Monday, 22 December 2008

Happy Holidays from Future Worlds Center




Dear Friends,

Future Worlds Center wishes all of our frıends a happy new year, success and happiness!!

ΤΟ FWC ΕΥΧΕΤΑΙ ΣΕ ΟΛΟΥΣ ΤΟΥΣ ΦΙΛΟΥΣ ΚΑΙ ΣΥΝΕΡΓΑΤΕΣ ΤΟΥ ΚΑΛΑ ΧΡΙΣΤΟΥΓΕΝΝΑ ΚΑΙ ΕΥΤΥΧΙΣΜΕΝΟ ΤΟ ΝΕΟ ΕΤΟΣ (ΜΕ ΧΑΡΑ ΚΑΙ ΕYTYXIA)

FWC bütün arkadaşlarımızın Yeni Yılıını kutlar, başarı ve sağlık diler!

Wednesday, 10 December 2008

10 December 2008 – International Human Rights Day










Future Worlds Center joins with other Human Rights activists to celebrate of the International Human Rights Day.

This year's International Human Rights Day is of special significance as it marks the 60th anniversary celebrations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which represented the first step in establishing a comprehensive international framework for the protection of human rights. Today the Universal Declaration is one of the fundamental texts establishing respect for human rights as a guiding principle in international relations. The year 2008 also witnesses the 15th anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action proclaimed by the Vienna World Conference on Human Rights as well as the 10th anniversary of the adoption by the UN General Assembly of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders.

The UN
This theme for 2008, “Dignity and justice for all of us,” reinforces the vision of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) as a commitment to universal dignity and justice. It is not a luxury or a wish-list. The UDHR and its core values, inherent human dignity, non-discrimination, equality, fairness and universality, apply to everyone, everywhere and always. The Declaration is universal, enduring and vibrant, and it concerns us all.
Since its adoption in 1948, the Declaration has been and continues to be a source of inspiration for national and international efforts to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms.

The EU
Human rights lie at the heart of the EU’s external relations and development policy, as it is underlined by the engagement of the EU in a worldwide campaign against the death penalty, by the key role played by the EU in the fight against torture as well as by the promotion of universality of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
Within the framework of the EU’s human rights policy in third countries, the Commission is committed to advancing the situation of human rights worldwide through various tools, such as participation in EU human rights dialogues and consultations as well as in political dialogues with the authorities of third countries at different levels. Moreover, Commission Delegations regularly report on the human rights situation in third countries. Finally, through the European Instrument on Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR, the Commission funds NGOs worldwide working to promote human rights, in areas such as the fight against the death penalty, torture, the support to human rights defenders and to grassroots organisations.

Cyprus
According to the Amnesty International Report 2008, foreign nationals, including migrants and asylum-seekers, were held in detention for unacceptably long periods and in poor conditions without access to a judicial or other independent review. Some reported being beaten by police upon arrest or by guards once detained. Asylum-seekers reported a number of irregularities in the asylum procedure that could have jeopardized their applications or their families at home. An organization supporting and advising migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers was the target of a racist attack and its chairperson charged in connection with its fundraising activities.

For further information: http://www.un.org/events/humanrights/2008/

Monday, 8 December 2008

News from CYPRUS: Combined Node Re-launched


The Hotline in Cyprus, operating under the name “SafenetCY” has completed 18 months at the end of August. The new project was launched in September 2008 as a combined Awareness Node, Hotline and Helpline. The Awareness Node and the Hotline will continue to be operated by the Cyprus Neuroscience & Technology Institute whereas the Helpline will be operated by the Pancyprian Coordinating Committee for the Protection and Welfare of Children (PCCPWC). Other partners include CYTA, the public telecommunications company, the Ministry of Education and a Turkish Cypriot NGO, Olive Branch. An enhanced cooperation with the Cyber-Crime Unit of the Police has been re-established after the dramatic increase in Child Pornography cases investigated in Cyprus. Specifically, the Cyber-Crime Unit has recorded the following statistics regarding the Child Pornography cases investigated in Cyprus since 2004:
• 2004 – 8 cases investigated
• 2005 – 16 cases investigated
• 2006 – 24 cases investigated
• 2007 – 34 cases investigated
• 2008 – 61 cases investigated
This dramatic increase in the number of cases investigated by the Police has started to concern deeply the local authorities and the Government. The National Advisory Board has decided to involve the authorities more and also to promote the Hotline to the wider public and to the schools. The authorities have also demonstrated increased interest to support the efforts of the CyberEthics Awareness Node and the SafenetCY Hotline.

CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT AND CALL FOR PAPERS

EU Kids Online: European research on cultural, contextual and risk issues regarding children and the Internet

An international one-day conference to address the latest policy issues and research findings about children and the Internet.

The anticipated audience includes researchers, policy makers, industry, child welfare, educators, NGOs and government.

When and where:
To be held on Thursday June 11th 2009, London School of Economics, London

Conference theme:
Are all children benefiting equally from the Internet and if not, why not? How strong is the evidence for the risks to children of going on-line? Are these risks changing, and why do they differ from one country to another? How can parents and policy makers achieve a better balance between on-line opportunities and risks? What do children themselves think of the Internet? What new literacies are they developing?

The conference will report the final results and recommendations from three year's work by EU Kids Online, a network of over 60 researchers in 21 countries, funded by the EC's Safer Internet plus Programme. See www.eukidsonline.net

Keynote speakers will be announced shortly.

Call for papers:
The conference will showcase the latest current research being conducted in Europe and worldwide. Researchers are invited to submit empirical papers about children's experience of the Internet on any of these topics:
* Social networks, on-line identities and e-participation
* Learning, creativity and media literacy
* Mobility, computer games and other emerging platforms
* Parental and peer mediation
* Risks, victims and perpetrators
* Regulation, empowerment and protection

Registration and submission details:
Registration and submission will begin in early January. See http://www.eukidsonline.net for further details. There is no conference fee.

We look forward to welcoming you to LSE to celebrate the end of our project and to debate the future agenda for research and for evidence-based policy.

Prof. Sonia Livingstone, Dr Leslie Haddon and the EU Kids Online network

Please distribute this message widely and apologies for cross-posting


Sonia Livingstone
Professor and Director of Graduate Studies
S105, Department of Media and Communications
London School of Economics and Political Science
Houghton Street, London WC2A 2AE, UK
Project Director, EUKidsOnline, see www.eukidsonline.net

New: The International Handbook of Children, Media and Culture (Sage
2008)



Please access the attached hyperlink for an important electronic communications disclaimer: http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/secretariat/legal/disclaimer.htm

Safer Internet Day 2009


On 1st December 2008, the Insafe network launched its first global activity for Safer Internet Day 2009, 10 February 2009, namely a quiz available in 22 languages!
The Insafe quiz http://insafequiz.eun.org addresses young people between 10 and 15 years of age, and requires them to answer a series of multiple choice questions on the media, internet safety, culture, history and geography followed by a final challenge. The variety of questions asked reflects the Internet's value as a tool for learning and finding information!
The aim of the quiz is to reach out to young Internet users and build momentum for the approaching Safer Internet Day (SID). This event will be celebrated in more than 50 countries worldwide on 10 February 2009. The European winners of the quiz will be invited to attend the SID celebrations in Luxembourg.
The 2009 quiz is available in Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, German, Greek, English, Finnish, French, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish and Swedish.
For updates, see: www.saferinternet.org

About Insafe:
The mission of the Insafe cooperation network is to empower citizens to use the internet, as well as other online technologies, positively, safely and effectively. The network calls for shared responsibility for the protection of the rights and needs of citizens, in particular children and youths, by government, educators, parents, media, industry and all other relevant actors. Insafe partners work closely together to share best practice, information and resources. The network interacts with industry, schools and families in the aim of empowering people to bridge the digital divide between home and school and between generations.

New competition: “Surf the net – think privacy!”


To celebrate Data Protection Day on 28 January 2009, EUN in collaboration with Microsoft just launched a new competition, inviting young people aged 15 to 19 years old to express their views and concerns about on-line privacy. Winners will be invited in Brussels to meet eminent jury members and take part in the Data Protection Day events where they will be awarded prizes.
Most of us often upload information on-line without giving much thought to whether this is personal data and how this information might be accessed or used in the future. This competition aims at raising awareness on the importance of protecting private information, especially in new web 2.0 environments such as social networking sites and blogs.
From 17 November 2008 to 15 January 2009, pupils in teams that shall not exceed six persons, and supervised by a teacher or another youth leader are invited to create a 30-90 seconds video of 10 MB maximum to illustrate the theme “Surf the net – think privacy!”. Schools from different European countries are also invited to work together. A special prize for the purchase of equipment will reward the best “tandem video”.
As entries start coming in, you can visit the on-line competition gallery to rate the uploaded entries. The winning videos will be featured during the prize award ceremony.
If you feel concerned about the use of your personal information and privacy risks on-line, and would like to share your thoughts about this in a creative way, please visit our website: www.dataprotectionday.eu

The Internet Behavior of Cypriots

The recently presented survey ‘e-cypriot 08’ on the activities of Cypriots on the Internet was conducted by OgilvyOne and the research company Evresis. The survey was conducted across Cyprus in a final sample of 969 Internet users, aged 13 years and above, with the methodology of random multistage stratified sampling. The data was collected through telephone interviews from October 23 until November 6 2008.
The survey revealed that many Cypriots use the Internet for shopping purchasing mainly clothing and books. The main products that Cypriots purchase on-line are clothes at 32.6 per cent and books at 28.3 per cent. ‘e-cypriot 08’ showed 49.1 per cent of Cypriots who make on-line purchases spend more than €250 a year, and 12.7 per cent spends more than €1,000. Asked whether they had purchased products from the Internet within the last week, 16.8 per cent answered yes. Moreover, the on-line behaviors of Cypriots range from obtaining general information at 54.6 per cent, for entertainment (45.1 per cent) and sports news (31.1 per cent).
According to the findings, the percentage of the population aged 13 or older who uses the Internet amounts to 41.2 per cent. The greatest use of the Internet is seen in the workplace; according to the survey, 53.8 per cent of the working people surveyed claim that they only use the Internet at the office.

