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Black Flamingo Publishing public events

On February 15, Black Flamingo Publishing presented to the public the work "Limitrophies. Rhymes and Poems" by Zlatomir Zlatanov. The event was opened by Yanitsa Radeva, a representative of the "Pismena" Club at the "St. St. Cyril and Methodius" National Library, Sofia, and Victor Lilov, co-founder of Black Flamingo Publishing. Atanas Igov and Stanimir Panayotov spoke about the book. The publication of "Limitrophies. Poems and Poems" was carried out under the program "Annual session to support creative projects in the field of literature" of the Ministry of Culture. You can see a recording of the event at the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K68FcanBAD0

Again in February, Black Flamingo Publishing presented contemporary German prose and Austrian drama translated by Borislav Petranov -a theater scholar, a translator, currently the director of the Bulgarian Cultural Institute in Berlin.

Novels:

"Sketch of a Summer" - Andre Kubicek

"Beside Myself" - Sasha Marianna Salzmann

"Stern 111" - Lutz Seiler

" Viewing an Accident " - Gert Loschütz

Plays:

"The Webers" - Felix Mitterer

"In the Lion's Den" - Felix Mitterer

(collection of three plays: "The Boxer", "Into the Lion's Den" and "No Fairer Country")

Anyuta Kacheva – a journalist and a translator talked about the novels and Bogdana Kosturkova- a theater critic talked about the plays.

Attendees had the pleasure of hearing excerpts from the works read by the actors Elena Atanasova, Krasimir Kutsuparov and Yavor Borisov.

The publication of the novels is supported by Traduki, and the publication of the plays by the Federal Ministry of Art, Culture, Public Services and Sport of Austria.

The event was held with the support of Sofia City Art Gallery. You can see a recording of the event at the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD43EeIcw3E

Blagoevgrad XXI Century

National Network

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Address

2 "Ivan Shishman" Str.
Blagoevgrad
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Telephone

+359 73 88 41 51

E-Mail

blagoevgrad21@abv.bg

Mobile Phone

+359 888 849 297

Website

http://www.blagoevgrad21.com/

Organisation Type

Non-Governmental Organization

Year of Establishment

2005

Fields of Activity

Democracy and community development
Environment/Sustainable development
Youth and education

General Information

The organization consists of seven members and close to 20 volunteers. We partner with a wide network of NGO in the region. We have around 5 000 Euro turnover per annum from projects, donations and other activities. We concentrate on implementing projects funded by Bulgarian government and would like to make international connections.

Mission and Objectives

The mission of Blagoevgrad XXI Century fulfills the goals of the Anna Lindh Foundation by protecting the rights of young people, children and the disadvantaged and supporting and promoting the development of children and youth in the context of a transparent and responsible local and central government and rule of people.

Main Projects / Activities

Our main projects are: "Learn the Traditions - Pass Them On", dealing with folklore as a means of communication with young people from different ethnographic regions in Bulgaria and "Chance in a Time of Crisis", which focuses on the problems of youth employment during the financial crisis.

Contact (1) Full Name

Vladimir Pandev

Head of the organisation

Vladimir Pandev M.D.

Bratstvo 1869 Community Centre

National Network

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Address

11 Otets Paisiiy street
Kyustendil 2500
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Telephone

+359(0) 78 529195

Telephone (other)

+359(0) 78 526395

Fax

+359(0) 78 529195

E-Mail

chitalishte@bratstvokn.org

E-Mail (2)

bratstvo_kn@abv.bg

Mobile Phone

+359(0) 887651034

Mobile Phone (other)

