Åsa Knutsson and Rolf Svanström, discussing with the Ellen group leader

Ellen and Allan is a special kind of method developed by Save The Children Youths. The method is used in groups with youths to discuss sensitive issues, such as power, norms, gender, structures and roles and SweZam is of course very interested to learn more about this.

Tuesday Oct 6, 2009:
In the evening we met Lovisa Arelid, local project leader for Ellen in Uppsala, and some of the group leaders in Uppsala. The Ellen-method was described by Lovisa and then we worked, with Lovisa as the group leader, as a group (about 10 people present), trying some of the activities that they run with 14 year old girls in small group meetings at different schools in Uppsala.

The activities that we tried, and discussed, were some that are included in the first meeting of a new Ellen-group and some other examples:
-    repeating each others names and some personally characteristic aspect;
-    interviewing each other 2 x 2 and then telling the whole group about colours, candy, animals etc that we would be if being that kind of thing;
-    the ‘hot’ chair (move if you agree) on different statements that Lovisa read out loud, e.g. “Girls have better self confidence than boys”, “Clothes can give self confidence”.
-    ‘Four corners’ with different alternatives on an issue about a girl thinking that she is lesbian and in love with her best friend. What would you do if you were in her situation?

The evening ended with some ‘fika’ and more informal discussions about Ellen and the importance of working with young girls, improving their self confidence, gender awareness etc.

More information about Ellen and Allan, you will find on their webpage. Read more on Ellen/Allan (external link) »

Text: Lisa Persson

During the two week visit to Sweden, our Zambian guests also had the opportunity to visit the Western part of Sweden and attend a fundraising event.

On Saturday Oct 10, chairman Rolf Svanström, together with the visitors from Zambia, Bruce Mubanga, Linda Malukutu and Don Mwindilila, and board member Owen Mwiinga, left Uppsala early in the morning, heading across Sweden for the west coast. The family Svanström has a summer house in Sundsandvik where the group stayed for a couple of nights. The programme included some sightseeing of the coastal area with the open sea being impressive.

In the evening of Oct 10, about 30 Zambian friends gathered at Änggårdskolonin, for dinner and sharing of information. Bruce presented the YRIC project and the other organisations presented their activities. Dan Allbäck briefly described the work of the Chiparamba Foundation (www.chiparamba.com) with youth in Southern Africa, including foot ball and other sports and cultural activities. Denny Salomonsson then illustrated how ZASP (Zambian Association for Sustainable Projects, www.zasp.org) for 20 years (celebrating this year!) have been involved in development cooperation in the Eastern Province in Zambia.

Also representatives of MaSwe (Malawi-Sweden Association) and Thandizo (about 20 Zambian families in the Gothenburg area) gave brief descriptions of  their organsations and plans they have for future activities, both short term (Oct 24 celebrations coming soon) and more long term. We all learned a lot from from each other this evening!

On Sunday Oct 11, the programme included participation in the Sunday service (in Swedish) and a guided tour (in English) of the cathedral in Gothenburg.

For the visit to Gothenburg, we thank Fredrik Jernqvist and his family who had the main responsibility for planning and arranging activities.

Monday, Oct 12, came and as a detour on the way back to the east side of Sweden, the group headed for Vadstena and a visit to Vadstena Folkhögskola where Ingemar and Ingegerd Lindarängen were hosts. They had cooperation with Mindolo during many years and were glad to meet the guests from there.

Text: Lisa Persson, SweZam board

Linda, Bruce and Don pointing out the fascinating Svanström-sign in Stockholm.

Sunday Oct 18, 2009:
Karin and Ylva picked up Linda, Bruce and Don at Hostel Bed & Breakfast, squeezed all the luggage into Karin’s car and drove about 100 kms north to Lisa’s place.

Also Rolf and Owen came from Uppsala. Sanne, Lisa’s daughter, described how Save the Children Youth was established and how it is organised; their values, methods and pedagogical views, and what activities they focus on, e.g. Ellen and allan groups that are found all over Sweden.

Then a final lunch on local lamb stew (bean stew for Don and Sanne), fruit salad and vegan cakes was served. We also discussed the remaining activities of the Exchange project, the evaluations to be done and reports to be written, before we said farewell to our counterparts from Zambia.

