Hi from Elena

HI! Tell us what’s your name, who are you and where do you come from?
Hi! I’m Elena Bardi, I’m 26 years old and I live in Forlì. Right now, I’m working for the Civil Service at the Integration Service Center of Forlì and I work for Laboratorio Mondo too.

For whom are you working for? Which are your skills?
As a part of my job, I’m the secretary-treasurer of Laboratorio Mondo.

Who is involved in your organisation’s activities? (what’s your target?)
Our target are both italian and forigner citizens, the wage of our activity until now is linked to the territory so we try to answer to the biggest problems and lacks in our place.

Why are you an activist? What’s the event that raised on you the need to participate actively in your country’s life?
I decided to take part in this project due in part to my academic background, but especially after meeting some professionists working in this sector who supported me and gave me passion and faith in the possibility of a change that can ameliorate our relations on which we should found tomorrow’s society!

The economic situation of your country influenced your decision?
Somehow yes.

Do you think this is going to be your work for life?
I wish that to me everyday!

Does your family and friends understand and approve?
Yes, people around me they support and follow with interest our activities.

Which was the project you where involved and you liked more?
Until now, the project I liked more was the one about the “Cultural Trip to Cambodia”, unless it was the project I was less involved, was the one in which we measured us in something totally new for us as responsible tourism.

If you could organize an international event, where would you like to settle it? Which topic would you choose?
The topic would be the social inclusion, the place Forlì, because I would like my city becoming the center for this society changement on the topic of immigration, which could become the model for “good practices”.

What do you think about Italy? And which kind of informations do you get in your country about Italy?
I think information is one of the biggest problems in Italy, both from the point of view its gives, and for who runs it, for the same reason of being managed and for the educative’s role taken by it.

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Ciao! Presentati: Come ti chiami, chi sei e da dove vieni?

Ciao! Sono Elena Bardi, ho 26 anni e vivo a Forlì. Attualmente, sto prestando Servizio Civile, presso il Centro Servizi per l’Integrazione di Forlì, e lavoro per l’Associazione Laboratorio Mondo.

Dove lavori? Quali sono i tuoi compiti all’interno dell’associazione?

Lavoro a Forlì per l’Associazione Laboratorio Mondo, mi occupo delle mansioni burocratico/amministrative, sono il Segretario

Chi viene coinvolto nelle attività dell’associazione?

I nostri utenti sono sia cittadini italiani che immigrati, la dimensione delle nostre attività, per il momento, è legata al territorio per cui tentiamo di dare risposta a quelle che sono le principali problematiche e mancanze a livello locale.

Perché sei un attivista? Qual’è l’evento che ha fatto nascere in te la necessità di partecipare attivamente nella società civile del tuo paese?

Ho deciso di partecipare a questo progetto in parte per la mia formazione universitaria, e soprattutto, dopo aver conosciuto alcuni professionisti che operano nel settore, i quali mi sono stati di supporto trasmettendomi passione e fede nel credere ad un possibile cambiamento in grado di migliorare le nostre relazioni su cui fondare la società del domani!

La situazione economica del tuo paese ha influito sulla decisione di essere attivista?

In piccola parte si.

Pensi che farai questo genere di cose per il resto della tua vita?

Lo auguro a me stessa tutti i giorni!

I tuoi amici approvano?E la tua famiglia?

Si, le persone accanto sostengono e seguono con interesse le nostre attività.

Qual’è il progetto a cui hai partecipato che ti è piaciuto di più?

Per il momento il Progetto che mi è piaciuto di più è stato quello sul “Viaggio culturale in Cambogia”, anche se è il progetto a cui ho collaborato in modo minore, però, è stato quello che ci ha permesso di misurarci, fin dall’inizio, con un ambito a noi sconosciuto come quello del turismo responsabile.

Se potessi organizzare un evento con risonanza internazionale, dove lo faresti? Quale tema porteresti?

Il tema sarebbe quello dell’inclusione sociale, e il luogo Forlì, perché vorrei che Forlì diventasse il centro del cambiamento di questa società nel campo dell’immigrazione, che diventasse un modello per le “buone prassi”.

Cosa pensi dell’Italia? E nel tuo paese che tipo di informazioni ricevi sull’Italia?

Credo che l’informazione sia uno dei principali problemi dell’Italia, sia per il punto di vista che fornisce, sia per chi la gestisce, per il fatto stesso di essere gestita e per il ruolo educativo che sta assumendo.

Get the Project Started!

Hi friends, collegues, sporadic readers! It’s Silvia writing.

As some of you should know, I’m the Director of Laboratorio Mondo, a brand new Association born in Italy to spread initiatives of social inclusion, researches on immigration and discrimination, creation of worldwide nets.

With our activities we address potentially to everyone who is interested in civil involvement and community help but also to whom wants to be part of our dialogues network.

The main goal of the Association is to change people’s believes about immigration a diversity. We think that struggling against prejudices means acting for truth.  Showing the truth means make visible what leads to Peace and what leads to Conflicts.

Our aim with the “Osservatorio Mondo” project (The World’s Observer project) is to share experiences with people from different parts of the world, to give them space to talk about their projects and country’s problems, to create a network and eventually a common initiative.

