The Youth Center is an intercultural space, specially designed for teenagers and young people, from 13 to 24 years old. The Network for Children’s Rights began operating the Youth Center back in 2016 in order to offer a wide spectrum of cultural, educational, and psychosocial activities and thus contribute to raising awareness for human rights between teenagers and youth. It is an open and safe space providing support and leisure to all young people without discrimination of any kind, serving also as a meeting point.
There is a group of specialized professionals and volunteers who daily encourage participation in creative groups, collective social /cultural initiatives, and interaction and communication with other teenage groups. At the same time, the emphasis is being placed on building trust, skills development, educational support, and professional orientation.
Youth Center offers:
- Artistic workshops and educational activities in: theatre, music, dance, visual arts, cinema, sports, outdoor activities, as well as language learning, remedial teaching, journalism courses and audiovisual production
- Educational programs on: children’s rights, climate change, inclusion, gender inequality, sexual education, bullying
- Employability workshops: workshops to help young people make educational and vocational choices with a view to their self-determination and equal participation in the community
- Psychosocial intervention: individual and group meetings of adolescents and parents/guardians with a social worker
- Teen lending library: literature, poetry, dictionaries, educational aids
- Leisure: board games, musical instruments, football, table tennis, free internet access, laptops, tablets, projector for screenings
The Youth Center hosts the following programmes:
- City Zen Ship: It is an Erasmus+ programme wherein the Network (Youth Center) has been consistently participating for the last three years in collaboration with Je Pars a Zart (Montpellier/ France). The programme develops within the following context: Adolescents and young people, 13-19 years old, meet weekly, and under the guidance and encouragement of a director, they play, discuss their daily life and dreams, and through the tool of theatre, they express themselves. Each year, they deal with a different theme, and, at the end of the school year, they present a theatrical performance. At the same time, similar theatrical workshops are being held in Montpellier, France. The programme is completed each time on a trip. More specifically, the groups travel to Athens and Montpellier, respectively, and meet on stage. The goal of the programme is for teenagers to meet and exchange views, and the outcome resulting from group collaboration.
- Young Journalists: The Young Journalists’ team, consisting of teenage and young migrants, refugees, and Greeks, is an initiative of the Network for Children’s Rights. The Young Journalists publish “Migratory Birds” newspaper, which is released as a supplement to the “EfSyn” newspaper featuring articles in Arabic, English, Farsi, Greek, and Urdu. The overall aim of the programme is to convey the principles and values of journalism, to promote intercultural dialogue, to help teenagers exercise their basic rights, such as the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and to empower their social integration. Two Saturdays per month, the Young Journalists have their editorial meetings, where they collaborate all together to create the content of their newspaper and write their articles. Also, twice per month, they attend Journalism Classes at the Youth Center. “Migratory Birds” fly as well online on migratorybirds.gr.
- Respect for Greece: Since May 2019, the Network has established a partnership with the German organization Respect for Greece based in Berlin, which has provided the Network with two professional employees and many international volunteers to support the Network’s programmes and activities. The aim is the exchange of knowledge and experiences which overcomes boundaries, the fight against discrimination and xenophobia, and the promotion of solidarity in Europe.
Youth Center
Alkamenous 11A, Larisa Station
10439, Athens
Tel: +30 2108846590
e-mail: youthcentre@ddp.gr
Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 12:00 – 20:00.
In order to participate in the Youth Center’s activities, a subscription is obligatory. All programmes are provided for free. The space is fully accessible to people with disabilities.
