Youth For Nature - Youth Exchange

Report on 6th March

2009-04-07T14:50:00.000-07:00

Our first day at the Youth Exchange! Can you believe it?! Finally... :)
After the arrival to the Eco-Centre, meeting each other, trying to remember all the names, and, finally, sleeping (at least a few hours), our "trip" has finally begun...
In the morning, we had our first breakfast together and then we went to THE Room. We were presented with the program of the Exchange and after that we talked a little bit about our worries and expectations: we made fruits (contributions), leaves (expectations) and worms (worries) and put them all to our Tree. In the end it was so colourful and diverse... :)
After a little break we established the rules according to which we are going to act during the next week...
Then, we were divided into six groups. We are going to have 3 teams every day (Kitchen team, Video team and Blog team). Every group would do all of these tasks once during this week.
The lunch was at 1 p.m.
Then, we went back to THE Room and we were divided into four groups. We were given two papers with the things we were supposed to go & see in Sremski Karlovci and the all the groups left the Eco-Centre for the Photo-Paper activity. Every had a great time getting to know the city and each other.
When we came back, we presented the photos we made and talked a little bit about them...
Then we were divided in two groups (AGAIN!) and each group had their own daily evaluation. We now have a pool in THE Room filled with the sea creatures we made to represent us...
The dinner was at 8 p.m. and it was great...
Then we had an intercultural activity - we played some card games and had a lot of fun (because it was made to confuse us - I hope you remember 'cause we just can't write it all down)...
We hung out together until late hours and had a great time, singing, talking, laughing and not sleeping... :P:

Your Blog Team:
Ivan, Catarina & Olivera
<3

2009-03-28T15:43:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
Tania told us about the Youth For Nature's facebook and then I created my own just to see you there, but, when I tried to find it, there was no group with that name. can someone send me an invitation?
http://www.facebook.com/gettingstarted.php?#/profile.php?id=1512385159&ref=name
(I don't understand anything about facebook, maybe that's the problem)
Ah, does any of you have myspace? You can add me: www.myspace.com/gabrielamuller .

One week to meet you : )

2009-03-17T07:18:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!
I am Lazar, from Serbia... :)
As Ana Teresa have just told me to do, I am accomplishing mission possible... ;)

Fact ‘bout Nova de Milfontes
Fort of San Clemente or Castelo de Vila Nova de Milfontes was built since 1599 'till 1602, and it lies on right bank of river Mira.

Fact ‘bout Portugal

In Portugal, educational system is different than in Serbia…

It is divided into:

Preschool (under age 6)

Elementary (9 years in three stages, compulsory)

Secondary (3 years, ‘till 12^th grade)

And higher education…

Environmental problems

Water and air pollution are significant problem in Portugal. Portuguese water supplies are threatened by pollutants from the oil and cellulose industries. Also wildlife and agricultural activities are threatened by erosion and desertification of soil. In 2001, 13 of Portugal mammal species and 7 its bird species were endangered, as well as 186 plant species…

Hope to see you guys soon! :)

Lazar

more information!

2009-03-15T17:36:00.000-07:00

HI NEW FRIENDS!

Tânia told us to post here two informations about Serbia so there you go!

Serbia Sports:
The Sport in Serbia revolves mostly around team sports: football, basketball, water polo, volleyball, handball, and, more recently, tennis. The two main football clubs in Serbia are Red Star Belgrade and FK Partizan, both from capital Belgrade. Red Star is the only Serbian and former Yugoslav club that has won a UEFA competition, winning the 1991 European Cup in Bari, Italy.

History:
Serbia's strategic location between two continents has subjected it to invasions by many peoples. Greeks colonized its south in 4th century B.C., the northernmost point of the empire of Alexander the Great being the town of Kale. Belgrade, Prehistoric capital of Europe, is believed to have been torn by 140 wars since Roman times. The northern Serbian city of Sirmium (Sremska Mitrovica) was among the top 4 cities of the late Roman Empire, serving as its capital during the Tetrarchy. Contemporary Serbia comprises the classical regions of Moesia, Pannonia, parts of Dalmatia, Dacia and Macedonia. Around the 6th century, Slavs appeared on Byzantine borders in great numbers. Slavic people have been under nominal Serbian rule since the 7th century. They were allowed to settle in Byzantium by its emperor Heraclius after their victory over the Avars.

i guess it is enough for today! have a nice day, see ya soon!

kisses from Portugal

~Sónia~

2 more things about serbia

2009-03-15T17:23:00.000-07:00

Serbia's population is a little lower from the Portuguese which is 7,395,000 for Serbia and 10 617 575 for Portugal.

Serbia has 5 national parks: Fruška Gora with nearly 250 km2 (where we go in the 3rd day), Kopaonik with 120 km2, Tara (220 km2), Đerdap (the bigger with 640 km2) and Šar Mountains (390 km2).

Waiting for 5th April :P,
Francisco

Mission possible [Portugal] :)

2009-03-15T11:05:00.000-07:00

I) a thing about Portugal and a thing about Vila Nova de Milfontes:
1. Lisbon is the capital and largest city of Portugal. It has 564,477 habitants.
2. Vila Nova de Milfontes is a village founded by the king King D. João II. in 1468.
It's 186km away from Lisbon.