What I learned last year at the Peace Conference in Siem Riep, Cambodia organized by Youth For Peace (and I think the Authors agree with me) is that the more we listen to each other, the more we grow and enrich inside.

I’d like to thank the Authors who are supporting the project witing articles for free, believing in our goals. We think is important to have the chance to spread your voice and know there is somebody around the world who cares about what you say and happens in your country.

So please write us for advices, comments, ideas we appreciate your participation.
Silvia

Greetings from the Philippines

Ciao, Laboratorio Mondo and fellow bloggers/readers! I will start the discussion on this blog site by sharing some of my thoughts. Thanks to Silvia for including us in this initiative.

LaboratorioMondo (LM): HI! Tell us what’s your name, who are you and where do you come from?

Nikki: I am Nikki Al Ben Santos Delfin, from Quezon City, The Philippines. In case you don’t know, Philippines is in Southeast Asia.

LM: For whom are you working for? Which are your skills?

Nikki: I work for a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) called Gaston Z. Ortigas Peace Institute as a Programme Assistant for its different programs such as Peace Advocacy and Networking, Peace Education and Capability Building, and Peace Promotion and Studies. Our main work is on Peace-building. If you do not know, the Philippines is experiencing 40 year old wars on two fronts: 1) Communist insurgency struggling nationally and 2) a Muslim nationalist-separatist rebel movement in Southern Philippines.

LM: Who is involved in your organisation’s activities? (what’s your target?)

Nikki: Our organization acts as a secretariat for different networks/campaigns such as: Generation Peace Youth Network, Philippine Action Network on Small Arms, Philippine Campaign Against Cluster Munitions, 1000 Peace Women, Indigenous Peoples’ Peace Women, Mindanao Solidarity Network, etc.  So the involvement in our organization’s work on PEACE are diverse—NGOs, peoples’ organizations, women, youth, children, indigenous peoples, etc.

LM: How are fund raised the projects? Are national funds available from the institutions? And what are your relationship with international institutions?

Nikki: Funding is a major obstacle in our projects. National funds are almost non-existent. There is few funding coming from the government in peace efforts. Usually, funding comes from international institutions such as the UNDP or to other international NGOs like the International Alert. ASEAN, EU and Embassies of First World Countries also help support the local civil society initiatives in the country.

LM: Why are you an activist? What’s the event that raised on you the need to participate actively in your country’s life?

Nikki: I grew up in the activist culture of my family. Both my parents were also activists and activism is a common family discussion when I was still a kid. Also, growing up in the 80’s, I lived in a historical context fruitful for activism. The Philippines struggled against Martial Law rule of Ferdinand Marcos, and had a glorious triumph in toppling the dictator through the non-violent social change famously known as the EDSA Revolution.

There is no singular event in my life that urged me to participate actively in the country’s life but a collection of experiences and philosophies that flourished as I grew up. Poverty and underdevelopment, justice and equality, capitalism and socialism—these are just some of the realities and thoughts that I contended with while growing up.

LM: The economic situation of your country influenced your decision?

Nikki: Yes. The economic policy and practice in the country is also a big influence in being an activist. The economy is a root cause of armed conflict, it is a cause of inequalities, injustices and exclusion of many people.

LM: Do you think this is going to be your work for life?

Nikki: I cannot say if my work in a Peace NGO is permanent, but with activism it’s a different matter. Activism is not work, it is a moral principle that a person lives by. Whether you work as a doctor, a fisherman or still a student, you can be an activist and work on it for life.

LM: Does your family and friends understand and approve?

Nikki: Yes they do. Some friends do not approve, sometimes my family gets into quarrels because of our political and social principles, but generally we are respectful of everyone’s opinions and actions.

LM: Which was the project you where involved and you liked more?

Nikki: I am very engaged and delighted to work with the peacebuilding program and the youth program as well as the disarmament campaigns (small arms and light weapons, cluster bombs, etc.).

LM: If you could organize an international event, where would you like to settle it? Which topic would you choose?

Nikki: I would have the event where money or resources can permit. If there’s funding for it, then another country is possible such as Cambodia, Thailand, or Italy! But if not, then having it in the Philippines would be much cheaper. Not a lot of people are involved in peace, especially countries that do not have armed conflicts or great violence happening in their midst. I will choose Peace as a topic for an international event.

LM: What do you think about Italy? And which kind of informations do you get in your country about Italy?

Nikki: Aside from Italian food (that are actually fake Italian food) and Italian fashion (which is very expensive here, and there are also fake Italian fashion), we rarely know anything about Italy. We know that Italy is in Europe, and Italy has great wine, but we do not know much about Italy apart from superficial and stereotypical notions.

LM: What’s your motto (saying or quotation)?

Nikki: I don’t have anything in particular, but for my Italian friends, I would say “Posible ang kapayapaan”, which is the Filipino for “Peace is possible.”

Would you like to add more?

Nikki: Visit http://genpeace.tk/ if you want to know more about GenPeace. We are also inspired by www.iblogforpeace.org/ so you might want to check this site too.