Source: http://www.cyberethics.info/cyethics2/page.php?pageID=2&instance_ID=5&newsid=574

Cypriot Teenagers Revealing Personal Information in Facebook: Research Presented in 7th European Conference on E-Learning

On November 7, 2008 the New Media lab presented research at the 7th European Conference on E-Learning (ECEL). The research examined 'How much Personal and Sensitive Information do Cypriot Teenagers Reveal in Facebook?' The study showed that Cypriot teenagers disclose personal information about themselves and do not keep their Facebook settings on private, oblivious to the dangers that result from these actions.
The premise of this research came from the raising awareness that web-based social networks have become increasingly popular over the past few years. With over 60 million active users worldwide, Facebook has become a major meeting portal for people of all ages, especially teenagers. This network offers attractive means for communication and interaction, but also raises security and privacy concerns.
Previous studies that have proven that young people are aware of what type of personal data they disclose in social networking environments reveal not only a high level of concern but also a high level of ignorance. Major concerns revolve around the possibility of sexual predators and pedophiles finding and then assaulting adolescents who carelessly or unwittingly reveal identifiable information on their personal profile pages. Nevertheless, privacy concerned individuals join networks and reveal a great amount of personal information. For example, although members are concerned about privacy issues in Facebook they are willing to share identifying information and develop new relationships where the perceived privacy level is weak. Moreover, only a minimal percentage of users change the highly permeable privacy preferences.
However, currently no research is available concerning numbers, behavior, and perceptions of young Cypriot people using Facebook. In the context of the European safer Internet project “EU Kids Online,” this study explored how the youth of Cyprus use social networking sites, on the example of Facebook.
The New Media Lab of CNTI evaluated the amount of information youngsters disclose in Facebook and studied their usage of the site's privacy settings. They sought to empirically ascertain the types of information Cypriot youth are publicly posting through an extensive content analysis of randomly selected Facebook profile pages. For each member, various types of disclosed personal and sensitive information were analyzed, for example name, gender, profile picture, and contact information. Other parameters involved quantification of activities published, such as number of personal photos uploaded, membership in groups etc.
Preliminary results show that Cypriot Facebook youth members are also willing to share personal information as the majority of the participants published their full name, gender, birthday and hometown. In addition, Cypriot youth actively use Facebook and its possibilities with activities such as joining groups, supporting causes, and using applications. Surprisingly, Cypriots are less likely to disclose contact details.

Paper Citation:
Taraszow, T., Arsoy, A., Shitta, G., & Laouris, Y. (2008, Nov). How much Personal and Sensitive Information do Cypriot Teenagers reveal in Facebook? Proceedings of the 7th European Conference on E-Learning, Ayia Napa, Cyprus.

Tuesday, 2 December 2008

Christmas presents for the children of refugees and asylum seekers

Future Worlds Center is organising a Christmas gift collection to support the families of refugees and asylum seekers in Cyprus. We kindly request that all gifts are wrapped and that you indicate the age and gender of the child for which the present is intended (ages 0-14).

This Christmas let us all give some joy to the children of these families by offering them a present.

For further information please contact us on tel: 22 873820 fax: 22 873821.

We are open Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm.

Our offices are situated at 5 Promitheos str., 1st floor, 1065 Nicosia.

Future Worlds Center in cooperation with the Unit for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture (URVT) and with the support of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Cyprus offers free legal advice to refugees and asylum seekers as well as free legal, social and psychological support to victims of torture and their families.

Wednesday, 26 November 2008

ObamaVision Webscope




Our international team of practioners of the science of Structured Dialogic Design (SDD), who wish to work together towards discovering the roadblocks facing President Barack Obama in realizing his vision of a bottom-up democracy for the people and with the people of the United States of America is engaging in the ObamaVision Webscope.

The group work of the team of stakeholders focuses on diagnosing the inhibitors to the actualization of a bottom-up democracy as visualized by the President-elect:

The "disciplined dialogue" of the team will be conducted asynchronously (different places at different times from December 1 to 12), and synchronously (different places at the same time on December 13) employing this Websope wiki. The group will be engaged for approximately six hours during the period of December 1 to December 13, 2008.

We are hosting an observers's party at the FWC offices on 13 December so that any of our associates can witness this event.

Please see http://obamavision.wikispaces.com for more info or feel free to contact Larry for questions / comments


See you on the wiki,

Thursday, 20 November 2008

Global Connections – Interactive workshop on Development Education for Teachers from across Europe


25 teachers and teacher trainers from Cyprus, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Scotland and Ireland participated in a workshop on Development Education in Kaunas/ Lithuania from the 19 until the 23 of October, 2008. The workshop was part of the EuropeAid funded project ‘Accessing Development Education’, coordinated by Future Worlds Center (Cyprus) in partnership with Youth Career and Advising Centre (Lithuania), ScotDec (Scotland), KADE (Ireland) and C.E.G.A. (Bulgaria). The project’s main aim is to engage educators and schools in Development Education activities and equip them with relevant training and materials, thus making them promoters and multipliers of national campaigns that aim to create awareness about Development and about global interdependencies.
A Teachers Advisory Group (TAG) has been established in each partner country. The TAG members act as experts on the ground; they are actively involved in assessing, reviewing and modifying existing Development Education material, ensuring that it relates to the local teaching context.
The Global Connections workshop in Kaunas brought teachers and teacher trainers of all five national TAGs together. Throughout the four days, the participants explored a wide range of Global/ Development Education topics, such as Human Rights, Fair Trade, Refugees, Sustainable Development, and the Millennium Development Goals. The workshop sessions were led by the partner NGOs, as well as by teachers and teacher trainers themselves, sharing successful resources and approaches. A diversity of methodologies, teaching material, games and group activities ensured not only the active participation of all participants, but also offered the teachers a pool of good practices to utilise for their own classroom.
The project is currently developing an online depository of best practices of DE teaching material. The website with the depository will be launched in December and will be accessible at www.developmenteducation.info. Additionally, a wiki-portal has been set up as a tool to connect teachers across Europe at http://globalconnections.wetpaint.com. Any teacher or educator can register and participate in discussions or share interesting and successful teaching material, links and other success stories.
For more information, please contact the project coordinator.

Global Education Week


Future Worlds Center announces its participation in the Europe-wide Global Education Week. The Global Education Week takes place every third week of November in all member states of the Council of Europe. The Global Education Week offers a common frame for actions on Global Citizenship, Human Rights and Intercultural Dialogue.

The Future Worlds Center has facilitated an interactive structured dialogue workshop with teachers of the 3rd Elementary School of Deryneia and is organising a 2-day workshop about Global Education for teachers from across Cyprus.
For more information on the Global Education Week and the actions organised by FWC, please contact the Development Education Unit.

Tuesday, 18 November 2008

Serving the Citizen: Promoting NGO-Public Sector Partnership

“Serving the Citizen: Promoting NGO-Public Sector Partnership”

Organised in the framework of the Legal and Regulatory Framework Reform of Civil Society in Cyprus on 27-28 November 2008 at the Holiday Inn, in Nicosia.

The conference aims:

¨ To share international / European best practice experiences between new EU member states and the Western Balkans with local stakeholders.

¨ To promote learning from best practice in such areas as NGO registration, public benefit status, public financing of NGOs, government-NGO relations, and forms of supporting NGOs.

¨ To increase the capacity of all stakeholders involved – government, NGOs, lawyers, and other decision-makers – to support the reform of the institutional framework in which civil society functions in Cyprus.

¨ To showcase case studies from Cyprus for a regional audience.

¨ To increase dialogue and enhance relations between civil society and the Cyprus government services through a knowledge-sharing experience.

Participants will have the opportunity to participate in plenary sessions, roundtable discussions and workshops with prominent experts: Mr. Jeremy McBride, Expert Council on NGO Law, Council of Europe, Professionals on the NGO legal reform from Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Croatia, Mr. Ninos Savvides, Planning Bureau, Mr. Jaco Cilliers, UNDP-ACT, Members from the NGO Working Group.

For further information contact: Isabelle Ioannides, PhD

Tuesday, 21 October 2008

European Conference on Youth Inclusion and Youth Participation


On Saturday, 8 November 2008 youth from Cyprus will meet with other youth from 11 European Union countries at the “European Conference on Youth Inclusion and Youth Participation”. They will hear from distinguished leaders across Europe, present results of an International Youth Survey, discuss outputs of regional youth Structured Dialogues held in Cyprus, Italy and Romania and present a joint declaration on citizenship and youth participation across Europe. This conference is part of the European Union Youth in Action Programme project called “UCYVROK” which is short for Uniting for Citizenship and participation: Youth promoting Vulnerable groups' Rights, Opportunities and Knowledge. The event will be held from 10.00 until 16.00 at the Golden Bay Beach Hotel in Larnaca, Cyprus.

