19.08.2005

Conductor: Mikkel Dybtved Andersen

Raporteur: Kadi Grichin

Denmark: We have started making the national Youth Committee. We have twice a year meeting for young ambassadors. In each city, where there is a local committee, there should be at least one young person inside of the committee.

In the future we will also have to have national youth committee – so we have it on local level and we have to continue with it on the national level.

Usually we have lots of struggles in the organizations, but this initiative is taken positively.

Brazil: Sometimes, for young people, the joining to the structure is not interesting. Constructing things, making a statute, discussing projects etc – it is not so fun than just a voluntary work on the streets or elsewhere. It would be good idea to get started in the universities where there are young people with different interests. One could find a lawyer who is interested in rules of procedures etc., another person will do what he/she is good at.

1^ST step to create a national committee: You need an active leader or coordinator of the youth work, someone who will lead the process. Young people loose interest really quickly.

Someone who can gather them together and lead, making sure that young people gets the news, prepare the manuals; setting up the date for meetings; explaining different things; dividing the responsibilities.

The coordinator can be paid.

If the coordinator is unpaid, the work takes time, because they are having full-time work somewhere else.

Denmark – there are people in the organization that are paid, that’s why it goes faster than elsewhere.

Luxembourg – in the national organization there are old people, who won’t support anything that is connected to the youth work. There is no university in Luxembourg – young people go abroad. Target the young donors? Problem – no e-mail address available…

Propositions considering the Luxembourg problem:

* To write down and leave the information about an idea of creating the Youth Committee to the blood centers, then you can find the people to work with.

* Maybe old members are afraid of losing their positions. So, they won’t have the energy to do or support the "Youth work". We have to start to do it ourselves if we want it to be done. Five persons are already enough to start creating the national committee for young donors. To get a lot of donors, go to some music festival etc.

* It would be, however, greatest, if the older, but experienced people in organization will be tutoring the youth. We should listen, follow their advices.

* Go inside of the organization, look around, get involved, get respected and then start to do something to change things and do things for young people.

* Find allies.

* Get the group together, don’t give up.

QUESTION: How can FIODS help us to create the national committees?

In FIODS Rules of Procedure there is the sentence: "There should be created National youth committees in the member countries." So, actually it is the duty of the national organizations to follow the statute.

PROPOSAL: The President of IFBDO could propose to the member countries start and support National Youth Committees.

Meanwhile the IYC will create a small guide of how to start a National Youth Committee based in the follow steps that were consider important by the group:

FIND SOMEONE TO COORDINATE VOLUNTEERS (good in listening, solving conflicts, coordinating)

START PROJECTS TO FIND YOUNG VOLUNTEERS

FIND LEADERSHIP BETWEEN YOUNG PEOPLE RECRUITED

ASK AND SUPPORT THEM TO DO PROJECTS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

SUMMARY: Denmark is in the best situation, there the process of creation of the national youth committee has begun.

In the other countries there are several different problems that we could help to solve by discussing them through among us and come up with some solutions that have been successful elsewhere.