2-3 December 2009 - Kick off meeting in Pristina:  Thanks to the generous funding of the National Endowment for Democracy, the Austrian Development Agency, Erste Foundation and the Balkans Trust for Democracy (with funding from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands), the CDRSEE kicked-off a new round of activities to be implemented around the Western Balkans region. The kick-off meeting took place in Pristina where the project team met with all major stakeholders involved in the project, including its partner, Kosova Education Center (KEC). Project outputs will be: the publication of a users guide to multi-perspective and participative teaching methodology in the Albanian Language; 4 seminars for history teachers, 3 of which will be led by local history teachers and 10 in-school training session. For further information on the Joint History Project, please click here!

14 - 15 December 2009: CDRSEE at conference Why museums and to whom.  The CDRSEE was invited to participate in the conference entitled: Why museums and to whom – Museum as forum and actor. What is the role of museums in contemporary society and what future roles can they play, which took place on 14-15 December at theMuseum of Yugoslav History in Belgrade, Serbia. To read full article, click here.

14 December 2009: CDRSEE at First Alliance of Civilization’s South East European Conference. The CDRSEE took part in the conference organised by the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, which took place in Sarajevo in the Building of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina on 14 December 2009. For more, click here.

9 November 2009: European Parliament Subcommittee Meeting on Human Rights holds a Public Hearing in Brussels on Human Rights in the Western Balkans. The Parliament's Public Hearing on Human Rights in the Western Balkans - Refugees, Resettlement and Reconciliation took place in Brussels last November 9, and provided for a comprehensive presentation of the issues at hand in the region. Mr. Nenad Sebek, the CDRSEE’s executive Director was invited as a guest speaker at this occasion, and the CDRSEE's executive Director gave a comprehensive presentation about the state of reconciliation in Southeast Europe, as well as of the challenges still faced by the Western Balkans in this reconciliatory process. Mr. Sebek’s presentation was followed by a set of very pertinent questions and discussion. To read more, click here. Click here to read the report on the hearing!

October 29 – 30, 2009: CDRSEE represented at European Center for Peace and Development’s International conference in Croatia. On October 29-30 2009, Dr. Erhard Busek, Chair of the CDRSEE Board of Directors, and Mr. Nenad Sebek, CDRSEE Executive Director, participated in the Fifth ECPD International Conference in the Brioni Islands, Croatia. The conference, entitled “National and Inter-Ethnic Reconciliation, Religious Tolerance and Human Security in the Balkans”, was opened by a presentation by the President of the Republic of Croatia, H.E. Stjepan Mesić. To read more, click here.

09 October 2009: Do you want to know more about the Joint History Project at a glance? New and updated overviews of the project are now available for free download! The overviews provide for a detailed account of the project's milestones, highlights and organisation. Find out more about the JHP:
Detailed Overview of the JHP
Summarised Overview of the JHP

11 – 15 September 2009: CDRSEE Executive Director takes part in International Youth Conference in Krushevo. Mr. Nenad Sebek was invited to give the Keynote speech at the International Youth Conference organised by Youth Alliance and entitled “European Values for the Future of Southeast Europe”, which took place in Krushevo, in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, between 11 and 15 September 2009. The conference gathered 51 participants from across Southeast Europe, and speakers included Mr. Erwan Fouéré, ambassador of the European Union to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, who spoke about EU perspectives for Southeast European countries.

09 September 2009: French General Consul Mr. Christian Thimonier and Director of the French Institute of Thessaloniki, Mr. Julien Chiappone-Lucchesi visit the CDRSEE. The Consul and Mr. Chiappone-Lucchesi were introduced to the CDRSEE team and Executive Director during a visit to the Center’s offices in Thessaloniki. They were given a comprehensive introduction to the CDRSEE’s activities since 1998, as well as its aspirations and plans for the future. A greatly constructive dialogue followed about the challenges faced in the region, and both the Consul general and Mr. Chiappone-Lucchesi showed much interest in the Center’s work and the CDRSEE will keep them closely informed of its progress in the future.

1 September 2009: CDRSEE takes part in Alpbach Political Symposium. CDRSEE Executive Director represented the Center in this year’s Political Symposium, titled “Trust Between Individuals and States”, which took place from Sunday, 30 August to Tuesday, 01 September 2009. Mr. Sebek gave a presentation entitled “How Turkish is Your Coffee?” providing for a productive discussion within the panel “Trust between Cultures”. This year’s forum included a great number of prestigious personalities, among them the Secretary-General of the United Nations Ki-Moon Ban. To read more, click here.

01 July 2009: German Consul Mr. Walter Leuchs visits the CDRSEE. The CDRSEE team and Executive Director were pleased to welcome the Consul in the Center’s Thessaloniki site to present the Center’s initiatives in the region. The Consul and Mr. Sebek discussed the challenges still faced in the region, especially environmental challenges. The Consul was given a thorough presentation of the Center’s future plans in this regard and expressed his interest in being regularly informed of the CDRSEE’s initiatives and progress.

30 June 2009: British Ambassador to the Hellenic Republic Dr David Landsman OBE visits the CDRSEE. Ambassador Landsman OBE was welcomed by the CDRSEE team and Executive Director in the Center’s premises in Thessaloniki to discuss the Center’s work in the region. He was given a thorough introduction to the CDRSEE’s initiatives over the past 10 years, as well as its future plans. The Ambassador showed much interest in the Center’s efforts and the CDRSEE will keep him closely informed of its progress in the future.