The UCYVROK project is coordinated by Cypriot non-governmental organisation, Future Worlds Center and is implemented in partnership with eleven youth non-governmental organisations from across Europe. The project receives funding from the European Commission’s Youth in Action Programme and is a direct response to the European Parliament’s inquiry about the lack of youth participation in European activities.
Project activities have included structured dialogue workshops in Cyprus, Italy and Romania, the creation of an online platform (http://ucyvrok.wetpaint.com) linking youth across Europe, a comprehensive survey examining the current youth environment in eleven EU countries, and exploring ways to promote youth participation in European activities and intercultural events, with a particular focus on less privileged youth.
Confirmed speakers at the “European Conference on Youth Inclusion and Youth Participation” include the Honourable Panayiotis Demetriou, Member of the European Parliament from Cyprus, and Jaco Cilliers, Programme Manager from the United Nations Development Programme - Action for Cooperation and Trust (UNDP-ACT). Other special guest speakers will be presenting as well.

UCYVROK European Union partners:
1. ANTIGONE - Information Centre on Racism, Ecology, Peace and Non Violence (Greece)
2. CVC - Centrum Voľného Času (Slovakia)
3. ANEEI - Agency for Non-formal Education and European Information (Bulgaria)
4. ADICE - Association pour le Développement des Initiatives Citoyennes et Européennes (France)
5. Università del Terzo Settore (Italy)
6. Intercultural Institute of Timisoara (Romania)
7. Salesian Missionary Voluntary Service – Youth for the World (Poland)
8. Association Youth for Society (Latvia)
9. Multikultúra Egyesület (Hungary)
10. Jugend bewegt Europa (Germany)
11. Human Rights Education Youth Network (European Network/ Spain)

For more information please contact Project Coordinator Larry Fergeson at Future Worlds Center.
Tel: +357 22873820 or email: larry.fergeson.cyprus@gmail.com


European Union funded Youth in Action Programme Project No.: 2007-3756/010-001

Tuesday, 14 October 2008

New MDG Training Dates

The Dates of the Training Sessions on International Development and the Millennium Development Goals have changed. The new dates for the upcoming trainings are:

11 NOV - MDG Radio - Radio Structures and Techniques
13 NOV - Introduction to Fair Trade
25 NOV - Immigration Flows: Causes and Consequences
02 DEC - Global Citizenship - A Basic Concept for Civic Education
16 DEC - Basic Health Education and International Campaigns

For more information on the trainings or the project, please contact Yves.

Monday, 6 October 2008

Global Education Week - Cyprus NGO Platform 'The Development' at the Ministry of Education

Kerstin Wittig, Cyprus representative to the European Development Education Forum participated in a presentation at the Ministry of Education directed to Civil Society Organisations in Cyprus and government Ministries. The event was organised by Ministry of Education, CYPRUSAID and the Cyprus NGO Platform 'The Development'. Participants learned about Development Education and Global Education, European strategies and actions, Global Education Week, and the contribution of CYPRUSAID towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

New Island-wide Cyprus Development Platform

FWC as a founding member of Cyprus NGO Platform "The Development" has agreed to join the newly established Island-wide Cyprus Development Platform. This meta-platform brings together development NGOs from all over Cyprus to promote development issues in a broader EU context. For more information contact Kerstin Wittig, head of the Development Education Unit at FWC.

Saturday, 4 October 2008

Everybody’s Song

Everybody’s Song was an international youth project in Bulgaria, Cyprus, FYR Macedonia, Greece and Serbia which lasted from December 2006 until August 2008. It was conceived and coordinated by the Cyprus Neuroscience and Technology Institute alias Future Worlds Center. The project’s general aim was to reflect on the role of music in intercultural understanding and to identify ways to utilise it in youth work.


The new version of our website (http://www.everybodys-song.net) including picture galleries, videos, audio material and a download section is finally online! It is available in seven languages (English, Albanian, Bulgarian, Greek, (Slavic) Macedonian, Serbian and Turkish). A few minor corrections still need to be done and the Greek section will be added during the following days. Four of our videos are on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/user/EverybodysSongprojec).

Thursday, 2 October 2008

"Strengthening Asylum in Cyprus” UNHCR funded project

Target Population:
Asylum Seekers and Refugees residing in Cyprus

Main Goal:
To offer free of charge legal aid and social support to the target population.

Our Duties include:

• Monitoring/Evaluation of the Refugee Status Determination procedures (e.g. Application for Asylum, Interviews, Appeals, police related issues)
• Monitoring/Evaluation of the present financial, vocational, educational and health needs of the clients
• Sharing of information with clients on their lawful rights,/provision of advocacy services.

In order to address and resolve problems on the above mentioned sectors:

Individual approach, not campaign-orientated work.

Liaison with competent governmental authorities.

Collaboration with UNHCR, other NGO’s, educational/training bodies etc. for the benefit of clients.

Monitoring of asylum procedures and law implementation and provision of recommendations on policy issues

For more information contact Manos Mathioudakis here

Friday, 26 September 2008

FWC Welcomes International Interns

As part of the Future Worlds Center International Internship program two new interns have started their apprenticeships. FWC welcomes Brooke Galloway, a Conflict Resolution graduate student from Portland State University in Portland, Oregon and Lucia Fetzer from University of Hannover (in Germany) and now an Erasmus student at the University of Nicosia.


Please contact Larry Fergeson for information on Internships at FWC.

FWC SDDP Team in Romania











As part of the UCYVROK project (Uniting for Citizenship and participation: Youth promoting Vulnerable groups’ Rights, Opportunities and Knowledge) Future Worlds Center staff members Larry Fergeson, Yiannis Laouris and Kerstin Wittig facilitated a Structured Design Dialogue Process (SDDP) in Romania. Participants from Bulgaria, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary, Latvia and Poland engaged in Structured Dialogue about what an ideal society that is culturally diverse and inclusive looks like. The process was a huge success and produced a very detailed map of descriptors. The full report will be presented at the UCYVROK International Conference in Cyprus on 8 November in Larnaca, Cyprus at The Golden Bay Hotel.

For more information about Structured Design Dialogue Process (SDDP) please read the book: How People Harness their Collective Wisdom and Power - Alexander N. Christakis with Kenneth C. Bausch, (Information Age Publishing, Greenwich, CT, March 2006)

Monday, 15 September 2008

FWC is shortlisted for IPE grant

Changing Attitudes of Adults (parents) on Internet-Related Risks for Young Adolescents

The project will address Internet safety issues with the aim to achieve an in-depth understanding regarding safety breaches and protective measures and actions, primarily within the family environment. For this purpose, a limited section of the Online Virtual Environment, Second Life, will be customized to host study teams who will be playing on the Internet and will be “exposed” to real risks in a controlled way. Project participants are expected to develop skills in recognising safety pitfalls and dealing with them as well as appreciate Internet Risks in their true dimension.
The very difference between real Internet-related risks and Internet-related risks as perceived by adults (parents) could constitute a new type of risk in itself. There is a similar difference between the means to deal with these risks and the means to deal with these risks as perceived by adults (parents). The conception adults (parents) have on what (their) children do when they “play” (spend time) on the Internet is largely based on ignorance; certainly experiential ignorance in that they have not “played” (spent time) on such activities themselves and often ‘literate ignorance’ in that they have not studied the matter. Media and church hype add insult to injury. Furthermore, there is a difference between the real attitude of adults (parents) towards their children (in general, and with respect to their children’s activities on the Internet) and their self-perceived attitude. There is a further difference between their real attitudes and the results of their behavior.
The project will study the attitude of such adults towards the fact that their children immerse themselves into video games (Second Life in particular). Specifically, the project team will study the change in attitudes of the adults regarding the activities of their children and the risks related before and after they had an opportunity to “play” along with their children for several months.
Target groups addressed will be parents (of 12-15 year old girls and 13-16 year old boys) who are teachers (preferably at high schools where they have pupils of the same age as their children) who will fall into specific, predefined clusters, along with their children. Each study team will consist of one or two parents-teachers with their one or more children / nephew and / or their friends.
Project outputs, products and results will include, among others, i) a customized area in the Virtual, Online Environment “Second Life”, ii) a portal supporting project work, dissemination activities and project participants, iii) recorded research on internet safety risks as perceived by adults and teenagers of the study teams and most importantly the possible change in attitudes before and after game playing. This research aims at concluding to a suggested methodology on an original approach in developing an Internet Safety Culture which could be used as a bases for learning material at various levels and in particular for teacher training.

Portland State University Students visit Cyprus

We are pleased to welcome Professor Dr. Harry Anastasiou from the conflict resolution department at Portland State University to Cyprus. Each year Dr. Anastasiou brings a group of top graduate students from the USA to Cyprus to broaden their horizons and give them an in-depth look at the realities on the ground in Cyprus.

This year Future Worlds Center will give a presentation to the students at the Russian Cultural Centre located at 16 Alasias Street, Nicosia on 16 September at 14.00. The Russian Cultural Centre contains a library with Russian books, periodicals, music, film, and other media. For Russian natives, this is a good place to make contacts and arrange for Greek and/or English lessons. The center also hosts cultural events and exhibitions, particularly those pertaining to the arts.