+359(0) 888545724

Website

http://www.bratstvokn.org

Organisation Type

Public Institution

Year of Establishment

1869

Fields of Activity

Others

General Information

The Community Centre is represented by a Cairperson and the managing body is the Board of Trustees. 40 persons are the staff employed by the Community Centre and the partners are all the cultural and educational institutions in Kyustendil region. The budgetary resources available in a year are 100 000 BGN. Sources of funding are the national budget, membership fees, rent of halls, charity donations. The main projects and activities being implemented in 2010 are the following: - Information Centre Europe Direct-Kyudtendil, funded by the European Commission - Together for Human Rights and against Violence, funded by the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area. - International Classic Guitar Festival "Professor Marin Goleminov" - International Folklore Festival "Pautalia' - National Festival of the Old City Song "Sing Heart' - National Poetry Competition "Binyo Ivanov" - International Chamber Music Academy The main partners involved in the projects and activities are The Municipality and the Regional Authorities of Kyustendil, the Ministry of Culture of Repulic of Bulgaria, Probuda 1961 Community Centre - Kyustendil, Darby Foundation, Wesleyan University - Illinois, USA, Music School- Nis, Republic of Serbia, Liberal Alternative for Roma Civil Unification-Kyustendil.

Mission and Objectives

The main objectives of the Community Centre are to meet the demands of the citizens, related to the development and enrichment of their cultural life, the social and educational activities in the place where they live and work through preservation of Bulgarian customs and traditions, improving citizens' knowledge and integrating them to the values and achievements in the sphere of science,arts and culture and through ciltivating and strengthening national self-awareness; providing access to information.
The mission of the Community Centre is to establish and arrange libraries, reading rooms,photo,audio, video and film libraries; to develop and support non - projessionnal art and creativity; to organize interest clubs, out of school art activities, concerts, celebrations, cinema and video displays and various youth activities; collecing and spreading knowledge about our homeland;to create and preserve museum collections in accordance with the Law for Cultural Heritage; to provide computer and internet access.

Main Projects / Activities

The Community Centre organizes annually various youth activities such as guitar lessons,piano lessons, folk singing classes,classical singing classes, theory music classes, foreign languages lessons, art and craft lessons, dance and singing lessons. In the Community Centre function a lot of interest clubs and groups such as Children's Folklore Ensemble, three vocal groups, a tourist choir, Bratstvo choir, three drama groups, a sport dance group, a literature club. Annually the Community Centre organizas events to mark the International Youth Day, the International Day of Music,the International Day of Eliminating Violence against Women. This year we have organized a number of actvities such as round tables and seminars related to 2010 European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion.

Contact (1) Full Name

Ivan Manolov Andonov

Head of the organisation

Ivan Manolov Andonov

Contact (2) Full Name

Elina Antimova Kostadinova

BRIDGES - Eastern European Forum for Dialogue

National Network

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Address

46, Parchevich str.
fl.3, ap.7
1000 Sofia
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Telephone

+359 898 478 333

Telephone (other)

+359 885 970 037

E-Mail

bridges.eefd@gmail.com

E-Mail (2)

avladikova@gmail.com

E-Mail (3)

silvia.trifonova@hotmail.com

E-Mail (4)

svetlana.karadzhova@gmail.com

Mobile Phone

+359 898478333

Website

http://bridges-forum.org

Organisation Type

Non-Governmental Organization

Year of Establishment

2008

Fields of Activity

International/Cultural relations

General Information

BRIDGES – Eastern European Forum for Dialogue is a non-governmental organization which operates regionally with an international outreach, having established partnerships with other organizations worldwide. Founded in 2008, its capacity is expanded by a team of 12 people who dedicate their time and energy for the implementation of various intercultural and interfaith activities. The people involved possess expertise in different backgrounds, but their mutual concern for both the youth and the community at large is what binds them together. 2011 BRIDGES became a cooperation circle of the biggest grassroots interfaith network URI (United Religions Initiative). The organization has a vast experience in the preparation of project proposals for funding programs, organization and delivery of youth projects and events, coordination and management of project documentation, capacity building, regular contacts and development of relations with external partners and stakeholders, administrative tasks and reporting. We have partners in different places in Bulgaria – Sofia, Veliko Tarnovo, Stara Zagora, Belitza, Plovdiv, Vidin. Our partners are from the religious communities, represented in Bulgaria; Municipalities; other NGO organizations. We are having good international partnerships in several European countries – the Netherlands, Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, North Macedonia, Belgium. Bridges is a Cooperation Circle of URI network since 2011, which is the biggest international interfaith grassroots network in the world. More than 1000 interfaith groups all around the world, 62 of them in Europe.

