how an innovative research project helps young people get a better understanding of sexuality. A gap of knowledge that exits, because of a lack of proper sexual education in Bulgarian schools. You can read the full story here

Click here to view the full Bulgaria Policy Brief that was written in regard to the sexual education of youth in Bulgaria.