GYSD is just about the corner!

Hi guys!

Even though the deadline for FLEX GYSD Matching Grant is over, there is still an opportunity to take part in this amazing event. Just come up with a volunteering project (it can be something simple and not required any additional funding) and register it on the GYSD map. Hurry up, because the deadline is on March, 17th!
Today I want to share some projects from last year's GYSD participants - hopefully it will help you and give you some inspiration! Looking through those projects, I've noticed that a big part of them was about the environment around us. Our alumni all-over Eurasia have turned boring (as you might remember from school) "subbotniks" into something fun, educational and exciting! Let me tell you more about some of them!

"I've got the spirit" project by Natia Sharikadze in Tbilisi, Georgia

Natia has been participating in GYSD for 4 years now. As we are very excited about her project this year, her last year's project was a great example of how clean-up can become very informative and fun! The clean up took place in one of the most historic and ancient places in Georgia - Aragvis Kari (Aragvi’s Gate) in the city of Mtskheta . Before the clean-up, volunteers had a chance to listen a training/lecture about Georgian Cultural Heritage Preservations. Invited speaker from The Agency Ketevan Digmelashvili spoke to the audience. Later the students had discussion with Natia Sharikadze about the concept of volunteering and what it means to people. One of the goals that Natia is trying to achieve by doing this project is to tell the youth about how important volunteering for the world is. That's what she says about her project: "We are willing to lead the young generation towards volunteerism with our event. We hope, that after GYSD event, students will be more involved in community service and realize how important it is to contribute to the society."
You can read more about Natia's project in our previous entries (part 1 and part 2).

Beach clean-up by Svitlana Buko in Sevastopol, Ukraine

One of the thnigs that all FLEXers have in common is the amazing volunteering experience that have been gained during thier exchange year. Svitlana Buko'96 had a great time volunteering in "Save our Shores" organization in California during her exchange. The main goal of the organization was to educate locals on man-made debris and motivate locals to clean the beaches systematically. This type of clean-ups are not very common in Eastern Europe, but Svitlana had made an amazing attempt and organized Costal clean-up in Fiolent National Park beaches. The Beach clean-up was a huge success and brought together 55 volunteers and gained public attention through social media and local government. The great turn out of locals and more than 300 bags of collected trash shows that people do care about the future of their community. This year Svitlana is participating in GYSD again! We are relly looking forward to her new project, but meanwhile you can read more about Beach clean-up 2013 here and here.

Other clean-ups around Eurasia! :)

Clean-ups were organized everywhere across Eurasia. Not all of them were FLEX GYSD Matching Grant participants, but FLEX alumni and other volunteers also had a lot of fun while participating. A great example is a clean-up in St. Petersburg. North-West Russia FLEX alumni have organized a clean-up in the Petrovskiy Park and had a picnic afterwards. The great part about this event was that some people who were relaxing in the park have decided to join and help during the clean-up!

That's all for now! This year we have recieved 24 FLEX GYSD Matching Grant applications. Therefore, there will be a lot of amazing stories coming up in the next couple of months. Keep up with the blog by subscribing to it. Also, what do you think will be a great GYSD project idea that doesn't require big outside funding? Please,share your ideas by leaving a comment in this post or don't hesitate and email me at gysd@americancouncils.ru. I am waiting for your ideas and will be very happy to help with your projects!
Have a great weekend and good luck with your projects :)