Mission and Objectives

The main focus is on youth empowerment that translates into enhanced creativity, active citizenship, social engagement, providing them with opportunities which will equip them with relevant skills to be successful in a professional environment as well as capable of giving back to the community. Talented adolescents, who have been attracted by the organization, represented it in official events that allowed them to be in close contact with the locals and act as proactive and self-aware changemakers. Another objective that this organization is striving to attain is the promotion of peace and tolerance. The youth activities realized foster close cooperation and better understanding among young people in the spirit of respecting human rights. Those events and activities aim towards resolving conflicts, promotion of peaceful societies through recognition and respect for the others.

Main Projects / Activities

BRIDGES has implemented projects and activities such as intercultural camps BRIDGE-Inter-Cultures (5 editions), Erasmus + exchanges as to help young people develop their full potential. Input by the youth is used when putting up the displays of art. Their works are featured in the exhibitions, giving them exposure to the professional world where they can influence change and the decision making process. The organisation has as its target group young people because they are source of creativity and are capable of critically assessing the different environments they may be placed in. Recently (1 year ago), an additional branch was founded, namely BRIDGES Youth, to encourage the active participation of adolescents in the society and to equip them with tools to be successful and productive units of their respective communities. ● international youth camps (co-funded by BG Municipalities, URI E, private donors and a partner from the Netherlands) – implemented six years from 2016 ● intercultural art exhibitions and concerts – eight events in total ● participation in Erasmus + exchange projects – seven implemented, two more are to be carried out ● conducting training sessions and workshops

How can you contribute to the Network in your country?

Bridges is part of the United Religions Initiative network since 2011, the biggest grassroots interfaith organization. This will help develop the partnerships among the ALF and URI networks on local level. Our good partnerships with different religious communities in several parts of the country also will be of mutual benefit for the ALF network in the country. One of our goal is to develop a large network of likeminded organisation in Bulgaria, so that this would be a great opportunity.

Why do you want to join the ALF Network?

For many years we are fascinated by the work ALF is doing in Europe and MENA region. We have partners from URI network who are already a ALF members. The mission and main principals are in line with our organization. Promoting intercultural dialogue and cooperation through art is one of our main focus and would be great if we can learn from other partners in ALF about their good practices and successful practices.

معلومات إضافية

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Contact (1) Full Name

Angelina Vladikova

Job Title

Chairperson

Head of the organisation

Angelina Vladikova

Contact (2) Full Name

SILVIA TRIFONOVA

Job Title (2)

Youth leader

Bulgaria

The Bulgarian National Network has been part of the Anna Lindh Foundation since January 2007. It unites 118 members across the country which have rich and diverse expertise in all sectors of development. The vison of the Bulgarian Network is to build a strong civil society in Bulgaria that can address the contemporary socio-cultural, economic and political development challenges faced by the Republic of Bulgaria and the Euro-Med region. Its mission is to support the community development through leading intercultural dialogue initiatives based on the principles of respect, tolerance, acceptance, equality and mutual understanding.

The Bulgarian Network is very geographically diverse and has managed to encompass organisations from all the corners in the country, from big industrial cities to remote mountain or rural towns and villages. Its members are representatives of the NGO sector, schools and universities, research institutions, museums and libraries, and municipalities. The Bulgarian Network will continue to empower civil society representatives to participate actively in decision-making processes in all social and political levels. The Bulgarian Head of Network is the Association International Initiatives for Cooperation.

