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The Rapid Response sequence of the Georgian-Abkhazian Confidence-Building project involved a workshop with the same group of participants as the first youth workshop held in October 1998, and a field trip to Sukhumi and Tbilisi. The workshop was held in the pansionat Podmoskovye in Sochi, Russia, 1 - 4 December 1998. At the first youth workshop IA staff had begun training the young people in conflict management and project proposal writing skills. The young people, who represented different sides of the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict, as well as a few invitees from other Caucasian regions, had learned and practised listening, paraphrasing and communication skills, received inputs on approaches to conflict management work, and participated in a role-play on the resolution of the Georgia-Abkhazia conflict.

They had likewise begun to develop three joint projects, and proposals for these started to take shape. IA found that the young people were excellent learners and communicators, less prejudiced, more open, energetic and sometimes more eager to learn and act than their older colleagues. They could form a really new strand in tomorrow's relations in the Caucasus. Thus, when the same group approached IA with a request to hold the second workshop as soon as possible in order that they might receive the necessary help to finalise and begin fundraising for their proposals, it was felt that the work with them should not be halted indefinitely due to a lack of funding. They requested further training, specific information on project proposal writing, budgeting and fundraising; details of funding organisations etc. Their projects could be finalised and a fundraising strategy developed with the aid of IA's fundraising staff. This coincided with another round of official negotiations between Georgian and Abkhaz authorities, and it was felt that a meeting of young people discussing common projects would provide another example of civil society support for this process. With these aims in mind International Alert decided to allocate Rapid Responce funding to this project.

The aims of the field trip were to continue working with the young people on their proposals, to make first steps in helping them to fundraise for their projects, and to study the impact which our work with young people and the confidence-building workshops in general are making on the peace process as it is perceived in the two communities.

The workshop was comprised of inputs and practical exercises on project proposal writing, developing action plans, budgeting, and fundraising. Facilitation was conducted by Phil Champain, Gevork Ter-Gabrielian and Sara Gil. This workshop included new participants from Russia, Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh which was felt to be important in displaying a truer picture of the region. The inputs made by Sara Gil included a presentation on proposal-writing and budget compilation using the example of setting up a youth club in the town of Sochi. Sara also gave participants a set of “Golden Rules” for fundraising.

The training also included a half-a-day role play. Participants divided into three groups: NGOs, a Foundation from Jordan and an international Foundation. The three NGOs had to find funding for their main projects, while the Foundations were developing guidelines and evaluating the proposals advanced by the NGOs. The Foundations differed in their aims and origins, while the NGOs presented the very projects developed in the course of the workshop. The simulation ended with a session where the NGOs presented their proposals, and the Foundations determined which ones to support and with what amount of money, explaining why, summarising the strengths and deficiencies of each proposal and each fundraising strategy from their perspective.

In the course of the workshop the projects developed at the first training session were finalised and fundraising strategies for each talked through with participants. For instance, the project on federalism developed into a study of multilateralism as a more appropriate concept in the given situation. Projects on an all-Caucasian youth bulletin, NGO development, and a series of conflict transformation training workshops for different strata of the population were likewise finalised, the latter receiving encouragement and assistance from the NGO Partners for Democratic Change. A new academic research project also started to take shape during this workshop on Geopolitics in the XXI century, aiming to examine influences on the Caucasus and models of development. Participants likewise had the opportunity to discuss other ideas for future projects, clarifying details of proposal-writing and fundraising for their projects.

The aims of the workshop could be said to have been achieved. The workshop succeeded in strengthening the bond that had developed between the young people from Tbilisi, Sukhumi and the other locations in the Caucasus; it enhanced their skills of finalising and refining projects, developing detailed action plans and fundraising strategies.

The workshop demonstrated that young people are ready to cooperate and work on resolving the conflict via immediate specific steps that are within their power. They are more immediate, open and less restricted in thought and deed in working for peace than adults, political activists, and official negotiators.