Russian Cultural Centre:Corner of Alasias & Zenonos St.Tel.: +357 22 761607

Центр Русского Науки и Культуры - Здесь хорошое место найти информацию о языковых курсах в никосии. Библиотека. Художественные выставки.

New Talk of the Island Web Site

Future Worlds Center announces the new and improved website for Talk of the Island radio programme. It now has a live listening link and you can listen to any of the past shows since 2005. Please go to:

http://talkoftheisland.wetpaint.com/

Have a look around and give a listen to your favorite radio programme coming to you from Cyprus.

Save the Date

Save the Date

for the european union funded youth in action programme project

organised by lead partner

future worlds center

Uniting for Citizenship and Participation: Youth promoting Vulnerable Groups' Rights, Opportunities and Knowledge (UCYVROK)

Project No.: 2007-3756/010-001

European Conference on Youth Inclusion and Youth Participation

Saturday, 08 November 9.00 until 16.00

Golden Bay Hotel

Larnaca Cyprus

Thursday, 4 September 2008

Envisioning a culturally diverse and inclusive society: Structured Dialogue Workshop in Romania

In the context of its European Project 'UCYVROK', Future Worlds Center staff will facilitate a structured dialogue workshop in Timisoara/ Romania on the 21 and 22 September. This is the second regional workshop within the UCYVROK project.
The workshop will be attended by project partners and youth from Poland, Slovakia, Latvia, Hungary and Romania. The participants will engage in a democratic and structured dialogue to develop a joint vision for a culturally diverse and inclusive society.
For further information about the project go to the UCYVROK website or email the project coordinator.
For further information about Structured Dialogue click here.

Thursday, 14 August 2008

FWC shortlisted for new EU Project

The European Commission today shortlisted the application for a new project to be coordinated by Future Worlds Center and the Youth Centre Union. The project is called "Jumpstart - Youth Peace Campaign in Cyprus" and if approved will run for 18 months and aims to increase the number of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot youth actively participating in the Cyprus reconciliation process. It will hopefully be funded by the The European Commission as part of its Reconciliation, Confidence Building Measures and Support to Civil Society under the CYPRIOT CIVIL SOCIETY IN ACTION Programme. The Overall Objectives are to:
  • Increase confidence building between the Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot youth (18-30)
  • Create opportunities for youth to actively engage in reconciliation activities
  • Promote inter-cultural dialogue and its methods and language as a concept and as the means for envisioning a future Cyprus
  • Enable Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot youth to challenge their own stereotypes and perceptions as well as to develop the capacity to challenge those of the community at large
FWC, as the European leader in Structured Dialogic Design Processes or SDDP, will conduct a deeper analysis of issues concerning youth, participation, reconciliation processes in Cyprus if the project is approved. FWC will enable the youth activist group to develop an action strategy for the campaign and to identify possible risks along with alternative solutions and contingency plans. Based on an effective methodology, the SDDP sessions will ensure that all key issues are taken into account, all members of the youth activist group have voiced both their plans and concerns, and that the group democratically agrees on the action plan to be implemented.

Wednesday, 6 August 2008

FWC 2007 Annual Report

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FWC 2006 Annual Report

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Βασανιστήρια. Πόσο μακριά μας είναι;

Published in Χαραυγή (Monday 7 July 2008, p. 33)

26η Ιουνίου Παγκόσμια Ημέρα Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων από τον Οργανισμό Ηνωμένων Εθνών

Δρ Ηλίας Παπαδόπουλος

Παιδοχειρουργός

Ιατρικός Διευθυντής Μονάδας Αποκατάστασης Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων

Αλήθεια πόσοι γνωρίζουμε ότι εξακολουθούν να υφίστανται τα βασανιστήρια; Οι περισσότεροι έχουμε στο μυαλό μας ότι τα βασανιστήρια είναι κάτι ξένο προς εμάς ή ότι έχουν περάσει στην ιστορία. Δυστυχώς όμως σήμερα στον 21ο αιώνα αυτά που αναφέρει ένα θύμα βασανιστηρίων δεν αποτελούν το σενάριο μιας φρικιαστικής φανταστικής ταινίας θρίλερ αλλά την ωμή πραγματικότητα.

Το Δεκέμβριο του 1998 κατά τη Γενική Συνέλευση των Ηνωμένων Εθνών καθιερώθηκε η 26η Ιουνίου ως Παγκόσμια Ημέρα για τη Στήριξη των Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων.

Σύμφωνα με στοιχεία των Ηνωμένων Εθνών και της Διεθνούς Αμνηστίας υπερβαίνουν τα 50 εκατομμύρια οι εκτοπισμένοι είτε στην ίδια τους τη χώρα είτε σε άλλη χώρα (αιτούντες άσυλο, παράνομοι, προσωρινά διαμένοντες κτλ). Υπολογίζεται χωρίς να είναι βέβαιο λόγω μη καταγραφής των περιστατικών ότι ένα ποσοστό από 15 – 35% των ανωτέρω έχουν υποστεί βασανιστήρια.

Τα βασανιστήρια αποτελούν θεμελιώδη παραβίαση των ανθρωπίνων δικαιωμάτων και έχουν καταδικαστεί από τη Γενική Συνέλευση των Ηνωμένων Εθνών ως προσβολή της ανθρώπινης αξιοπρέπειας ενώ έχουν απαγορευτεί από εθνικούς και διεθνείς νόμους. Εντούτοις, τα βασανιστήρια εξακολουθούν να γίνονται καθημερινά, σε παγκόσμια κλίμακα. Μάλιστα δε θα περίμενε κανείς τα βασανιστήρια να λαμβάνουν χώρα μόνο σε κράτη που βρίσκονται σε εμπόλεμη κατάσταση ή σε κράτη όπου υπάρχει βία και αυστηρή αστυνόμευση. Δυστυχώς όμως, σύμφωνα με στοιχεία της Διεθνούς Αμνηστίας, οι χώρες στις οποίες χρησιμοποιούνται τα βασανιστήρια σε τακτική βάση είναι πέραν των 150 παγκόσμια. Λόγω της παγκοσμιοποίησης, κοινωνίες του λεγόμενου ανεπτυγμένου κόσμου έχουν έρθει σε επαφή με άτομα που έχουν υποστεί βασανιστήρια στις χώρες τους, με αποτέλεσμα να γίνει επιτακτική η ανάγκη δημιουργίας κέντρου για τα θύματα των βασανιστηρίων σε όλες τις χώρες του κόσμου. Υπάρχουν πέραν των 200 τέτοιων κέντρων παγκόσμια.

Ένα τέτοιο κέντρο δημιουργήσαμε και στην Κύπρο το οποίο ονομάσαμε «Μονάδα Αποκατάστασης Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων» (URVT – Unit for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture) και εδρεύει στη Λευκωσία. Η Μονάδα σχεδιάστηκε βάσει του Ιατρικού Κέντρου Αποκατάστασης Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων (Ι.Κ.Α.Θ.Β.) στην Αθήνα, που ανέλαβε την εκπαίδευση των επαγγελματιών που απαρτίζουν την Μονάδα μας (ιατρός, ψυχολόγος, κοινωνική λειτουργός, διοικητική λειτουργός κτλ). Το πρόγραμμα, αποτελεί το προϊόν συνεργασίας μεταξύ του Ι.Κ.Α.Θ.Β. και του Ινστιτούτου Νευροεπιστήμης και Τεχνολογίας Κύπρου (C.N.T.I.). Αυτό το πρωτοποριακό πρόγραμμα είναι εφικτό με την χρηματοδότηση του Ευρωπαϊκού Ταμείου Προσφύγων και της Υπηρεσίας Ασύλου και έχει σκοπό να βοηθήσει τα θύματα βασανιστηρίων, αλλά και τις οικογένειές τους, να ξανακτίσουν τη ζωή τους.

Η αποστολή μας είναι να βοηθήσουμε τα θύματα βασανιστηρίων προσφέροντας πολυδιάστατη θεραπεία και υπηρεσίες αποκατάστασης και να αυξήσουμε την ενημέρωση του κοινού για ζητήματα που αφορούν τα βασανιστήρια και την αποκατάσταση. Η καθολική θεραπευτική προσέγγιση που προσφέρει το URVT εμπερικλείει μια πλήρη σειρά υπηρεσιών που περιλαμβάνει ιατρική περίθαλψη, ψυχολογική στήριξη, παροχή νομικών συμβουλών και άλλων κοινωνικών υπηρεσιών. Η μονάδα έχει στενή συνεργασία με δίκτυο εθελοντικών φορέων, ιατρών και μεταφραστών γλώσσας και κουλούρας διαφόρων χωρών για να βοηθήσει τα θύματα βασανιστηρίων και τις οικογένειες τους να ανοικοδομήσουν τη ζωή τους.

Αυτή η Μονάδα χρειάζεται υποστήριξη από πολλούς εθελοντές οι οποίοι είτε θα βοηθούν στον επιστημονικό τομέα (γιατροί, δικηγόροι, ψυχολόγοι, κοινωνιολόγοι, κοινωνικοί λειτουργοί κτλ.) είτε θα βοηθούν στη στήριξη των θυμάτων με διάφορους τρόπους (υλικούς ή πνευματικούς) όπου ο καθένας ευαισθητοποιημένος πολίτης μπορεί να βοηθήσει.

