activities Archives - Europe House

Natali Mango, designer of the Europe House Calendar

Dear readers of Europe House Buzz,

I am happy that I had the honour to work with Europe House, and this experience as a young graphic designer played a big role in further shaping my views on my career, giving me great motivation to move ahead confidently.

I am very glad that Europe House supports young people and believes in them, and thus has an impact on raising their self-confidence!

For me, as a young graphic designer, the whole concept of creating a calendar, preparing it for printing and matching all the client’s needs in one complete product was a really big challenge, encouraging me to believe in myself and to give my best.

The whole process of presenting the 12 youth goals was quite inspiring, accompanied by a lot of research on my part so that I could illustrate each of their goals in the best light possible. In the process of researching the goals I, as a young person, learned a lot, which I consider to be a great advantage.

This collaboration really marked the past year for me, and the very invitation to share my experience in the Newsletter BUZZ welcome letter showed me how much Europe House supports young people in what they do!

I hope that Europe House will be a motivation and an example for others to support young people and to believe in them, all in order to give them the opportunity to express their creativity, because as the saying goes, “The youth are the future”.

Natali Mango, young designer

GreenFilm Competition – Youth Creative Criticism of the Consequences of Climate Change

2022 is the European Year of Youth!

Our question is: How can the youth be encouraged and activated? And this is where we start the brainstorming of ideas and initiatives. This time–motivated and concerned by the global changes in the ecosystem–we decided to turn the spotlight on the young audience. Young people always have a sharp eye and a sincere approach that is often overlooked by adults. So, the gauntlet has been thrown down. Tell us your story through the #GreenFilm Competition! Many young people affected by the changes in the ecosystem responded with their creative videos. To our great pleasure, the 10 best films were shown on the big screen in the cinema Frosina, MKC. Leona Jarikj, with her film entitled “Promo,” won the main prize – a professional camera as an incentive to develop her talent and continue to advocate for environmental protection.

Giving the Floor to New Names via the New Podcast with Arlinda Biftau

Europe House continually promotes diversity, creating more space for the expression of youth. As of 14^thof February, we have started broadcasting Podcasts in the Albanian language.

The TV presenter and youth worker Arlinda Baftiu conceives of it as a space to promote artists who reflect on different social issues, as well as creative individuals who initiate changes in the community through ideas and acts. The Podcast will be an open space for discussion by critical minds and role models and will aim to develop and contribute to European values.

Her first guest was the innovative fashion creator Amra Ismani. Being aware of the negative effect the fashion industry has on the environment, Amra initiated a unique philosophy in support of her cause.

As a teenager, she created her own brand “Armma”, a brand based on the idea of creating multifunctional modern clothing by reducing negative effects on the environment. You can get to know Amra Ismani’s creative world in the first broadcast of the Podcast, where she discusses her critical concepts, and this may change your perceptions of the role the fashion industry and clothing have. Her motto is “We can save the world by also looking good”.

On the 14^th of each month, you can get to know other inspiring people.

‘What has been done? How far have we come? Where are we going?’

Europe House continued the series of talks with the Club of Young Doctors in order to emphasize the humane dimension of the medical profession. We opened the topics of organ donation and transplantation, as well as of blood donation, in order to raise awareness of humanity, but also of the need for legal changes. Europe House will continue the practice of in-depth discussions by speaking out about the problems faced by patients, their families, and doctors. The ultimate goal, always, is finding practical and functional solutions that can be implemented in the system. That is why the panel discussion speakers were: Ambassador David Geer and Prof. Dr. Elizabeta Gjorgievska, Prof. Dr. Aleksandar Petlichkovski, Dr. Irina Panovska- Stavridis, Dr. Bozidar Kochovski, Dr. Maja Mojsova Mijovska, and the moderator Dr. Nikola Brzanov, President of the Club of Young Doctors.

One “Amazing” Year – Europe House Kriva Palanka

Over the course of 1 year, we’ve been identified as the voice of the youth from the North Eastern region. We continue to encourage youth participation and engagement, empower innovation and creativity, stimulate critical thinking, and, emphasize youth’s key concern – making environmental protection a priority.