Internal Rules

Internal Rules_National Network Anna Lindh Bulgaria_updated.pdf

Network Facebook Page

https://www.facebook.com/BulgarianALF/

Bulgaria is the first country in Europe to win FIRST Prize for the King Abdullah II UN World Interfaith Harmony Week 2024 Prize

On 26th of April, in Marinella Hotel in Sofia, the representatives of BRIDGES - Angelina Vladikova, Peter Gramatikov, Silvia Trifonova, together with Andrey Yordanov and Nona Kuteva, accepted the first place award. The ceremony took place in an extremely close circle - with the host Ambassador of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan H.E. Mutaz Khasawneh and the Ambassador of the Republic of Austria H.E. Andrea Ikić-Böhm, partner and friend of the Association.

His Royal Highness Prince Boris Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the guardian of the Bulgarian crown, personally presented the first prize for interfaith harmony to BRIDGES-Eastern European forum for Dialogue on the occasion of the World Interfaith Harmony Week (WIHW). The award is given because of the success of the art-performance "Gift of Love" organized by the association.

The award, besides being a first for Bulgaria, is also a first for Europe - no European country has ever won this prestigious first award for peace, tolerance and harmony.

His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan is the initiator and organizer of the WIHW. Since 2011 UN officially celebrates it every February.

The award ceremony began with the presentation of a gold medal and a certificate. Then continued with words of gratitude from the chair of the organization and the Ambassador of Austria. Prince Boris of Tarnovo was impressed by the award-winning event and the team, showing it through symbolic gifts he personally gave to the chair of BRIDGES Mrs. Angelina Vladikova. As a small token of our profound appreciation Bridges send back a symbolic gift to Her Majesty Queen Rania: original Bulgarian rose oil, a quintessential symbol of Bulgarian rich heritage and a handcrafted Bulgarian flag.

After the award ceremony, the team had the opportunity to talk informally with Prince Boris and the ambassadors. The Bulgarian Crown Prince was more than inspired and showed his willingness to get involved in future Bridges projects.

The first prize-winning performance on the occasion of the UN Tolerance Week, "Gift of Love", took place on 9 February in the Episcopal Basilica of. The event took place on the 9th of February, Plovdiv. This is when the UN has designated as Interfaith Tolerance Week. The Bridges Association brought together 56 children from different religious traditions, who through the language of art - beautiful songs, captivating dances and poems and even an exhibition - conveyed their message of peace and love between people regardless of differences.

Bulgarian National Highschool for acient languages and cultures- charity organisation for youngsters from the higschool

National Network

بلغاريا

Address

Sofia, "moderno predgradie", ul."Baba"-16
Sofia
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Telephone

0896629589

E-Mail

maggi_nazer@abv.bg

Organisation Type

Public/Private Non-Profit Foundation

Year of Establishment

2008

Fields of Activity

Human rights

General Information

It's a high school organisation which includes students from all classes, we have done about 15 meetings with orphans and old people from the Bulgarian centres for these people. We work only with resources we have reached- money from selling martenitsi, Christmas cards and other self-made stuff. There are some organisations which try to help us and to give us the chance to reach in their projects like "Assosiation Parents" and others.. We work with concrete projects and we also want to take part of exchanges and seminars.

Mission and Objectives

-give youngsters an opportunity to feel more responsible with taking parts of different voluntary projects
-help poor, sick and homeless people
- help old people without families and orphans feel more loved and respected with just visiting them and being part of their world.

Main Projects / Activities

It's all time organisation and we work with children in trouble, orphans and old people- visit the places they live, play or just talk to them, help them feel better and to socialise them and also to help youngsters have the idea for being responsible and to find new opportunities in voluntarism

Contact (1) Full Name

Magie Nazer

Bulgarian participation in the "Par-Olympia" project in Athens

"Futura" association provided 12 young people from Bulgaria the opportunity to participate in a large-scale sports event with over 250 young people from 13 sports organisations, from 12 European countries (Greece, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Ireland, Italy, Montenegro, Poland, Portugal and Serbia). This was possible thanks to the participation of the "Futura" association in the "Par-Olympia" project, financed under the "Erasmus+" program, Sport sector.