Σύμφωνα με το Άρθρο 5 της Οικουμενικής Διακήρυξης των Δικαιωμάτων του Ανθρώπου του 1948 και το Άρθρο 7 του Διεθνούς Συμφώνου για τα Ατομικά και Πολιτικά Δικαιώματα του 1966 κανείς δεν επιτρέπεται να υποβάλλεται σε βασανιστήρια ούτε σε ποινή ή μεταχείριση σκληρή, απάνθρωπη ή ταπεινωτική μεταχείριση ή τιμωρία. Κανένα πρόσωπο δεν θα υποβάλλεται χωρίς την ελεύθερη συγκατάθεσή του σε ιατρικούς ή επιστημονικούς πειραματισμούς.

Στο Άρθρο 1 του Πρώτου Μέρους της Σύμβασης κατά των βασανιστηρίων και άλλων τρόπων σκληρής, απάνθρωπης ή ταπεινωτικής μεταχείρισης ή τιμωρίας του 1984 τα βασανιστήρια ορίζονται σαν κάθε πράξη με την οποία, σωματικός ή ψυχικός πόνος ή έντονη οδύνη επιβάλλονται με πρόθεση σε ένα πρόσωπο, με σκοπό ιδίως να αποκτηθούν από αυτό ή από τρίτο πρόσωπο πληροφορίες ή ομολογίες, να τιμωρηθεί για μια πράξη που αυτό ή τρίτο πρόσωπο έχει διαπράξει ή είναι ύποπτο ότι την έχει διαπράξει, να εκφοβησθεί ή να εξαναγκασθεί αυτός ή τρίτο πρόσωπο, ή για κάθε άλλο λόγο που βασίζεται σε διάκριση οποιασδήποτε μορφής, εφ' όσον ένας τέτοιος πόνος ή οδύνη επιβάλλονται από δημόσιο λειτουργό ή κάθε άλλο πρόσωπο που ενεργεί με επίσημη ιδιότητα ή με την υποκίνηση ή τη συναίνεση ή την ανοχή του. Σύμφωνα δε με το Άρθρο 3 της ίδιας Σύμβασης κανένα κράτος - Μέρος δεν θα απελαύνει, δεν θα επαναπροωθεί ούτε θα εκδίδει πρόσωπο σε άλλο κράτος, όπου θα υπάρχουν ουσιώδεις λόγοι να πιστεύεται ότι αυτό το πρόσωπο θα κινδυνεύσει να υποστεί εκ νέου βασανιστήρια.

Η 29η Συνέλευση του Παγκόσμιου Ιατρικού Συλλόγου στο Τόκιο στις 10 Οκτωβρίου 1975 ασχολήθηκε με το ρόλο των γιατρών σε περιπτώσεις βασανιστηρίων και άλλων μορφών σκληρής, απάνθρωπης ή εξευτελιστικής μεταχείρισης ή τιμωρίας προσώπων υπό κράτηση ή φυλάκιση. Από αυτή τη «Διακήρυξη του Τόκιο» απορρέουν κάποια πορίσματα που έχουν να κάνουν με το ιατρικό λειτούργημα και τα βασανιστήρια.

1. Σε καμία περίπτωση ο γιατρός δεν πρέπει να υποστηρίζει, να δικαιολογεί ή να μετέχει σε βασανιστήρια ή άλλες μορφές σκληρής, απάνθρωπης ή εξευτελιστικής μεταχείρισης, οποιαδήποτε και αν είναι η κατηγορία που αποδίδεται στο θύμα, οποιεσδήποτε και αν είναι οι πεποιθήσεις ή τα κίνητρα του θύματος και υπό οποιεσδήποτε συνθήκες, περιλαμβανομένης και της ένοπλης σύγκρουσης ή πολιτικής διαμάχης.

2. Ο γιατρός απαγορεύεται να παρέχει τα μέσα που έχει στη διάθεσή του ως γιατρός (ιατρείο, εργαλεία, φαρμακευτικές ουσίες ή γνώσεις) για να διευκολύνει την εκτέλεση βασανιστηρίων ή άλλων μορφών σκληρής, απάνθρωπης ή εξευτελιστικής μεταχείρισης ή για να εξασθενίσει την αντίσταση του θύματος σ' αυτή τη μεταχείριση.

3. Ο γιατρός απαγορεύεται να παρευρίσκεται σε οποιαδήποτε διαδικασία στην οποία γίνονται ή απειλούνται να γίνουν βασανιστήρια ή άλλες μορφές σκληρής, απάνθρωπης ή εξευτελιστικής μεταχείρισης.

4. Ο γιατρός πρέπει να είναι ελεύθερος να αποφασίζει το είδος της θεραπείας που θα συστήσει στο άτομο του οποίου έχει αναλάβει την ιατρική φροντίδα. Ο βασικός ρόλος του γιατρού είναι να ανακουφίζει τους συνανθρώπους του χωρίς να εμποδίζεται στην άσκηση των καθηκόντων του από προσωπικά, συλλογικά ή πολιτικά αίτια.

5. Όταν ο κρατούμενος αρνείται να λάβει τροφή και ο γιατρός θεωρεί ότι ο κρατούμενος αυτός είναι σε θέση να κρίνει ολοκληρωτικά και ορθολογικά τις συνέπειες της ηθελημένης στέρησης τροφής, δεν πρέπει να υποβάλλεται σε υποχρεωτική σίτιση. Για την ικανότητα του κρατουμένου να σχηματίσει τέτοια κρίση πρέπει να αποφανθεί και ένας ακόμη ανεξάρτητος γιατρός. Επίσης ο κρατούμενος πρέπει να ενημερωθεί από το γιατρό για τις συνέπειες της άρνησης τροφής.

6. Ο Παγκόσμιος Ιατρικός Σύλλογος πρέπει να ενθαρρύνει τη διεθνή κοινότητα, τους εθνικούς ιατρικούς συλλόγους και τον κάθε γιατρό χωριστά να συμπαρίστανται στους γιατρούς ή στις οικογένειές τους που αντιμετωπίζουν απειλές ή αντίποινα γιατί αρνήθηκαν να υποστηρίξουν τη χρήση βασανιστηρίων ή άλλες μορφές σκληρής, απάνθρωπης ή ταπεινωτικής μεταχείρισης.

Συχνά τα βασανιστήρια προηγούνται κάθε δίκης και χρησιμοποιούνται ως μηχανισμός καταναγκαστικής ομολογίας και συλλογής πληροφοριών. Οι μορφές των βασανιστηρίων αποτελούν ένα ατελείωτο μακροσκελή κατάλογο. Οποιαδήποτε διαστροφή την οποία μπορεί να φανταστεί ο ανθρώπινος νους μπορεί κάποιος να τη μεταφράσει και να χρησιμοποιηθεί ως βασανιστήριο. Έχουν περιγραφεί κάποιες μορφές που χρησιμοποιούνται συχνότερα π.χ. συστηματικοί ξυλοδαρμοί και χτυπήματα είτε με γροθιές, κλωτσιές, ξύλα, μαστίγια, υποκόπανος όπλων κτλ, φάλαγγας κατά τον οποίο δένονται τα πόδια και κτυπιούνται τα πέλματα με γκλοπ, ξύλα ή τα όπλα, telefono με κτυπήματα με τις παλάμες ταυτόχρονα και στα δύο αυτιά, χρήση νυσσόντων και τεμνόντων οργάνων (ξυράφια, καρφιά, μαχαίρια, γυαλιά, πυροβολισμοί) κρέμασμα, παλαιστινιακή κρεμάλα, υπερέκταση των άκρων, υποχρεωτική ορθοστασία, πρόκληση ασφυξίας (submarino = εμβύθινση της κεφαλής σε νερά ή ακαθαρσίες ή κουκούλωμα με πλαστική σακούλα μέχρι του ορίου του πνιγμού, εισπνοή αναθυμιάσεων), ηλεκτροσόκ και καψίματα σε όπλο το σώμα αλλά και ευαίσθητες περιοχές, σεξουαλικά βασανιστήρια, συστροφή όρχεων, ψυχολογικά βασανιστήρια (απειλές κατά του ατόμου, απομόνωση, αισθητηριακή αποστέρηση).

Μεγάλη επίδραση έχουν τα βασανιστήρια και στην ψυχική σφαίρα αυτού που τα έχει υποστεί. Έτσι μπορούν να παρατηρηθούν συμπτώματα από αυξημένο άγχος, διαταραχές του ύπνου, της μνήμης και της προσοχής, της libido, της διάθεσης, αδυναμία συγκέντρωσης, συναισθηματική αστάθεια, επιθετικότητα, προβλήματα κοινωνικοποίησης κ.α. Έχει περιγραφεί το σύνδρομο μετά από τραυματικό στρες (post traumatic stress syndrome, P.T.S.D.) το οποίο περιλαμβάνει όλες αυτές τις διαταραχές μετά από αυτή την ακραία μορφή εμπειρίας που δύναται να βιώσει κάποιος άνθρωπος με επακόλουθο την καταστροφή της φυσιολογικής ροής της ζωής του ατόμου. Οι επιβιώσαντες βασανιστηρίων μπορούν να επαναβιώνουν τα τραυματικά γεγονότα να καταφεύγουν σε κατάχρηση ουσιών, να έχουν διαταραχές στη σεξουαλικότητα, να έχουν έντονα συμπτώματα κατάθλιψης ή αντίθετα επίμονα συμπτώματα αυξημένης διεγερσιμότητας κτλ.