This understanding brings about a necessity in refining our strategy of working with young people. This work should continue and even gain priority over the work with less active strata of the population. Perhaps one of the best ways of ensuring this could be to develop a project for a regular autumn school for training young people from the Caucasus, primarily from different sides of the various Caucasian conflicts, in process skills. Process skills, as defined by Partners for Democratic Change, include conflict resolution, NGO management, facilitation, fundraising, communication, negotiation, and other related skills.

1. To finalize three project proposals with a detailed budget, fund-raising strategy and step-by-step action plan.
1. To learn more NGO management, project writing and fund-raising skills.
1. To continue and deepen confidence-building.

Phil Champain - Training Manager at International Alert

Gevork Ter-Gabrielian - Eurasia Programme Manager at International Alert

Sara Gil - Fundraising Officer at International Alert

Participants will arrive in time for an evening meal. This will be followed by an informal gathering during which participants will greet each other and deal with any administrative matters that may arise.

Morning Session

Plenary Welcome.

Administration details.

Introduction to the workshop.

Aims of the workshop; workshop agenda and simulation exercise explained.

Recaping the results of the first workshop.

Plenary Mini-presentation and discussion on project planning.

Working Groups Group work on the three main projects developed during the first workshop.

Tightening the aims of the three projects.

Developing the projects.

Day Two

Morning Session

Plenary Fundraising strategies.

Working Groups Group work continued.

Developing the projects.

Afternoon Session

Plenary and Simulation.

Working Groups De-briefing and other issues.

Morning Session

Plenary Mini-presentation on budgeting.

Working Groups Amending plans.

Finalising proposals and action plans.

Afternoon Session

Plenary Presenting the plans.

Discussion.

Closure.

1. Diana Kerselian - student, State University of Abkhazia

2. Inga Tuzhba - AbkhazPress information agency

3. Timur Narmania - Civic Initiative - Man of Future

4. Laura Avidsba - student, State University of Abkhazia

5. Platon Alania - Abkhazia Youth Foundation

6. Timur Gvaramia - student, State University of Abkhazia

7. Mikael Nersessyan - student, State University of Abkhazia, participant at stereotypes workshop

8. Levan Tsutskiridze - Georgia Youth League

9. Tamuna Tsikhistavi - the International Youth Association “Peaceful Caucasus”

10. Kakhaber Dzebisashvili - Eurasia Youth Union

11. Vakhtang Maisaia - the Georgian Association of Young Politologists

12. Arnold Stepanyan - Chairman, Union of Armenian Youth of Georgia

13. Levan Geradze - Legal Aid Centre for Abkhazian IDPs

14. Mamuka Maisuradze - Multinational Youth Organisation

15. Kakhaber Berodze - Georgia Youth League

16. Dali Tabagua - International Center for Conflict and Negotiation

17. Anoush Begoyan - Armenian Union for Kindred Nations, Armenia

18. Anna Hakobyan - “Young Democrats”, Nagorno-Karabakh

19. Zaur Borov - Institute of Humanities, Kabardino-Balkaria

20. Zarina Kanukova - “Soviet Youth” newspaper, Kabardino-Balkaria

21. Aslanbek Kazayev - “Laman Az” youth group, Chechnya

22. Roman Gashayev - “Laman Az” youth group, Chechnya

23. Adlan Dinayev - “Laman Az” youth group, Chechnya

24. Rustam Bagayev - “Laman Az” youth group, Chechnya

25. Sergei Peshkov - the Stavropol Regional Psychoanalytical Association, Russia

26. Tariel Hasan-zade - Youth and Democracy Research Centre, Azerbaijan

27. Gevork Ter-Gabrielian - Eurasia Programme Manager

28. Phil Champain - Training Manager

29. Sara Gil - Fundraising Officer

30. Sofi Cook - Eurasia Programme Officer

1. An NGO working on a project dealing with youth problems.

2. An NGO working on a project concerning communications issues.

3. An NGO working on a project for studying governance / federalism.

4. A Foundation of an international or Northern governmental organization.

5. A Foundation of an international non-governmental or religious organization.

-----------------------

Part One.

