„Meeting Friends“ – Youth Return Encounter Trip from Bosnien-Herzegowina
As part of a seven-day youth exchange trip from 24.09.2022 to 28.09.2022, young people from Bosnia and Germany came together for an intensive intercultural exchange. The trip took place in Witten and served the goal of promoting interreligious and intercultural dialogue as well as strengthening mutual understanding and cooperation between the young people.
The group began with a joint journey and a first getting-to-know-you session in Witten. During this, the young people visited Lernimpuls and got to know its various offerings and premises. The next day, they went on a city tour in Berlin, which focused on the history of the city, in particular the period of division and the Wall. A visit to the House of One in Berlin deepened the themes of interreligious dialogue and tolerance.
In Witten, the young people were divided into mixed small groups and took an active part in various projects of Lernimpuls. The exchange about these projects showed how important it is to learn from one another and to reflect on one's own prejudices. The young people from Bosnia were able to contribute their perspectives and experiences and, at the same time, learn a great deal from the German young people and their ways of working.
Another highlight of the trip was the Ruhr region tour, during which the participants learned more about the region together and exchanged views on social and cultural differences as well as commonalities. On the last evening, a farewell celebration took place, at which the young people reflected on their experiences and described the exchange as something very enriching.
The aim of the project was to encourage the young people to become aware of their own prejudices and to question them. The positive experiences were to be carried into their home countries as multipliers, in order to foster long-term relationships between the young people from Bosnia and Germany. In addition, a concept was developed that is intended to enable a sustainable partnership even without public external funding.
The project has contributed to bringing intercultural exchange and the conveying of democratic values into focus. Through the return exchange, the foundation is now to be laid for long-term cooperation that goes beyond the one-off encounters and contributes to fostering understanding and respect between cultures. We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to the Landschaftsverband Westfalen Lippe (LWL), whose funding made it possible for us to carry out this valuable project .