Η κλινική εξέταση ενός θύματος βασανιστηρίων απαιτεί το συσχετισμό όλων των παραμέτρων (χρόνος που παρήλθε από το βασανιστήριο, ακριβής περιγραφή σε σχέση με τα κλινικά ευρήματα, διανοητική κατάσταση, ψυχολογικός φόρτος, επαλήθευση των στοιχείων που αναφέρονται στους διάφορους επαγγελματίες κτλ). Επακόλουθα βασανιστηρίων μπορούν να είναι ευρήματα από όλα τα συστήματα του οργανισμού (διαταραχές αναπνευστικού ή του καρδιαγγειακού συστήματος, γαστρεντερικές διαταραχές, κακοποίηση δέρματος, ενδοκρινολογικά προβλήματα κ.ο.κ.). Συχνότερα προσβαλλόμενο οργανικό σύστημα είναι το μυοσκελετικό, ενώ μόνιμα και ανεξίτηλα χαραγμένα είναι τα βιώματα ενός θύματος βασανιστηρίων στο ψυχολογικό τομέα.

Υπάρχουν περιπτώσεις όπου εργαστηριακά ευρήματα τα οποία συνδυάζονται με την κλινική εικόνα καταμαρτυρούν πως ο άνθρωπος υπέστη βασανιστήρια π.χ. σύνδρομα προσθίου και οπισθίου διαμερίσματος και σπινθηρογραφική μελέτη μετά από φάλαγγα, ιστολογικές αλλοιώσεις με νέκρωση και φυσαλιδώδεις πυρήνες στην επιδερμίδα σε χρήση ηλεκτρικού ρεύματος κτλ.

Σε περιπτώσεις όπου δεν υπάρχουν κλινικά ευρήματα π.χ. όταν κάποιος έχει υποστεί «εικονική εκτέλεση» ή κακοποίησαν μπροστά του ένα συγγενικό του πρόσωπο ή ακόμα σε περιπτώσεις όπου ως μέθοδοι βασανιστηρίων παρουσιάζονται ως ιατρική θεραπεία π.χ. χορήγηση φαρμάκων που προκαλούν πόνο ή είναι παραισθησιογόνα κτλ απαιτείται να επιστρατευτεί η φαντασία, η διαίσθηση και η επιστημονική γνώση του γιατρού για την αποκάλυψη των βασανιστηρίων.

Από το 1999 έχει καθιερωθεί από τον ΟΗΕ το Πρωτόκολλο της Κωνσταντινούπολης το οποίο είναι ένα αναγνωρισμένο εγχειρίδιο που βοηθά τους ιατρούς να διαγιγνώσκουν τα επακόλουθα βασανιστηρίων και να πιστοποιούν εάν κάποιος υπήρξε θύμα βασανιστηρίων ή όχι.

Η πρόληψη των βασανιστηρίων και η αποκατάσταση των θυμάτων βασανιστηρίων αποτελούν σημαντικές προτεραιότητες για όλα τα Κράτη Μέλη της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης αλλά και για όλα τα κράτη ανά την υφήλιο. Μεγάλος αριθμός Μη Κυβερνητικών Οργανώσεων και προσώπων εργάζονται ακατάπαυστα για την πρόληψη των βασανιστηρίων και την ανακούφιση των δεινών των θυμάτων. Το Διεθνές Κέντρο για την αποκατάσταση των θυμάτων βασανιστηρίων (IRCT) το οποίο ιδρύθηκε στην Κοπεγχάγη το 1984 παίζει ουσιαστικό ρόλο στην ευαισθητοποίηση της κοινής γνώμης. Όλοι εμείς που έχουμε έρθει σε επαφή με θύματα βασανιστηρίων δεσμευόμαστε να συνεχίσουμε και να εντείνουμε τις προσπάθειές μας ώστε αφενός να απαλλαγεί ο κόσμος από τα βασανιστήρια και αφετέρου να προσφέρουμε κατά το δυνατό περισσότερες υπηρεσίες στα θύματα και στις οικογένειές τους.

Tuesday, 5 August 2008

26η Ιουνίου Παγκόσμια Ημέρα Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων από τον ΟΗΕΒασανιστήρια - Πόσο μακριά μας είναι;

By Δρ Ηλίας Παπαδόπουλος
Copyright © Politis 30/06/2008

Αλήθεια πόσοι γνωρίζουμε ότι εξακολουθούν να υφίστανται τα βασανιστήρια; Οι περισσότεροι έχουμε στο μυαλό μας ότι τα βασανιστήρια είναι κάτι ξένο προς εμάς ή ότι έχουν περάσει στην ιστορία. Δυστυχώς, όμως σήμερα στον 21ο αιώνα, αυτά που αναφέρει ένα θύμα βασανιστηρίων δεν αποτελούν το σενάριο μιας φρικιαστικής φανταστικής ταινίας θρίλερ αλλά την ωμή πραγματικότητα.

Το Δεκέμβριο του 1998 κατά τη Γενική Συνέλευση των Ηνωμένων Εθνών καθιερώθηκε η 26η Ιουνίου ως Παγκόσμια Ημέρα για τη Στήριξη των Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων. Σύμφωνα με στοιχεία των Ηνωμένων Εθνών και της Διεθνούς Αμνηστίας υπερβαίνουν τα 50 εκατομμύρια οι εκτοπισμένοι είτε στην ίδια τους τη χώρα είτε σε άλλη χώρα (αιτούντες άσυλο, παράνομοι, προσωρινά διαμένοντες κτλ). Υπολογίζεται χωρίς να είναι βέβαιο λόγω μη καταγραφής των περιστατικών ότι ένα ποσοστό από 15 - 35% των ανωτέρω έχουν υποστεί βασανιστήρια.


Τα βασανιστήρια αποτελούν θεμελιώδη παραβίαση των ανθρωπίνων δικαιωμάτων και έχουν καταδικαστεί από τη Γενική Συνέλευση των Ηνωμένων Εθνών ως προσβολή της ανθρώπινης αξιοπρέπειας, ενώ έχουν απαγορευτεί από εθνικούς και διεθνείς νόμους. Στο Άρθρο 1 του Πρώτου Μέρους της Σύμβασης κατά των βασανιστηρίων και άλλων τρόπων σκληρής, απάνθρωπης ή ταπεινωτικής μεταχείρισης ή τιμωρίας του 1984 τα βασανιστήρια ορίζονται σαν κάθε πράξη με την οποία, σωματικός ή ψυχικός πόνος ή έντονη οδύνη επιβάλλονται με πρόθεση σε ένα πρόσωπο, με σκοπό ιδίως να αποκτηθούν από αυτό ή από τρίτο πρόσωπο πληροφορίες ή ομολογίες, να τιμωρηθεί για μια πράξη που αυτό ή τρίτο πρόσωπο έχει διαπράξει ή είναι ύποπτο ότι την έχει διαπράξει, να εκφοβηθεί ή να εξαναγκασθεί αυτός ή τρίτο πρόσωπο, ή για κάθε άλλο λόγο που βασίζεται σε διάκριση οποιασδήποτε μορφής, εφόσον ένας τέτοιος πόνος ή οδύνη επιβάλλονται από δημόσιο λειτουργό ή κάθε άλλο πρόσωπο που ενεργεί με επίσημη ιδιότητα ή με την υποκίνηση ή τη συναίνεση ή την ανοχή του. Σύμφωνα δε με το Άρθρο 3 της ίδιας Σύμβασης κανένα κράτος μέλος δεν θα απελαύνει, δεν θα επαναπροωθεί ούτε θα εκδίδει πρόσωπο σε άλλο κράτος, όπου θα υπάρχουν ουσιώδεις λόγοι να πιστεύεται ότι αυτό το πρόσωπο θα κινδυνεύσει να υποστεί εκ νέου βασανιστήρια.

Εντούτοις, τα βασανιστήρια εξακολουθούν να γίνονται καθημερινά, σε παγκόσμια κλίμακα. Μάλιστα δε, θα περίμενε κανείς τα βασανιστήρια να λαμβάνουν χώρα μόνο σε κράτη που βρίσκονται σε εμπόλεμη κατάσταση ή σε κράτη όπου υπάρχει βία και αυστηρή αστυνόμευση. Δυστυχώς, όμως, σύμφωνα με στοιχεία της Διεθνούς Αμνηστίας, οι χώρες στις οποίες χρησιμοποιούνται τα βασανιστήρια σε τακτική βάση είναι πέραν των 150 παγκόσμια.