II) an environmental problem:
air pollution [air pollution means the presence of one or more unwanted substances in air. Air pollutants have a negative impacts on humans, animals and plants, and on air quality.]

yey, I solved my mission possible!
I can't wait for the april 5th! xD

Sonja :)

A little something about Portugal and environmental problems in the world :)

2009-03-12T00:57:00.000-07:00

Portugal

The national flower of Portugal is Lavender, though it is often mistakenly said to be the Carnation following the 1974 peaceful revolution nicknamed the Carnation Revolution.
Portuguese is the ninth most influential languages spoken in the world after English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Chinese, German and Japanese.

Alentejo is a south-
central region of Portugal. Its name's origin, "Além-Tejo", literally translates to "Beyond the Tagus" or "Across the Tagus". The region is separated from the rest of Portugal by the Tagus river, and extends to the south where it borders the Algarve.

Vila Nova de Milfontes means New Village of the Thousand springs. This is why it is known as "the three lies village", as it is not new, it was already know as "village" before being in fact a village, and it has no springs.

Vila Nova de Milfontes has a beautiful estuary that gives shelter to several species of birds and marine life. Moreover, wild boars and foxes can be found in the surrounding woods.

There is also an aquaculture centre nearby in Moinho da Asneira.

Environmental problems

A variety of environmental problems now affect our entire world. As globalization continues and the earth's natural processes transform local problems into international issues, few societies are being left untouched by major environmental problems. Some of the largest problems now affecting the world are Acid Rain, Air Pollution, Global Warming, Hazardous Waste, Ozone Depletion, Smog, Water Pollution, Overpopulation, and Rain Forest Destruction.

>>The Ozone Depletion<<

The ozone layer protects the Earth from the ultraviolet rays sent down by the sun. If the ozone layer is depleted by human action, the effects on the planet could be catastrophic.

Ozone is present in the stratosphere. The stratosphere reaches 30 miles above the Earth, and at the very top it contains ozone. The suns rays are absorbed by the ozone in the stratosphere and thus do not reach the Earth.

Ozone is a bluish gas that is formed by three atoms of oxygen. The form of oxygen that humans breathe in consists of two oxygen atoms, O₂. When found on the surface of the planet, ozone is considered a dangerous pollutant and is one substance responsible for producing the greenhouse effect.

The highest regions of the stratosphere contain about 90% of all ozone.

In recent years, the ozone layer has been the subject of much discussion. And rightly so, because the ozone layer protects both plant and animal life on the planet.

The fact that the ozone layer was being depleted was discovered in the mid-1980s. The main cause of this is the release of CFCs, chlorofluorocarbons.

Antarctica was an early victim of ozone destruction. A massive hole in the ozone layer right above Antarctica now threatens not only that continent, but many others that could be the victims of Antarctica's melting icecaps. In the future, the ozone problem will have to be solved so that the protective layer can be conserved.

Looking forward to meeting y'all... :D
Olivera :)

serbia - informations

2009-03-07T07:14:00.000-08:00

Here goes two important informations about serbia:
1. capital: belgrade (1.6 milion inhabitants)
2. serbia is an independent country since june 2006
I found many interesting sites about serbia that i would like to share with you. So, about serbia in general you can take a look at http://www.serbia.travel/index.jsp and http://www.visualgeography.com/countries/serbia.html, and about novi sad take a look at http://www.gradnovisad.org.yu/cnt/index.php?id_node=2 and http://eng.exitfest.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=524&Itemid=166

hope you enjoy it !

Gabriela

about servia

2009-03-05T13:01:00.000-08:00

Hi ! Eat :Paprikash (paprika-sh) - stew with paprika often with chicken,
Population:9,778,991 and Religion: Orthodox 65%, Muslim 19%, Roman Catholic 4%, Protestant 1%, other 11%

Something about servia

2009-03-04T09:59:00.000-08:00

Hi everybody! For centuries straddling the religious boundary between Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism, joined up later by the penetration of Islam, Serbia remains one of the most diverse countries on the continent and the Serbian climate varies between a continental climate in the north, with cold winters, and hot, humid summers with well distributed rainfall patterns, and a more Adriatic climate in the south with hot, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy inland snowfall.

Does someone of the Serbia participants likes reptiles?

2009-02-28T10:52:00.000-08:00

Hi I'm Francisco, from Portugal.

I'm 16 years old and I'm one of the participants on this project. I like very much reptiles and I'm posting to know if someone of Serbia participants likes reptiles, like I do.

I think that would be very interesting because these animals are subject to many myths and beliefs and a lot of rejection and I think that's important to conserve them and to show their importance in the ecossistems. And I'd like to learn more about your species :P

My english isn't the best, but I hope you understand.

i'm the first one

2009-02-27T16:26:00.000-08:00

ok, ok, i'm the first...
My name is Tânia and I am one of the leaders in this exchange project thing.
Me, Ana Teresa, Joana and Budjia, we will be with 20 youngsters from Portugal and Serbia somewhere near to Novi Sad, faaar far away from south Portugal, where I live!!!
Who has comments on this???... it seems pretty much a really nice opportunity! ;) almost one month to be there :D

lookink forward to see us all together...
Tânia