"Par-Olympia" was held at the sports facilities of the Olympic Athletic Centre of Athens, Greece for the period 27.9.2023 - 4.10.2023. The venue was ideal for inspiring and teaching the participants Olympic and Paralympic values. The historic value of the site (it hosted the 2004 Olympic and Paralympic Games) and the diverse nature of sports and other facilities made it the most suitable location for the programme.

The team of 250 participants was made up of physically disabled and non-disabled youth. Together, they developed physical skills by challenging themselves in playing games and practicing sports, learning to communicate in a multicultural environment, accepting and respecting diversity and differences. The main objective of “Par-Olympia” was to educate, engage and inspire youth with disabilities to participate in sport, learn new life skills and embrace the Olympic and Paralympic values. All participants competed in 12 Paralympic sports in an inclusive environment. A major emphasis was placed on the respect for diversity and positive interaction between all. The young people also participated in artistic, educational and cultural activities and had a unique opportunity to experience Greek culture.

For more information, you can visit the official website of the project:https://www.parolympia.com/

Bulgarian participation in the Day of the Mediterranean

Association “International Initiatives for Cooperation”, Bulgaria, the coordinator of the Bulgarian Network of Anna Lindh Foundation, received a grant under the “Day of the Mediterranean’’ initiative, second edition in 2023. Thank to this we will have opportunity to mark that special day with a concert. Music is a special medium of expression and communication that unites differences and makes people better. The concert will feature groups that perform different musical genres such as punk, flamenco and indie rock, with which we want to show that if we are centered around a common cause, differences can be overcome.

The concert will be held on 8 December 2023 in Blagoevgrad, in the best club for life performance in the town.

Those are the musicians who will be our ambassadors for peace and will take care of our good mood:

Samul Gelev (El Samo) from Sofia will play flamenco and rumba for all fans of Spanish music. He will heat up the atmosphere for the other groups. He had lived for many years in Cuba and carries the spirit of Cuban culture within him.

People of Maha from Sofia is an all-female indie rock band mixing Bulgarian and Brazilian influences. Founded in 2018, the band is formed by Alex on drums, Bia on vocals and Mila on guitar.

"Kallo Malayo" is a punk rock band from Razlog, whose members have been playing together for almost two years. They are fans of punk rock music and play in their free time, but they already have several professional performances behind them.

The members of the National network Anna Lindh Bulgaria are invited to join the event as well as representatives of the local community. The concert will be broadcasted live. It will also be recorded and shared with all Anna Lindh Foundation members who could not attend or view it live.

Bulgarian School of Politics “Dimitry Panitza”

National Network

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Address

17 Tzar Shishman Str.
1000 Sofia
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Telephone

+359 2 952 68 82

Telephone (other)

+359 2 851 93 46

E-Mail

ialexieva@schoolofpolitics.org

Website

http://www.schoolofpolitics.org/eng/

Organisation Type

Non-Governmental Organization

Year of Establishment

2003

Fields of Activity

Democracy and community development
Environment/Sustainable development
Research
Youth and education

General Information

The Bulgarian School of Politics “Dimitry Panitza”, founded in 2001, is a non-governmental, non-profit organization with public benefit purposes. We are the co-founders of the Network of Schools of Political Studies under the auspices of the Council of Europe. The Network comprises partners from different regions: Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and North Africa. Our structure: General Assembly, Board, Executive Director and 8 employees. The general assembly is the sovereign authority; the board is the managing body of the School and currently consists of 7 members. Our activities are project based and the funding comes from in-country and international donors, which are public or private organisations. Modalities of action include: research projects, seminars, workshops, roundtables and conferences. Through these seminars, conferences and leadership development initiatives, the School seeks to promote democracy and democratization of government action in Bulgaria, the countries of the Balkans and North Africa.

Mission and Objectives

The Bulgarian School of Politics’ mission is to support the creation of a community of civic and political leaders with an active stand in the national, European and global public life, devoted to contemporary democratic values based on pluralism, tolerance and informed debate.
For more than a decade we have been sharing our unique experience with other countries in Southeast Europe, North Africa and Ukraine.

