Exact dates TBA. Eighteen high school students and three teachers from Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) attend the highly interactive Youth Leadership Program and accompanying Teacher Professional Development Program, in Salem, Oregon, and Washington, DC.
Willamette University, the International Debate Education Association, and Shanghai University of Finance and Economics proudly announce the Third Annual China Open to be held on May 25 - 27, 2012.
Apart from debating, the most important element of the IDEA European Youth Parliament will be resolution and declaration writing. In fact, participants coming to the European Youth Parliament in Amsterdam (16-17 March) are requested to bring resolutions on selected topics (please see below).
Written resolutions and declarations will form the basis for the debates taking place in the legislative assembly of the IDEA European Youth Parliament. Resolutions will be main motions presented in a written form and as such will indicate the position that a team or an individual participating in the assembly want the assembly to take on a given issue. A resolution can be a simple statement of support for, or disagreement with, a policy, event, or other issue, or it can outline an action the assembly should take.
A declaration is similar to a resolution with three distinct differences. First, a declaration addresses another body, for example: European Parliament, Council of Europe of OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe). Second, members will affix their names to the bottom of the document to demonstrate their support. Finally, whereas a resolution states an action or view the assembly should adopt, a declaration initiates or continues cooperative efforts with other organizations efforts.
Themes for the IDEA European Youth Parliament
Following consultations with the young people participating in the IDEA European Youth Parliament, IDEA has chosen 4 themes for the upcoming event:
Expansion of the EU
Migration in the EU
Environmental protection in the EU
Increased EU engagement in world affairs
While the above themes are broad, participants preparing their resolutions should narrow them down to particular topics or issues: For example, each of the above themes can include the following sub-topics, which will provide the basis for identification of a problem or an issue that needs to be addressed.
Expansion of the EU
Turkey joining the EU (a hot potato)
Countries from of the Balkans (Croatia, Serbia) joining the EU
Ukraine joining the EU
Migration in the EU
Shengen Zone
Restrictions on movement for citizens from the new EU member states
Immigration into Europe from other continents and countries – Africa, Asia, etc.
Ethnic minorities in EU
Environmental protection in the EU
Genetically modified foods
Emission of CO2s
River and sea pollution
Fisheries
Increased EU engagement in world affairs
EU and the war in Iraq
EU relations with world powers USA (Russia, China, etc.)
EU and the developing world (e.g. Millennium Development Goals)
EU and crisis areas: Middle East, Darfur, Somalia, etc.
The above are presented as suggestions only and participants of the IDEA European Youth Parliament should feel free to select other topics under the themes as well as propose resolutions on new topics. You can also refer to www.europa.eu.int for useful information on EU policies relating to these topics.
Considerations for writing resolutions
Participants of the Parliament should follow the below guidelines and suggestions when preparing their resolutions and bear in mind the following functions of resolutions and declarations in a legislative assembly.
Resolutions isolate a specific problem and state a specific response based on observation of the problem. Therefore it is important that before members write their resolutions they must acquire a clear understanding of a chosen problem. Resolution writing on a given issue (and particularly the issues presented above) should be proceeded by researching a given problem as well as current policies that exists in order to address the problem (sometimes a problem may be caused by a lack of policies). Delegates must also remember that resolutions are presented with an intention to change the status quo (current situation)
Usually the resolution writing is divided into 5 steps:
Clearly articulate the problem and research its causes and effects.
Present current policies that address the problem and explain why they are not effective (status quo).
Determine the scope of the problems impact.
Think critically about why the assembly should act on the problem.
Develop a clear vision of how you want to solve the problem.
It is important to remember that resolutions are short documents – usually not longer than a page.
Form of Resolutions and Declarations
The forms of resolutions or declarations are quite simple and follow common conventions. The basic structure includes three elements:
A title that describes the subject matter you are addressing, e.g., "A Resolution to Reduce the Emission of CO2 gasses in EU"
A list of the reasons underlying the resolution or declaration. These are offered in a series of "whereas" statements that present the premises that support the conclusion your resolution draws or action it suggests.
The position or action you wish the assembly to adopt.
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