Groups work separately on preparing proposals (NGOs) and preparing funding guidelines and policies for the next millenium (Foundations). NGOs try to communicate unofficially with Foundations, establish contacts, investigate the likelihood of their application being of interest to the funder, etc. Foundations try to determine which NGO is best suited to become an agent of influence for their policies.

At the end, NGOs sign up to give an official presentation of their proposals to the funders.

Part Two.

During official face-to-face meetings Foundations and NGOs discuss the projects. Afterwards, the Foundations announce who is going to get the grant, and what their perception of the other NGOs and their proposals is.

Part Three.

Plenary

De-briefing. Lessons learned. How to modify proposals based on lessons learned from the role-play.

To prepare and publish a monthly Caucasian youth bulletin (approximately 28 pages in volume).

• to promote cooperation between young people in the Caucasus;
• to develop a civilized exchange of ideas as well as early warning capacities between conflicting sides in the Caucasus;
• to develop a Caucasian information space;
• to intensify information exchange between young people in the Caucasus;
• to air alternative opinions and develop democracy;
• to address young people’s problems in a more efficient manner;
• to strengthen the role of youth in the formation of civil society and the NGO sector in the Caucasus.

Such a publication does not currently exist in the Caucasus. It will be a breakthrough in the information blockade and the isolation of young people in the Caucasus from each other. Information published locally is usually biased, politically motivated, and publications do not give enough space to the problems facing young people or to their views on the conflicts.

The bulletin will be published in 14 different locations, an identical publication appearing in each (at the current first stage, there are five organisations comprising a steering group, situated in Grozny, Nalchik, Sukhum/i, Stepanakert and Tbilisi). It will address political, social and cultural issues, allocating a lot of space to the opinions of young people. The number of copies printed for the first issue will be 200 or more.

During the first stage, steering group members will collect material for the first issue. They will then meet at a training seminar which will simultaneously give them the opportunity to finalise the shape and contents of the first issue. After its publication, another meeting will be necessary to evaluate the impact of the first issue and determine a strategy for future publications. The plan envisages eventual internet link-up for all the young journalists. The organisers currently request support from all international organizations interested in Conflict Resolution in the Caucasus.

$7,530 for the first issue;

$25,510 for the training seminar;

$17,150 for equipment (for five partner-organisations);

$89,370 for publication in the course of one year.

The Eurasian Youth Union (Tbilisi), Civic Initiative-Man of Future (Sukhum/i), Laman Az-Voice of the Mountains (Grozny), Oshkhamakho newspaper (Nalchik), Young Democrats (Stepanakert).

This is an educational project to learn about multilateralism as a principle to be used in conflict resolution. Mulitaleralism is one of the guiding principles of multilateral international organisations such as the European Union, Council of Europe or Commonwealth of Independent States. Any real understanding of multilateralism is lacking from the current political context in the Caucasus, however, and the same may be said of federalism and the various other ways of arranging power relations and distributing rights and responsibilities between political-territorial entities in the Caucasus.

There are several sources that could provide information on multilateralism and its functioning: academic sources include relevant books, articles and academics specialising in this subject. There are centres which study the functioning of international organizations such as the European Union, Council of Europe, Commonwealth of Independent States and other similar multilateral organisations. The organisations themselves, of course, should not be forgotten as a useful source of information. It was also thought worthwhile to analyse the relations of various political entities and actors within or between communities in the Caucasus which involve principles akin to multilateralism, such as the traditional Caucasian decision-making principles.

The project comprises the following steps: to identify international sources of information and perhaps specialists that would be ready to help; identify some examples from the current situation in the Caucasus; organise a training seminar at which specialists will help to clarify the issues of multilateralism; visit other centres dealing with similar issues; produce a publication which would reflect the results of this study project. For the first stage of the project (identifying resources and individual specialists, collecting and analysing literature, organising a training seminar) the steering group requires $7,450.

The steering group includes representatives from Civic Initiative - Man of Future (Sukhum/i); Adyge Khasse (Nalchik); Caucasus Links (Tbilisi office); the Union of Young Lawyers of Abkhazia (Tbilisi) and the Armenian Union of Spiritually Kindred Peoples (Yerevan). Once again, the organisers would like to request help and support from all international organisations in the field.

