ESC: YOU COMPOSE - Balkan Hotspot Media Lab

"U.S.B." was founded in Thessaloniki in 2008 to promote youth mobility, voluntarism, sports and society's sensitisation around social issues and human rights.
United Societies of Balkans (USB) 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. The vision of the organisation is the promotion of youth mobility, youth involvement and participation, voluntarism and human rights.
Activities:
Key areas of the organization’s activities concern the defence of human rights, the organization of youth related projects such as youth exchanges and training courses, which can bring young people from Balkans and Europe together, and the organization of local interventions, seminars and multimedia productions. It envisions a global and inclusive society, where citizens are equally empowered to contribute in the shaping of a world with less prejudice, discrimination and other forms of injustice.
U.S.B.’s objectives and values are actualized in the society and the needs of the youngsters by:
• Promoting the values of non formal learning, voluntarism, active citizenship and democracy for the creation of a better future for the European youth;
• Promoting human rights, solidarity and respect for diversity amongst youth and the society;
• Involving minorities and immigrants into youth activities;
• Building healthy cooperation bridges between countries of the area of the Balkans and Eastern Europe with the rest of Europe;
• Using New Media and Citizens’ Journalism methodologies to encourage youth expression, to raise awareness about Human Rights and to promote intercultural dialogue;
• Utilizing arts as a tool for the cultivation and expression of youth;
• Locating and multiplying the special cultural attributes of our societies;
• Breaking down prejudices and stereotypes among the European countries and amongst youth.
Networking:
United Societies of Balkans has been a member organization of FERYP(Forum of European Young People), UNITED for Intercultural Action, Salto-Youth, Thess Network-regional NGO network(coordinator), Anna-Lindh Foundation(co-head of the Greek National Network), Youth for Exchange and Understanding(YEU International), Butterfly Dreamer and DYPALL(Developing Youth Participation at Local Level).
United Societies of Balkans since 2008 has implemented and involved in many local and international activities, based on formal and non-formal education, by trying to underline the important role of experiential learning and non-formal education and to include tools and methods of the non-formal education to the mainstream education. Especially, under the new frame of “Erasmus+” the need of the society for the recognition of the non-formal education and the benefits that are coming through it is more obvious than ever.
The organization has a very rich experience in organizing international youth activities and gives the opportunity to local youngsters to meet and interact with other youngsters from Europe. It has implemented successfully more than 40 youth and other projects about many different subjects, having hosted more than 2,600 youngsters in Greece. The organization’s target group is youth between 16 to 30 years old, regardless of their educational, cultural, ethnic, etc. background and its activities are always based on the needs and interest of them and the society. Therefore, it has developed a very diverse and rich experience in youth work, having worked in different topics that have advanced its expertise in human rights education, intercultural learning, gender related issues, new media techniques, entrepreneurship, ecology and many more.
Moreover it has been involved in more than 1000 youth projects and has prepared and sent around 2,000 youngsters abroad to youth mobility projects. It tries always to give priority to youngsters with fewer opportunities, such as, Roma, LGBTI, immigrants, living in rural areas, from broke families, etc.
USB is also a very active organisation in the field of EVS. Since 2009 it has hosted 180 volunteers in projects of 10 months and has sent 30 volunteers abroad. The main tasks of the hosting project are connected with the new media and EVS volunteers run a web radio, e-television and e-magazine (Balkan Beats).
More information about the experience of the organization and the projects that has realized in the past can be found at www.usbngo.gr/en