Main Projects / Activities

Our current projects and activities include:
“Election Training During the Transition Period in Tunisia” Its aim is to train a group of 24 young Tunisians, actively engaged in the political and civic life of their country during its transition period towards democratization. The project involves needs assessment, participants and lecturers’ selection, program development, training implementation and feedback evaluation. The training is planned to take place before the forthcoming parliamentary elections.
National Program “Governing Skills” targets young political and civic leaders from parliamentary represented political parties in Bulgaria, representatives of non-governmental organizations, central and local administrations, judicial power and media. It is aimed at the formation of new European-type political and civil culture among young leaders and strengthening morale principles for their present and future development. We also have programs for our Alumni network, where through roundtables and debates we further develop their skills.
The project “Promoting Philanthropic Culture in Bulgaria 2012-2014” aims to strengthen the ability of the key actors to practice philanthropy as a long-term personal engagement and a way to change society, as well as to communicate about charity and philanthropy.
“Models and Good Practices for Legitimate Civic Representation” is another current project. The objective of the project is analyzing the current situation in Bulgaria and researching the experience of ten other European countries. Based on that we will propose suitable models for development and functioning of consultative councils and other forms of citizens’ participation.

How can you contribute to the Network in your country?

We consider the level of citizen’s participation in policy making as an indicator of the standard of democracy. We believe that a wider engagement of civil society in decision-making process will raise the interest in elections and other forms of citizen’s participation will ensure public supervision of public policies and will ultimately lead to better governance. Being an independent institution we provide opportunities to members of the political parties represented in Parliament and civil society young leaders to learn from each other, combining training and expert work with a strong practical bias. We create conditions in which all of them can work together, discuss the most important issues of the society and provide practical solutions. We build new political environment, based on sound moral values, tolerance and cooperation. Therefore, expanding our spectrum of connections and getting to closely know other members of ALF in Bulgaria will benefit the overall public environment in the country.
Our contribution will follow our areas of expertise, where we have proven know-how - civic participation in the political process, climate and energy, philanthropy, media, and foreign policy. We also maintain close co-operation with the National Assembly, government institutions, local authorities, and leading non-government and international organizations.
We are looking forward to exchange our know-how, but also to learn from the other members and form new fruitful partnerships.

Why do you want to join the ALF Network?

Being the largest Network of civil society organisations involved in the promotion of intercultural dialogue across Europe and the Mediterranean, with members of very diverse nature, including NGOs, public institutions, foundations, local and regional authorities, individuals and private organisations the ALF seems the right place for the Bulgarian School of Politics “Dimitry Panitza”.
We are expanding our work in the Euro-Mediterranean area with projects involving Tunisian and Moroccan partners.
In 2010, we organized a special course for representatives from Benin, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Morocco and Mauritania, aiming to support the creation of Schools of Politics in Africa. We have also provided support for the establishment of the School of Politics and Citizenship in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
In 2012, with our support the Tunisian School of Politics was established. We have supported it methodologically, including by sharing our know-how in the area of adult learning.
In 2013, we became the first international partner of the Citizen School for Political Studies in Morocco. Together, we develop new programs and encourage the exchange of knowledge between the alumni of the two schools.
Last June we organised “Summer Academy for Building Democracy through Cultural Diplomacy”. It was the first and unique initiative for experience and know-how exchange among alumni of the National Programs from the Bulgarian School of Politics “Dimitry Panitza”, the Citizenship School of Political Studies in Morocco, and the Tunisian School Politics. 18 young civic and political leaders from the three countries took part in the training. This resulted in the current project in Tunisia mentioned above.
After those successful events we are very enthusiastic to keep working in the area and we believe that that an ALF membership will open future partnership possibilities.

Contact (1) Full Name

Ms Irina Alexieva

Job Title

Executive Director

Head of the organisation

Ms Irina Alexieva