Don Bosco Youth-Net ivzw (DBYN) is an international network of Salesian youth work offices and youth organisations which work in the style of Don Bosco. The network brings together 13 member organisations from 13 EU member states. Don Bosco Youth-Net ivzw organises activities such including:
- Youth exchanges: groups of young people from different countries come together to live, play, learn and reflect together.
- Life learning trips: a guided group of young people on a trip to experience and learn from the life of young people coming from disadvantaged backgrounds.
- Voluntary service: a young person spends up to one year in another country to do youth work on a voluntary basis. This category also includes voluntary service in group, but groups mostly spend a maximum of 6 weeks abroad.
- Training courses: youth worker and volunteers from different countries take part in a training programme focused on a subject connected to youth work.
- Study visits: youth workers and volunteers from different countries visit youth projects in another country to learn from the projects visited and to exchange information.
- Seminars: youth workers and volunteers from different countries come together for workshops, lectures, … on a subject connected to youth work.
- Publications: our publications aim to inform members and volunteers, to promote the network and to support youth work practice in general.
Most Recent DBYN Stories
Back to the Future
22nd-25th November Back to the Future took place at Savio House in Bollington, UK. Although the weather was wet and a little cold the participants were full of life, energy and enthusiasm to explore the idea of taking their voluntary experiences and building the future.
25 Participants from 8 countries took part. We were pleased to welcome Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Malta, Poland, Spain and UK. Together they had volunteered across Latin America, Europe, Africa and Asia.
With these experiences they shared, contemplated and expanded on how they can continue to remain active and helping those in need. They explored the challenges young people face in their own countries. They looked at examples of local initiatives that have been set up and what kind challenges young people face. Together they formed ideas for local initiatives they could get involved with and even set up.
Active citizenship and Volunteering challenged their ideals. What does it mean to volunteer? What is active citizenship? How are they different? Working in groups they discussed their views and opinions trying to create a universal and agreed definition. Using Youth in Action and local initiative as a focal point they developed projects and ideas that they could do.
Our DBYN expert trainers from Malta (James) and Austria (Eveline and Kathi) delivered the program. With their skills, expertise and energy they enabled the participants to use their own volunteering experiences and develop new ideas for future engagement through local initiatives and with the help of Youth in Action. A BIG THANK YOU TO THE EXPERT TRAINERS
The UK Hosting team (Sue, Patrick, Ste and Marie) enjoyed Back to the Future and providing a very British service of tea, biscuits and socialising. “It was jolly good fun old chap”- Sue
Now Back to the Future has ended and the participants have left. They can now begin to engage in their local communities with some of the challenges young people face.
DBYN Network meeting – Confe Don Bosco
ON the 11th to the 14th October, myself and Partick Kerridge attended a DBYN network meeting in Logroño, Spain. The meeting was hosted by the Spanish youth ministry team, Confe Don Bosco, who were also holding their 17th congress of the Salesian youth centres at the same time. Confe Don Bosco were concentrating on how recent levels of youth unemployment has affected Spanish volunteers. DBYN saw this as an opportunity to work alongside Confe and discuss how DBYN can tackle youth unemployment as a network and to discuss what each partner organisation are doing within their provinces to reduce unemployment.
DBYN in Munich
Between the 8th of March and the 11th march 2012, we attended a seminar in the German City of Munich, as participants from Salesian Youth Ministry UK. The Seminar was entitled ‘Generations of Participation’ and was aimed at allowing us to learn from the messages of Older SDBs, FMA’s and Salesian Co-operators. This was primarily achieved by each participant preparing an interview of an SDB, FMA or co-operator. This interview was composed in the participants’ native tongue, and an English transcript was prepared. (more…)
Leave Now!
The title may suggest that we arrived at this DBYN seminar in Vienna just to be told to leave, but thankfully not! After 14 or so hours of travelling, I arrived to the Studentenheim Don Bosco to a warm welcome from the Salesian community and the volunteers who had already arrived. The volunteers were getting to know each other with various games involving standing on chairs….it could only be a DBYN seminar!
LEAVE actually stands for ‘lifelong engagement after volunteer experience’. An amazing seminar aimed at young people who have done some voluntary service abroad for 3 months or more. (more…)
Meet ME in Malta
From the 8th – 16th August 2011 MEET ME gave young people from 8 different European countries a chance to exchange traditions and build friendships through various fun activities, all under the beautiful Maltese sun.
Looking back over the past week and trying to remember everything that was crammed in all I can think is ‘what a week’. We did so much and every moment was one to remember, all the activities were well planned and delivered so all that was left for us to do was get to know each other, and that we did, we have made many friendships that should last for years to come. Here are just some of the highlights of our week. (more…)