Μονάδα Αποκατάστασης Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων
Λόγω της παγκοσμιοποίησης, κοινωνίες του λεγόμενου ανεπτυγμένου κόσμου έχουν έρθει σε επαφή με άτομα που έχουν υποστεί βασανιστήρια στις χώρες τους, με αποτέλεσμα να γίνει επιτακτική η ανάγκη δημιουργίας κέντρου για τα θύματα των βασανιστηρίων σε όλες τις χώρες του κόσμου. Υπάρχουν πέραν των 200 τέτοιων κέντρων παγκόσμια. Ένα τέτοιο κέντρο δημιουργήσαμε και στην Κύπρο το οποίο ονομάσαμε "Μονάδα Αποκατάστασης Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων" (URVT - Unit for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture) και εδρεύει στη Λευκωσία. Η Μονάδα σχεδιάστηκε βάσει του Ιατρικού Κέντρου Αποκατάστασης Θυμάτων Βασανιστηρίων (Ι.Κ.Α.Θ.Β.) στην Αθήνα, που ανέλαβε την εκπαίδευση των επαγγελματιών που απαρτίζουν την Μονάδα μας (ιατρός, ψυχολόγος, κοινωνική λειτουργός, διοικητικός λειτουργός, και διευθύντρια προγράμματος). Το πρόγραμμα αποτελεί προϊόν συνεργασίας μεταξύ του Ι.Κ.Α.Θ.Β. στην Ελλάδα και του Ινστιτούτου Νευροεπιστήμης και Τεχνολογίας Κύπρου (C.N.T.I.) στη Λευκωσία. Αυτό το πρωτοποριακό πρόγραμμα είναι εφικτό με την χρηματοδότηση του Ευρωπαϊκού Ταμείου Προσφύγων και της Υπηρεσίας Ασύλου και έχει σκοπό να βοηθήσει τα θύματα βασανιστηρίων, αλλά και τις οικογένειές τους, να ξανακτίσουν τη ζωή τους.

Η αποστολή μας είναι να βοηθήσουμε τα θύματα βασανιστηρίων προσφέροντας πολυδιάστατη θεραπεία και υπηρεσίες αποκατάστασης και να αυξήσουμε την ενημέρωση του κοινού για ζητήματα που αφορούν τα βασανιστήρια και την αποκατάσταση. Η καθολική θεραπευτική προσέγγιση που προσφέρει η Μονάδα εμπερικλείει μια πλήρη σειρά υπηρεσιών που περιλαμβάνει ιατρική περίθαλψη, ψυχολογική στήριξη, παροχή νομικών συμβουλών και άλλων κοινωνικών υπηρεσιών. Η μονάδα έχει στενή συνεργασία με δίκτυο εθελοντικών φορέων, ιατρών και μεταφραστών γλώσσας και κουλτούρας διαφόρων χωρών για να βοηθήσει τα θύματα βασανιστηρίων και τις οικογένειές τους να ανοικοδομήσουν τη ζωή τους.

Αυτή η Μονάδα χρειάζεται υποστήριξη από πολλούς εθελοντές οι οποίοι είτε θα βοηθούν στον επιστημονικό τομέα (γιατροί, δικηγόροι, ψυχολόγοι, κοινωνιολόγοι, κοινωνικοί λειτουργοί κτλ.) είτε θα βοηθούν στη στήριξη των θυμάτων με διάφορους τρόπους (υλικούς ή πνευματικούς) όπου ο καθένας ευαισθητοποιημένος πολίτης μπορεί να βοηθήσει.

Η πρόληψη των βασανιστηρίων και η αποκατάσταση των θυμάτων βασανιστηρίων αποτελούν σημαντικές προτεραιότητες για όλα τα Κράτη Μέλη της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης αλλά και για όλα τα κράτη ανά την υφήλιο. Μεγάλος αριθμός Μη Κυβερνητικών Οργανώσεων και προσώπων εργάζονται ακατάπαυστα για την πρόληψη των βασανιστηρίων και την ανακούφιση των θυμάτων. Το Διεθνές Κέντρο για την αποκατάσταση των θυμάτων βασανιστηρίων (
IRCT), το οποίο ιδρύθηκε στην Κοπεγχάγη το 1984, παίζει ουσιαστικό ρόλο στην ευαισθητοποίηση της κοινής γνώμης. Όλοι εμείς που έχουμε έρθει σε επαφή με θύματα βασανιστηρίων δεσμευόμαστε να συνεχίσουμε και να εντείνουμε τις προσπάθειές μας ώστε αφενός να απαλλαγεί ο κόσμος από τα βασανιστήρια και αφετέρου να προσφέρουμε κατά το δυνατόν περισσότερες υπηρεσίες στα θύματα και στις οικογένειές τους.

Torture victims need more help

By Stefanos Evripidou
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2008

DESPITE 60 years of illegality, torture is still a common practice in the world, noted the UN Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon yesterday, in his speech marking the international day in support of victims of torture.

“Torture is a profound abuse of human rights and a horrific aberration of the human conscience,” he said.

Article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights strictly prohibits torture under any and all circumstances.

“And yet, 60 years since the adoption of the Declaration, torture persists, devastating millions of victims and their families,” he added.

The UN chief said the UN Day Against Torture was an occasion to remember those who have suffered torture and even died.

“It is also a call to speak out and take action on their behalf and against all those who commit torture and all forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment,” he said.

The day was also marked by the Unit for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture (URVT), which opened in Nicosia two years ago. The unit’s director, Dr Isabelle Ioannidou, said URVT was the only organisation in Cyprus supporting the rehabilitation of victims of torture and their families over the long term.

The unit provides multidisciplinary treatment and rehabilitation services mainly for refugees and asylum seekers that have suffered torture in their own countries. A four-member team trained in Greece provides medical services, legal aid, psychological counselling and social rehabilitation to those suffering the effects of torture, and their families.

According to Ioannidou, asylum seekers are sent to the unit by the Asylum Service for examination if they have claimed to be victims of torture.

“First, we need to establish what the problem is, then to what extent they’ve been tortured, then we look at rehabilitation,” she said.

If the team confirms signs of psychological or physical torture, then the unit issues a certificate which is used in the person’s asylum application. However, even when torture has been established, the applicant may still wait three years until a verdict is given on their application.

“This is a problem. The asylum service doesn’t have the mechanism to fast track those who are tortured. I feel their cases should be processed much quicker,” said Ioannidou.

Examples of torture include physical torture but also psychological, like the constant fear of being jailed for your political beliefs, or the effects of living in a war zone.

“You have to be sensitive to each case. Sometimes psychological torture is worse than physical torture. Many cases involve police torture, or men raped by men, women being raped, and persecution for religious or political beliefs.

“The majority are Kurds from Turkey, but we also have people from Cameroon, Sierra Leone, Palestine, Iraq and Iran.”

Sometimes, those who come to the unit don’t want help. But others clearly do, like the man who suffered repeated rape in jail, or the Iranian cancer sufferer who was also repeatedly raped in jail. A single mother was thrown from the fifth floor of a building and broke almost every bone in her body.

“These people are definitely victims of torture and require long-term rehabilitation,” said Ioannidou.

“The biggest problem for them now is waiting for the government to decide whether they can stay or have to leave. They are in a state of limbo, which adds a lot of psychological pressure,” she added.

Despite its two years in operation, the unit has only issued nine certificates to victims of torture, due to the long period necessary for an application to get processed.

However, the unit cares for 42 regular clients, three of which are recognised refugees.

“Over the past two years, we can see that some of our clients have made substantial progress, in that they have moved from a situation of desperation (both emotional and psychological) to one where they feel comfortable (even integrated) in Cypriot society and have steady jobs. Their children have learned Greek and go to Greek speaking schools, and they are creating a life for themselves here and finding happiness,” concluded Ioannidou.

To contact the unit, call 22-873820

Strengthening of Youth Civil Society Intitiatives through EU and Neighbouring Countries' Networking

The project overall action aims to strengthen youth civil society initiatives through EU and neighbouring countries' networking. More specifically, the project aims to provide equal opportunities for young people in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan to build their leadership knowledge, skills and attitudes for participation in community life and decision making as well as make EU democratic principles and values closer to the Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan youth through various capacity building, share of experience and partnership building and networking activities with Greek and Cyprus youth.
Project action will target youth at the age of 14 – 24 years from Sokuluk and Alamudyun regions (Kyrgyzstan), Almaty, Medeu region (Kazakhstan), Greece and Cyprus.

For more information please contact Kerstin Wittig.

Strengthening Asylum in Cyprus

Future Worlds Center is the implementing partner of UNHCR Cyprus for its main project “Strengthening Asylum for Refugees and Asylum-seekers in Cyprus”. This UNHCR funded project has been implemented by FWC for over 2 years. The objective is to ensure that asylum seekers have access to a fair and efficient asylum procedure and both asylum seekers and refugees enjoy their rights based on national, European and international law. The project is implemented by three legal advisors and one social advisor who offer individual consultation to the beneficiaries. Regarding the legal aspect this includes advising on the asylum law and the asylum procedure, assisting asylum seekers on access to the procedure, as well as assisting them throughout the Refugee Status Determination procedure at first and second instance, preparing appeals for well founded claims, monitoring detention of asylum seekers and assisting the beneficiaries to obtain their legal rights. The social advisor assists and consults asylum seekers and refugees in matters of employment, social welfare, education and health. Within the scope of the project is also raising awareness within the community on refugee and asylum issues, promoting the increase of rights of this population, as well as supporting and encouraging the integration of refugees into the society. For more info please contact Corina Drousiotou, Manos Mathioudakis or Olivia Marangou

Monday, 4 August 2008

Global Connections - Local Citizens Making Global Connections through Education

This project aims at promoting Development Education within the educational sector across Europe, focusing specifically on Lithuania, Cyprus, Scotland, Ireland and Bulgaria.
It aims to:
  • Raise awareness in Cyprus, Lithuania, Scotland, Ireland and Bulgaria about development issues and about the interdependence of EU countries and countries of the developing world;
  • Engage educators and youth to take action in support of the developing countries;
  • Build capacity among educators to integrate Development Education in their lesson plans.
For more information about the project go to the project website or email the project coordinator Kerstin Wittig.