25 June 2009: CDRSEE Executive Director presents the JHP in Dubrovnik. On the occasion of a seminar organised under the umbrella of the European Fund for the Balkans in Dubrovnik, Nenad Sebek, the Center’s Executive Director, gave a lecture to the participants of the Fellowship Programme for Young Government Officials from the Western Balkans - Supporting Excellence and Leadership in Governance. Mr. Sebek presented to the trainees the Center’s Joint History Project, in a lecture entitled: “How Turkish is Your Coffee? – The Southeast European Joint History Project”.   To read full article, click here.

24-26 June 2009: CDRSEE joins the ERSTE Foundation in a high-profile conference in Bucharest. The Center was invited to participate by the ERSTE Foundation to the conference The Future of Social Change 1989 – 2009: Visions and Perspectives after 20 Years of Transition, which took place between 24 and 26 June 2009 in Bucharest, Romania. The conference aimed at marking the 20 year anniversary of the fall of Communism with a look back at the developments of the last 20 years in order to assess and address challenges ahead. To read more, click here.

25-26 April 2009: Third Local Teacher Training Workshop for the Croatian Language Edition of the JHP Workbooks. Gathering over twenty history teachers primarily from Dalmatia, Dubrovnik was the host to the third and last for this cycle local teacher training workshop for the Croatian language edition. Present were local language editor and international trainer Kresimir Erdelja, history professor and international trainer Snjezana Koren and director of local partner HUNP and teacher trainer Ivan Dukic. Additionally, history teachers Nikola Damjanovic, Sonja Bancic and Kiti Korda were present in the capacity of local teacher trainers and each delivered one model lesson. To read full article, click here.

18-19 April 2009: Third Local Teacher Training Workshop for the Bosnian Language Edition of the JHP Workbooks. Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina was host to the third and final for this cycle, local teacher training Workshop for the Bosnian language edition, gathering teachers from this region of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Workshop was led by local language editor and teacher trainer Enes Milak as well as by professors of history and teacher trainers Munib Efendić and Dragan Gavran. Professors Efendić and Gavran were first introduced to the JHP at the Training of Trainers Conference held in April 2008 in Sarajevo. To read full article, click here.

2 April 2009: the European Parliament approved a report concerning “a motion for a European Parliament Resolution on consolidating stability and prosperity in the Western Balkans”. The report makes direct reference to the Joint History Project where it is stated that the European Parliament " fully supports initiatives, such as the Joint History Project of the Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeast Europe, aimed at writing and disseminating joint history-teaching materials that provide a multi-perspective account of Balkan history, and calls on the competent ministries, educational authorities and educational establishments in the region to endorse the use of joint history teaching materials"

7-8 March 2009: Second Local Teacher Training Workshop for the Croatian Language Edition of the JHP Workbooks. Gathering over twenty history teachers primarily from Slavonia, Osijek was the host to the second local teacher training workshop for the Croatian language edition. Present were local language editor and international trainer Kresimir Erdelja, history professor and international trainer Snjezana Koren and director of local partner HUNP and teacher trainer Ivan Dukic. Additionally, history teacher Nikola Damjanovic, one of the participants at the Training of Trainers Conference in Zagreb was present in the capacity of local teacher trainer and delivered one of the model lessons. For full article click here.

21 February 2009: Second Teacher Training Workshop held in Nicosia, Cyprus. The second Teacher Training Workshop took place at the Ledra Palace Hotel, UN Buffer Zone. The event, organised in cooperation with the Association for Historical Dialogue and Research (AHDR) and co-funded by UNDP-ACT and A.G. Leventis Foundation, addressed thirty-five participants from across the existing divide of Cyprus.  One international trainer and five local trainers presented model lessons based on the Joint History Project materials and discussions took place regarding the best use of the Alternative History Teaching Materials in classrooms.

20 February 2009 (Prishtina) & 21 February 2009 (Prizren): Joint History Project - Local Teacher Training Workshop – two local teacher training workshops for the Albanian language edition, were organised by CDRSEE in cooperation with Kosovo Education Center (KEC). The first one day workshop took place in Prishtina and was attended by 21 teachers from surrounding areas, outside the city. Two of the teachers, who were trained during the December 2008 workshop, presented model lessons, providing excellent examples of how to use the workbooks to prepare their classroom lessons. The second one day workshop was held in Prizren and was attended by 33 teachers. It was the first time that a workshop had been held in this region and the constructive attitudes of the teachers greatly contributed to the success of this workshop.

24 January 2009: First Local Teacher Training Workshop held in Nicosia, Cyprus.The first Local Teacher Training Workshop took place at the Ledra Palace Hotel . The event, organised by the Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeast Europe, together with the Association for Historical Dialogue and Research, addressed approximately 30 participants and 7 speakers from both communities. The programme of the workshop included of model lessons based on the JHP materials and discussions on the best use of the Alternative History Materials in the classrooms.

January 2009: Training activites started - Training activities for the Employed, Empowered project have started and by April 2009 an approximate number of 1000 beneficiaries will have been trained in Serbia. Locations:Beograd, Dobanovci, Kragujevac, Kraljevo, Niš, Novi Sad, Šid, Subotica, Valjevo, Vršac. Training courses offered: Life skills, Basic and advanced IT training (ECDL certified), Web Design, Accounting (EBCL certified), Administration, Entrepreneurship (EBCL certified), Mushroom Farming. More related news on Employed, Empowered.