Text: Lisa Persson

One of the main focuses during those two weeks, that our Zambian guests are visiting Sweden, is to meet up with other organisations working in the same field, or with the same target group. So one Thursday evening we went to learn more about Nova Youth Center – a youth center on Lidingö, welcoming everyone, but focusing on girls and activities chosen by girls.

All of us visiting Nova Youth Center

- From the beginning I found it weird to hear that they arrange a girl’s evening, once a week, where they only let girls in. But I understand now that it’s a way to reach girls that won’t come at all. Also from Zambia I have the experience that it’s more often the boys that comes to the Youth Centers, says Bruce Mubanga, the SweZam youth organiser, who is visiting Nova for the first time.

We are on a guided tour in the pink sports hall at the Youth Center.

Through a guided tour at the center we got to know that the sports hall newly has been painted pink, to create a more feminized space. We found that the male youth leaders as often as they can, tries to involve the boys when baking cakes, and that the female youth leaders takes the girls along when they are about to arrange the sound system for the disco.

- These small things are not a goal in itself, it’s merely a way to reach a more gender equal environment for the youths, and create a wider range of choices for both sexes, says Frida Larsson, youth leader at Nova, with a special training in gender.

Linda is talking to a girl, sharing experiences between Sweden and Zambia!

This evening at Nova, there are about fifteen youths visiting, and they are a little bit shy at first, but when the Zambian guests are offered some Swedish “sill” to eat, the youths sneak closer to have a look.  After a short while, a girl is laughing with Linda, some youths are playing pool with Bruce, and Don finds himself trying to learn Swedish through some of the norm critical cartoons put up on the wall. All of them with small hand written questions added by Frida to the youths, trying to make them think a little bit further and see the world in a new way.

- Through a gender equality project at my work place, in 2004, I slowly started to see the world differently and so the strategy here at Nova was created, says Petri Peltonen, head of Nova Youth Center. Statistics show that 70 % of the resources at Youth Centres normally go to activities targeting boys, and here we want to balance that up a little bit!

Bruce is enjoying talking to some young people at the Youth Center

Bruce suddently comes out of the sports hall, totally sweaty, after playing basketball with the youths:
- This place is amazing! What if we had those resources in Zambia! Imagine what could happen! The youths wouldn’t have to go around without anywhere to go, using drugs, practising unsafe sex because of boredom or drinking alcohol!

Text: Ylva Werlinder, SweZam board

A few times per year Save the Children Youth Sweden (StCY) arranges activities for its youth leaders all around  Sweden, and coincidentally their multi-weekend was arranged in Älvsjö, south of Stockholm, during October 9-11.

Karin Johansson, SweZam and Sanne Hultgren, Save the Children Youth

Friday 9th of October
The multi-weekend is a working weekend, where different groups in the association meet to work and educate themselves. In addition, the reason is to meet with other engaged young people, to be inspired and have fun together.

We were invited to join the first evening of the gathering. We: Bruce, Linda, Don, Ylva, Karin and Rolf. The scout cabin in Långsjö Park was quite cold and empty, so we were served cups of tea to get some warmth in us, while Sanne Hultgren (vice chairperson of StCY) told us the background of StCY and the intentions of multi-weekends, furthermore we also chatted about other things.

Linda and Karin are discussing on the multi-weekend.

The objective of StCY is to achieve a sustainable change in the conditions that hinder the child from getting his or her rights respected and protected.
They work to:
• make children and youth aware of their rights
• make children and youth strengthened as individuals
• influence and improve the conditions of children and youth
An interesting comment from the Zambian team, I think, was something similar to ”But why do you even focus on Swedish children? You have all this free education, teachers are not allowed to punish you, and so on.” That led to an interesting discussion, as Swedish children might have a relatively good economic and materialistic standard, while the mental health of Swedish children is in a somewhat poor state.

Bruce and Don are surprised, in a bad respectively a good way, by the vegetarian food served at the weekend. (Don is a vegetarian!)

As a principle, for the future of our world, all the meetings arranged by StCY central try to serve nice vegan food. That is quite a statement and was very much appreciated by us!

Eventually more youth arrived, and the team was able to talk to among others, the international committee (?) who are interested in starting a project together with an organisation abroad. We will see if that can lead to something.

At 20:30 Rolf drove the Zambian team to Uppsala, for a week-end in Gothenburg, and Ylva and myself tried catching a bus – which actually was cancelled without any notification. It is possible even in Sweden…

Text: Karin Johansson, SweZam board