Presentation of the projects at the meeting of the Montenegrin Network Foundation "Anna Lindh"

Information taken on 2/12/2014 from the web site of the Ministry of Culture of Montenegro: Meeting of the Montenegrin network members of the Foundation “Anna Lindh”, was held today at the “Perjanicki dom”, Contemporary Art Center in Podgorica. Ministry of Culture is coordinating participation of Montenegro in this pan Mediterranean program for intercultural dialogue, which is in the field of education, culture and media, providing participation of civil society institutions and programs in collaboration between the countries of the Southern Mediterranean (Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia and Turkey) since 2010. In the presence of twenty representatives of Montenegrin network, presentation of the Foundation, established in 2004 as one of the initiatives of Euro Mediterranean partnership, was started by Boris Abramovic, program coordinator.

Abramovic approached the ten-year results of the Foundation to the present representatives of organizations and institutions of civil sector and institutions, noting the connection of thousands of citizens and rapprochement of cultures of Europe and the Mediterranean, through joint projects in the field of education, creativity and media.

With reference to the implemented activities and the planned Foundation work program in the 2014, the possibilities of participation the Montenegrin network members were presented, which, this year, related primarily to the Mediterranean Prize awarded by the Foundation. The awards for which members of the Montenegrin network may apply and vote are: "Euro - Med" award for dialogue, then "Sea of Words" - a competition and prizes for the best stories of young authors, Mediterranean Prize for journalists , as well as the "Plural +" award and festival of video production, which the Foundation is organizing together with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations. The plans for the implementation of projects of creation and training for the development of creative capacities of young generations, were presented, which the Ministry of Culture in cooperation with the part of Network members, will implement this year in Bar Pljevlja, Tivat and Ulcinj.

A particular focus of the presentation was on the program for the development of dialogue and democracy that is organized in Arab countries , such as "DAWRAK - Citizens for dialogue" and "Young Arab Voices" (a joint program of the Foundation " Anna Lindh " and the British Council).

The meeting in Perjanicki dom presented the most important projects of civil society sector realized by the financial support of the Foundation, through public tender, or NGO projects "NOVA Center for feminist culture" from Podgorica and NGO "Expeditio" from Kotor.

Natasha Nelević, executive director of the NGO "NOVA" presented an international art project "Penelopolis: Woman mapping of Mediterranean cities/Podgorica 2013", that during the previous two years, the NGO "NOVA" realized with the organization "Koza Visual - Association for Culture and Arts" in Istanbul.

"Penelopolis" is designed as a female re - mapping of cultural maps of Mediterranean cities through artistic interventions - installations in the area. The central event was the exhibition of installations at the location Skaline in Podgorica, held on April 23^rd,2013. Montenegrin artists Gordana Kuc, Ivanka Vana Prelevic and Nada Kazic and Turkish artists Sumer Sayin, Merve Sendil and Isil Egrikavuk then, for a moment, made visible and present marginalized women's cultural identities and thus project a new cultural map of Podgorica, which - in contrast to the dominant cultural maps that mark only the impact of the majority culture - recognizes the importance of marginalizated women's cultural heritage. By continuation of the project, after Podgorica, related activities will be organized in other cities of the Mediterranean, whose cultural identities are also formed by crossing the influences of the many minority cultures.

Tatjana Rajic, program manager of the NGO "Expeditio" presented the project "Spaces of diversity - Public spaces as the field of intercultural dialogue and the promotion of social values" that began in August 2013, and is realized with the Albanian organization "Co -Plan" from Tirana, and "Leaders of Tomorrow" (Lot) from Amman , Jordan. Starting from the fact that the urban public spaces are often subordinated to commercial facilities, and citizen participation in their creation is not enough, the project is aimed at promoting social values (such as understanding, multiculturalism, and respect for diversity) in the public areas of the cities of Albania, Jordan and Montenegro. The activities of the project "Space Diversity" are creative workshops for young people, interventions in public spaces, common publications print, organization of study visits to cities in Montenegro, Albania and Jordan, everything with the aim of promoting the role of public space as a place to connect and interact citizens, and promotion of good activism practice.

The meeting was, from the Montenegrin Network Foundation, attended by representatives of the Municipality of Kotor - Secretariat for Culture, PI Music School Tivat, Faculty of Fine Arts from Cetinje, PI Center of Contemporary Art, College art school "Petar Lubarda", UDG Faculty of Arts.

The meeting was attended by members of the network of civil society organizations: Association for Democratic Prosperity ZID, Association of Youth with Disabilities, European Democratic initiatives, Youth forum and informal education, Educo Center, Expeditio, Montenegrin alternative culture, the Center for Women's Rights, Center for feminist culture, Montenegrin Women's Lobby, ATAK and Underhilfest.