In the aftermath of the social movements for change that have shaken Egypt since January 2011, young activists from Alexandria are offered a platform for dialogue to exchange their views and perspectives on issues linked to their future  and social participation.

The Anna Lindh Foundation, the Swedish Institute, in collaboration with the Head of the Anna Lindh Foundation Egyptian Network - Bibliotheca Alexandrina, support the organisation of three-day programme of encounters among youth activists from Alexandria.

The encounters will take place in the premises of the Swedish Institute (56, 26 July Street - Mansheya) from 17h00 to 20h00. They will consist of an opening session on Thursday 19 May with the sharing of experiences about “Social changes in times of transition”;  three parallel thematic sessions on 20 May on the topic of “Arts for social change”, “Volunteering and civic participation” and “Social media: its role for social change and its limitations”; a final closing session on 21 May to allow the presentation of the main issues discussed during the thematic sessions and a discussion among the participants.

At the opening and closing meetings around 50 participants are expected while around 15 participants are expected for each of the three thematic sessions. Participants will therefore be invited to express their preference in order of priority for participation in the thematic sessions.

The event will be inaugurated by H.E. Amb. Mrs.Birgitta Holst-Alani, Director of the Swedish Institute, Mr. Andreu Claret, Executive Director of the Anna Lindh Foundation, H.E. Amb. Mr. Aly Maher, Head of the Anna Lindh Egyptian Network. A Round table and debate on “Social change in times of transition” will include presentation of experiences from Poland, by H.E. Amb. Piotr Puchta, and from Estonia, H.E. Amb. Paul Teesalu, and from Turkey by H.E. Amb. Hüseyin Avni Botsalı.

To download the programme click here

The Alexandria Encounters is taking place in the framework of the Anna Lindh Foundation's region wide initiative "Believe in Dialogue, Act for Citizenship" which was launched in the aftermath of the historical changes taking place in the Southern Mediterranean countries.

For more information: www.believeindialogue.org