The International Republican Institute (IRI) co-hosted young political and governance leaders from Eurasia and Eastern Europe for a Young Political Leaders Seminar in Chisinau, Moldova in September 2006. The seminar was devoted to enhancing political leadership in emerging democracies and build on the success of a 2005 youth seminar held in Macedonia.
The four-day seminar, building on last year’s experience in Skopje, Macedonia, promoted shared experiences among the participants, encouraged discussion of public policy challenges in the countries represented, fostered concrete strategies to address those challenges and assisted participants in a program of online networking. They also created, The Democratic Youth Network, an internet web site that links participants and provides a springboard for future activism.
At the conclusion of the seminar, participants wrote and adopted the United European and Eurasian Youth Declaration, which stressed their belief in democracy, their commitment to the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and their desire to fight against corruption at all levels of government.
During workshop sessions participants identified public policy priorities in each of their respective countries and developed action plans for addressing key issues.
Topics included:
- Expanding Your Clout Within The Party
- Attracting Media Coverage For Your Cause
- Establishing A Viable Nongovernmental Organization
- Creating A Powerful Message
- Building Winning Coalitions
- Motivating and Mobilizing Your Peers
- Fundraising Made Easy
- What Does Democracy Mean to You?
Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin and newly appointed U.S. Ambassador to Moldova Michael Kirby addressed the seminar each spoke of the importance of youth involvement in the political process.
Seminar co-hosts included the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI) and The American Council of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL) with the cooperation of the Moldovan Ministry of Education and Youth. The United States Agency for International Development sponsored the seminar. Youth leaders from Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, Georgia, Kosovo, Kyrgyz Republic, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Ukraine and Uzbekistan attended.
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