On the occasion of Europe House Kriva Palanka’s 1^stBirthday, many young people from Kriva Palanka, Rankovce, Kumanovo, and Kratovo–who were very active since the opening –joined us in Europe House Kriva Palanka and presented their ideas and works to the EU Ambassador, the Swedish Ambassador, the Bulgarian Ambassador, and the Mayor of Kriva Palanka. We enjoyed the warm regards (or wishes) from the young people, learning how has Europe House facilitated and supported their initiatives. In addition, we enjoyed fantastic piano performance by young and talented musician(s).

Being one of the first Europe Houses in our region, we actively worked with dedication on creating youth-friendly cities.

Briefly, over 150 in-house events were organized and most of those events were initiated by the youth.

3,400 young people from Kriva Palanka and the region actively participated in our activities.

On the occasion of Europe House Kriva Palanka’s 1^st Birthday, many young people from Kriva Palanka, Rankovce, Kumanovo, and Kratovo–who were very active in the first year–joined us in Europe House Kriva Palanka and presented their ideas and works to the EU Ambassador, the Swedish Ambassador, the Bulgarian Ambassador, and the Mayor of Kriva Palanka. We had the pleasure of seeing the messages of the young people about what Europe House Kriva Palanka means to them. Music is a very important part of Europe House Kriva Palanka’s activities and we enjoyed the piano performance of the talented youth.

In the end, in the spirit of friendship and togetherness, we ended the day with a friendly basketball match between young female basketball teams from Sofia, R. Bulgaria and from Kriva Palanka, and had the pleasure to see a dance performance by the regional modern dance club from Kumanovo.

1 Year as the Central Hub of the Youth from the Region – Europe House Strumica!

Europe House Strumica in the past year has undoubtedly become a leading place for connecting and engaging young people in the region! Europe House Strumica has organized numerous exhibitions, eco- actions, debates, and events for networking of young people and authorities.

The highlight of the activities organized in February by Europe House Strumica was definitely the birthday events happening from the 15^th through the 25^th of February!

Throughout these 10 days, the youth in Strumica had a variety of programmes and activities, from street corner musical performances by high schoolers, audio-visual events, and as a cherry on top. The official birthday, 21^st of February, was marked with proper celebration. Young people from Strumica had the pleasure in participating at the opening of the “Time travel under the open sky” exhibition, followed by the play ”Youth Goals Hunt” in the Small city park, enjoy a dance and music performance by a collective of young artists from the South Eastern region, united specifically for the occasion of the Europe House Strumica birthday. During the day the young people from Strumica and the region had the opportunity to meet and share experiences with the Young European Ambassadors Mila, Vojdan, Aleksandar, Funda, Damjan, Gent, and Ivan, as well as other youth activists from the region who had participated in the events of Europe House Strumica throughout the year.

Buzz you on the flip side,
until next time!

Vjosa Berisha – Team leader of Europe House

Dear readers of Europe House Buzz,

I am happy to start the year with great enthusiasm and pride, having in mind that we left behind a very successful year, despite the difficulties of the pandemic.

As we enter this New Year, we have already made plans for what will be happening in our house, and we are happy that our slogan – “Place for the new generation” – is in line with the planned activities.

There will be art exhibitions, film screenings, concerts, competitions, debates and discussions, and what is more important, we want to hear from you – what activities you want to see, and where you want to see Europe House in the future. Therefore, please log in to our freshly re-designed website or on our social media and give us your ideas!

The Green Deal campaign will also continue throughout the year, so issues related to the environment will be an important part of all our activities!

So please join us in our activities and let us know how we can make our work better and more impactful.
Wishing you a happy and healthy 2022! Don’t forget to check out the Buzz!

Vjosa Berisha

Team leader of Europe House

“You look beautiful today” – a story from another point of view

East Gate Mall Skopje hosted an exhibition of photography on the occasion of the International Human Rights day. The title “You look beautiful today!,” shows that the exhibition is focused on the eyes of extraordinary people, everyday heroes, and inspirational activists – people who fight for their rights and the rights of others every day.

The exhibition “You look beautiful today” is focusing on 12 people from our communities who act as drivers of change on a daily basis – whether it is by their birth or the way they choose to live their lives. They are students, coffee shop owners, anthropologists, PhD candidates, pianists, employees, members of family, and above all – they are all equal people.

By putting their eyes in the centre of attention, the exhibition is not only expressing their beauty but also intends to show the world from their point of view.