The idea of the project “Youth for Confidence Building and Development of Civic Society in the Caucasus” is one of outcomes of 4-11 October’98 and 1-6 December’98 Sochi workshops, organized by Inernational Alert, a conflict resolution NGO based in London, and financed by the Democracy Program of TACIS.

This project proposal is the joint work of the representatives of three NGOs:

1. Ms. Tamar Tsikhistavi, president, International Youth Association “Peaceful Caucasus”, based in Tbilisi;
2. Ms. Sofiko Shubladze, director, Partners for Democratic Change – National Center of Georgia (Center for Conflict and Change Management “Partners-Georgia”), based in Tbilisi;
3. Mr. Platon Alania, Youth Foundation of Abkhazia, based in Sukhumi.

• To support the process of Confidence-building for the youth of the Caucasus;
• To provide the space for the youth of the Caucasus to establish personal contacts aimed to cooperation;
• To raise skills and knowledge of Conflict Management in the Caucasus;
• To assist the development of civic society in the Caucasus.

The project includes six workshops/trainings to be conducted in Sochi (Russia).

Objectives for workshops/trainings are:

• To train about 80 youth representatives from the Caucasus in conflict management who will spread this knowledge in their correspondent communities;
• To provide space for exchange of experience of being in conflict for the Youth from the Caucasus;
• To discuss existing problems in the fields of activities of the groups and possible ways of overcoming them;
• To discuss possible areas for cross-ethnic cooperation;
• To identify about 16 persons with facilitation inclinations among participants of the workshops and train them as trainers/facilitators in conflict management; Thus, create the capacity of young trainers in the Caucasus.

The project will have a director and two coordinators: one in Tbilisi and the other in Sukhumi. These persons will be in charge of all kinds of organizational management of the project including establishing contacts, preparing participating groups, providing information and organizational support to participants, following up contacts with them and preparing evaluation and final reports for each workshop, etc. Also the project will have an accountant to provide the financial management.

The coordinators together with the assistance of the director of the project will conduct the selection of participants for each training. Possible criteria for selection are:

• to be representative of a concrete group that the training is aimed for;
• to be willing to participate;
• to be a formal or informal leader in the correspondent community/group;
• To be active or have plans to work in the field of conflict management.

Participating groups for the first five workshops are identified under “Groups Involved in the Project”. Each of these workshops will include six working days plus two days for arrival and departure. The program for each workshop will be designed based on the objectives of the project and needs of groups that participants come from. Each workshop will be facilitated by two trainer/facilitators. Preferably, at least one of them should be originally from the country out of the Caucasus in order to be accepted and perceived by the group as ethnically neutral.

For the sixth training participants will be selected out of the first five workshops and trained as trainers/facilitators in conflict management. This training will include 10 working days and will be facilitated by three professional trainers/facilitators.

The working language of all six workshops/trainings will be Russian and English. Two interpreters will be present to provide the information flow between facilitators and participants.

• Young journalists / representatives of the mass-media (to provide the skills of effective analysis of conflict; as they find themselves often in the conflict situations, to provide the skills of conflict management)
• Young leaders of NGOs (to provide skills of cooperation, effective communication and organizational development)
• Young teachers of high schools and universities (to provide knowledge of conflict management to be spread among youth, as they have direct access to it)
• Young lawyers (to provide skills of alternative dispute resolution)
• Student leaders (they are very much trusted by their constituents; they are very open to the new and/or alternative knowledge)

Sochi – the place where meetings/trainings will take place, has been chosen according to the following criteria:

• To have a neutral territory for the participants to be willing to come
• Less-costly for bringing different people from the Caucasus
• Convenient from logistical point of view

• Persons who will participate in the trainings planned under this program
• Participating societies which will have tolerantly oriented youth leaders
• The Caucasus: The youth cooperatively will be trying to assist the process of conflict management / prevention through out the whole region