
Global Youth Rising (GYR) is an International Youth Forum bringing together young activists and peacebuilders from around the world to learn, share and co-create exciting new projects through workshops, discussions and open spaces. The first GYR was held in 2016 in a stunning location in the Romanian countryside and brought almost 70 young change-makers from around the globe and was a join project in conjunction with several partners.
- To increase youth activists and peacebuilders’ knowledge, skills and empowerment in the fields of conflict transformation, peacebuilding, activism and social justice, which will ultimately benefit individuals and their organizations and communities
- To create a powerful and inspiring forum where youth activists, organisations and movements from a variety of backgrounds can share and exchange ideas and experiences linked to their work in the field, including specific examples from their organisations
- To enable individuals from organisations with similar goals (peace, social justice, environmental protection) to collaborate and create partnerships in order to strengthen their causes and the work on their organisations with the wider vision of creating a global peace movement
- To support the development of a global movement of citizens and a united campaign to bring about an end to the wars in Syria, Libya, Iraq and Yemen
- To create a forum for sharing, cooperation and exchange between participants from different backgrounds and to create collaborative movements between organizations worldwide
- The development of a strong social, organizational and field-based platform to continue the sharing and development of ideas and relationships beyond the physical gathering.

Global Youth Rising consisted of several workshops, both core and optional. Workshops were delivered by PATRIR and external trainers from partner organisations, and covered topics such as Designing Peacebuilding Programs, creating activist videos and campaigns, peace journalism, peace education, countering violent extremism, and inner peace and resilience.
Evening activities included “TED” style talks from participants, where they shared information about their work; an evening of “Sharing our Stories”, where Jo Berry, Bjorn Ihler and Asma Khalifa shared their experiences; film nights with screenings of The Trials of Spring and In Pursuit of Peace; music and cultural sharing evenings; a Living Library; and an Open Mic night where participants were able to showcase their talents.
In addition to workshops, the first day consisted of introductions, setting intentions and goals, and the creation of reflection groups. Reflection groups met every other day to discuss topics covered, feelings, questions etc. In addition, morning briefings were introduced upon request for participants to air their concerns and feelings. During the latter part of the Forum, space was created for participants to create action groups, designing plans to work toward goals related to their areas of concern – e.g. peace education, peace journalism. Meditation and yoga were also offered in the mornings and evenings and there was a day trip offered to nearby attractions.

During the last two days of the forum, Open Spaces were created for participants to propose projects and work on them together with others who were interested. Several ideas were generated from this and working groups were set up online so that participants could continue to work on them after the Forum.
During GYR, a number of participants learnt and filmed choreography for Break the Chain, the dance for One Billion Rising. Additionally, participants took part in a solidarity video for Black Lives Matter.
A newsletter team was set up, and monthly newsletters are now being sent to GYR alumni and other interested parties detailing what participants are now doing. The first newsletter was released in August, with the intention being to release them monthly.
Kai Frithjof Brand-Jacobsen
DPO Director and Trainer
Andra Tanase
Research and Senior Trainer
Gwyneth Hamann
Lead Coordinator
Sabin Mureșan
Associated Trainer
Benedikt Hielscher
Project Coordinator
Ilona Traista
Project Coordinator
Claudia Ilinca Toderean
Project Coordinator
Sonia Dragos
Project Coordinator
Bianca Ionel
Project Assistant

If you want to know more, please write an email to: [email protected].