Big works of art speak for themselves, and this time we give room to the great masters to tell the story of their experience and the process of self-observation through the creation of this important urban, social, but also inclusive project. Behind the camera is Tatjana Rantasha, while the visual look of the exhibition was made by the designer Zoran Kardula.

About the inside experience of this photoshoot, and for the future collaborations, the photographer of the exhibition “You look beautiful today” – Tatjana Rantasha:

Europe House Skopje united film fans at the “European Film Week”

Europe House is focusing its camera on quality European art and it is always seeking to open new windows for greater availability of the European production. A BUZZ such as this was the European Film Week, which was held from 11 to 17 December in the Youth Cultural Center (YCC) in Skopje.

The programme included a screening of European films, awarded or selected from the A-lists from the Sundance festival, Cannes, Venice, Toronto, Karlovy Vary, San Sebastian, etc. The film selection was made in collaboration with the European Film Festival, as well as with film festivals in our country. As always, we tried to reach young people’s ideas through debates on topics from the films, related to important cultural, social, economic, and general social issues.

There is no better person to speak on this topic than Margarita Arsova, the editor of the film programme of YCC, which welcomed our initiative to promote European Film culture in the country.

Bold questions were raised by the exhibition “The mystery behind woman’s look” by Erina Bogoeva

During the campaign “16 days of activism against gender-based violence” we talked with Erina Bogoeva, the photographer of the exhibition “The mystery behind woman’s look.”

“The beauty of a woman is not only her physical appearance. Rather, it pours out of her resilience, persistence, creativity, and dedication to fulfill her potential. All these things are present in a woman’s look, and regardless of what she is looking at, the eyes are firmly set on the ultimate goal.”

We promoted similar ideas in October, at the exhibition of photography “The Mystery of woman’s look” by Erina Bogoeva. We extended the exhibition with talks with some of the portraitists of this series of portraits of young and talented women – Natalija Teodosieva (actor), Ana Jakimska (director), Ksenija Nikolova (writer), Sim Saltirova (make-up artist), who, despite all limiting factors, leave a mark on our cultural milieu.

The creator of the exhibition, photographer Erina Bogoeva, answered questions regarding the personal accomplishments of the guests in their chosen creative professions, the obstacles they face as women, their future projects, and many more associated questions.

Huge BUZZ around “Inclusion Matters! – We are all equal!” event organized by Europe House Kriva Palanka

On the occasion of the World Day of persons with disabilities an inclusive and multimedia event was held entitled “Inclusion Matters! -We are all equal!.“ The event conveyed a strong and multifold message for preservation of the environment and a world of inclusivity!

Europe House Kriva Palanka supported an event that merged two important aspects, one of inclusivity and, secondly—but not less importantly—the responsible preservation of the environment. Among the many activities held within this event, young artists from the State high school of fine art and design “Lazar Lichenoski” drew murals in the centre with messages for the preservation of planet Earth.

Many activists, associations, embassies and municipalities actively participated in the event. (Pink Support, Association Handicap Plus, Horse Riding club Animals, Alliance for Regional and Civil Initiatives ARCI from Blagoevgrad, Municipality of Rankovce, Municipality of Kriva Palanka).

The Ambassador of the Republic of Bulgaria in our country and his wife Biljana Angelova were important participants in the event, both in the organization of the event and with their speeches. We are conveying the message of Biljana Angelova for Europe House BUZZ:

The creative explosion of youth channeled through “Europe House Talks”

Strumica has the reputation of being the most active town in our country, when it comes to cultural and urban living. Like the spirit of the town, young people from Strumica are thirsty for new artistic trends and movements, and are open for new names in different areas. Europe House Strumica feels the BUZZ of young people, and that was the reason for organizing “Europe House Talks” with original content, opening up a wide variety of trending topics, mostly interesting for young people, but also the public in general. This talk-show has the intention to provoke talks with young people who want to be a part of the public life of the community, performing arts and other areas. Here they talk on topics such as the culture of performing arts in the EU countries, whether they can find similarities, how to improve, creativity, inspiration, inclusivity, etc.

The moderator of the show was Panche DIMOV, who brings new guests on every show and inspires young people from the region. This is his message and hope for the upcoming year 2022: