Cultura
A contest to show how civic activism can really trigger the change
The challenge is open to students, journalists and activists from Central and Eastern Europe between 18 and 30
di Staff
The Trust for Civil Society in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE Trust) is launching a contest as part of the Civil Society Forum – an international meeting of activists, academics and NGO professionals that will take place in Bratislava, Slovakia 16th – 18th September 2009.
The contest is open to legal residents of the following countries of Central and Eastern Europe: Albania, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Hungary, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine.
The competition has three categories: essay, photo story and video. People are free to choose their favourite form of expression. All entries should be related to civil society issues and should be inspired by the notions of civic engagement and activism.
You may describe a personal story of civic activism, present the issues that matter to you the most, or try to illustrate the civic engagement in your local community.
Entries will be judged by an international jury including members of the CEE Trust team, independent activists and other professionals with experience in the field.
The prizes
The best three winners will be offered a scholarship of up to 2,000 USD (approximately 1,500 €) to realize their plan for personal development, as outlined in the contest entry form. You are welcome to submit your ideas in any area, however preference will be given to ones that relate to civil society in some way.
The scholarship may for example be used for:
– an internship in a European NGO, international organization, or any other European institution;
– studies or courses taken abroad;
– a travel grant to visit an event or an organization related to the participant’s field of study, work or activism.
All you have to do is to convince us of the importance of this scholarship for your future plans and your role in society.
Additionally, the top three candidates in each of the three categories will be invited to join us at the Civil Society Forum with the cost of flights and accommodation covered. Winners will also have the option to simultaneously gain hands-on experience by working in an international team of young people documenting the forum in writing, photography and film. The documentary team’s work will be used to create the Civil Society Forum post-event publication. Members of the documentary teams will be advised by professional mentors and will be offered a symbolic remuneration for their contributions.
All the best works in each category will be published online, on the CEE Trust website, the Civil Society Forum contest’s MySpace and Facebook profiles, and the Civil Society Forum YouTube channel. The best essays and selected pictures will also be published, acknowledging your authorship, in conference materials and in the post-event publication. Selected works will be shown in a special exhibition, taking place during the Civil Society Forum.
The deadline for submission of entries is July 12, 2009. Contest rules and further details and guidelines on submission are available here.
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