Youth Ambassadors for Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

Over a period of two years, the project aims to raise awareness about the Millennium Development Goals both among young people and the public at large in Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Cyprus. The project will focus on:

  • Raising awareness about the Millennium Development Goals and the interdependence between the EU and developing world;
  • Involving young citizens in actions related to development education;
  • Introducing a Global Dimension into civic activities already taking place in the four participating countries.
There are many volunteer opportunities available with this project. For more information visit the project website or contact project coordinator Kerstin Wittig

UCVYROK

As part of the European Union Youth in Action Programme Pilot Projects on Thematic Networking, FWC was awarded a grant to conduct the project entitled:

UCYVROK
Uniting for Citizenship and participation: Youth promoting Vulnerable groups’ Rights, Opportunities and Knowledge

please see our project website for more details at:

http://ucyvrok.wetpaint.com
or email project coordinator Larry Fergeson

Become a JOURNALIST for our online radio and portal!

We are looking for volunteers who would like to contribute to weekly online radio shows or to the online web-portal, informing the public in Cyprus about the International Millennium Development Goals and other topics related to International Development.
If you are a journalism student or interested in journalism as well as in development issues, please contact us! We also offer basic training in journalism and radio techniques.

For more information please contact kerstinwittig@gmail.com or go to http://cy.youth4world.com.

SDDP in Italy

As part of the UCVYROK Project:

(Uniting for Citizenship and participation:
Youth promoting Vulnerable groups' Rights, Opportunities and Knowledge)

a Structured Dialogic Design Process (SDDP) co-laboratory was held in Pisa, Italy focusing on the regional challenges faced by the fact of cultural diversity. The co-lab took place on 4 and 5 July with our old member state partners from:


Germany - JBE - Forum für europäische Begegnungen (Jugend bewegt Europa) e.V.

France - ADICE - Association pour le Développement des Initiatives Citoyennes et
Européennes

Italy - UniTS - Università del Terzo Settore

Greece - ANTIGONE - Information Centre on Racism, Ecology, Peace and Non Violence.

For more information please go to our project website at

http://ucyvrok.wetpaint.com/

Youth Ambassadors for Millennium Development Goals

In the context of the EU-funded project 'Youth Ambassadors for Millennium Development Goals', the Future Worlds Center is organising a series of Training Sessions on various issues related to International Development. The first training has already taken place, but many more will follow!
  • International Development Gender Perspective (06 September 2008, 10am - 1pm)
  • Introduction to Fair Trade (30 September 2008, 3 - 5pm)
  • MDG-Radio – Radio Structures and Techniques II (14 October 2008, 3 - 5pm)
  • Global Citizenship – a Basic Concept for Civic Education (04 November, 3 - 5pm)
  • Immigration Flows: Causes & Consequences (25 November 2008, 3 - 5pm)
  • Basic Health Education & International Campaigns (16 December 2008, 3 - 5pm)

The trainings are free of charge and open to anyone who is interested in the topic of International Development. All trainings will be conducted in English language.

Venue: Future Worlds Center (5 Promitheos Street, Nicosia), office no.4

For more information and for registration please contact: kerstinwittig@gmail.com or go to http://cy.youth4world.com

Future Worlds Center wins top honours at 2008 Civil Society Awards Ceremony

Local Civil Society Organisation (CSO) Future Worlds Center received the award for the best CSO in the Social Inclusion category at the first annual Civil Society Awards Ceremony held at Chateau Status Restaurant Saturday 7 June 2008.

Future Worlds Center is one of the most active and well respected CSOs in Cyprus. It is a non-profit, non-governmental independent organisation active in programs towards civic education, among others involving the applications of technology towards social transformation and bridging the literacy, economic and digital divides. One main focus of the organisation is the promotion of cultural diversity and global citizenship.

One the outstanding reasons Future Worlds Center was considered for this award was because of its service for Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture. The Unit for Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture is a project funded by the European Refugee Fund and the Republic of Cyprus, through the Asylum Service - Ministry of the Interior. The project has been initiated in 2006 and has since been funded consecutively. The unit supports and promotes the empowerment and rehabilitation of torture victims with a focus on refugees and asylum seekers. URVT’s mission is to assist victims of torture by providing multidisciplinary treatment and rehabilitation services and also to raise public awareness of issues concerning torture and rehabilitation.

Future Worlds Center also has other aims which are to educate and promote diversity among Europeans, build a multi-ethnic and multi-national Cyprus, promote awareness and increase the sensitivity of Cypriot Society on how a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural Cyprus serves European values and promotes regional and international peace, identify ways to engage youth in learn intercultural dialogue, foster cooperation between youth NGOs world-wide, foster a peace culture amongst youth in Mediterranean Basin and the Middle East, and empower young people from less favoured areas to improve their intercultural skills.

Future Worlds Center has a long history of experience in activities related to social inclusion both on local and international levels through three operating units: Development Education, Humanitarian Affairs and New Media in Learning Laboratory. Current projects focus on promoting cultural diversity and intercultural understanding among young citizens. Future Worlds Center manages projects and facilitates workshops with teachers, parents and students throughout Europe to develop a joint vision on how to build integrative, multi-communal societies, and to design and implement action plans towards these. Through one of its Development Education project, Future Worlds Center collaborates with schools and the Ministry of Education to add a global dimension to the current lesson plans and to provide access to relevant material for teachers across Europe. Furthermore, projects focus on the challenges that youth with fewer opportunities face in the context of active citizenship and youth participation on European level and on using music as a tool to promote diversity and intercultural communication. It mobilizes young volunteers to actively promote the Millennium Development Goals within the Cypriot society.

Future Worlds Center is a member of the Insafe and the Inhope Network (www.saferinternet.org, www.inhope.org) and of the Cypriot National Network of the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for the Dialogue between Cultures. Together with four NGOs in Cyprus Future Worlds Center has taken the initiative of establishing an island-wide NGDO-platform in Cyprus, linked to the European NGO-conferedation CONCORD (www.cyprusngdos.org). Future Worlds Center is also a founding member of the ‘Multicultural Cyprus for Children and Youth’ Network (www.multiculturalcyprus.org).

At the ceremony awards were given to Civil Society Organisations for their contribution to Cypriot society. The winners of the 2008 Civil Society Awards Ceremony are:

Social Inclusion
Future Worlds Center and Turkish Cypriot Special Education Foundation (ÖZEV)

Education and Culture
HASDER Folk Arts Association and KENTHEA Information and Rehabilitation Centre for Drug addiction

Environment
Biologist Association ‘Bio Der’ and Cyprus Marine Environment Protection Association-CYMEPA

Gender
Association for the Prevention and Handling of Violence in Family and Mediterranean Sports Association

Health
The Cyprus Association for Cancer Patients and Friends and Help Those With Cancer Association

Youth
Agros Youth Club and AKOVA Women’s Association

Island-Wide Cooperation
Cyprus Dyslexia association and Union of Chambers of Cyprus Turkish Engineers and Architects

Island-Wide Cooperation
Association for Historical Dialogue and Research and Peace Players International Cyprus

For more information please click here

Laouris receives 2008 Award of the Hellenic Society for Systemic Studies

The Hellenic Society for Systemic Studies (Ελληνική Εταιρεία Συστημικών Μελετών) presented its 2008 Award to Dr. Yiannis Laouris, Senior Scientist and Chair of the Board of the Cyprus Neuroscience & Technology Institute. The awards ceremony was held in Ioannina, Greece on April 28-31, 2008.

The Hellenic Society for Systemic Studies (HSSS) is a new scientific non-profit society whose main goal is to advance and to spread out the Systemic Studies with the development of theoretical systemic approaches which they will be applicable to more than one of the traditional departments of knowledge through the use but also through the development of internationally accepted methodologies - multimethodologies, and to establish the expertise of Systemic Analyst in Greece in the universities, the banking environment, the organizations and generally in enterprises.

Dr. Laouris dedicated the Award to his family and his associates, who for many years supported non-profit initiatives for the benefit of mankind. He also informed us that together with Dr. Christis Charakis (Academic Dean of Limassol Frederick University) and other Cypriot Systems scientists they wish to launch a Cypriot Society for Systemic Studies, something they also initiated over ten years ago, but never came to fruition.

Laouris is a medical graduate of the Leipzig University, Germany. He completed a PhD in Neurophysiology at the Karl-Ludwig Institute with summa cum laude and later also an MS in Systems and Industrial Engineering with GPA 4.0 at the University of Arizona. Together with cyberneticians/systems physiologists Peter Schwartze, H.D. Henatsch, Uwe Windhorst and Douglas Stuart, for over 15 years, he applied linear/non-linear methods to study brain signals in research laboratories in Germany and USA. Laouris has published more than 40 papers and chapters in journals such as the Experimental Brain Research, Neuroscience, Journal of Neurophysiology, Behavioral and Brain Sciences, World Futures and has presented more than 110 papers in conferences worldwide.

Currently, he is Senior Scientist at the Cyprus Neuroscience & Technology Institute, where he and his team pioneer in the application of structured dialogue to solve complex societal problems. The current challenge of their team is how to scale up structured dialogues to enable democratic deliberations of up to one thousand people. These dialogue techniques have been applied by the Cyprus team
in European networks like COST 219ter: Accessibility for All to Services and Terminals for Next Generation Networks, Cost 298: Broadband for All, in which Laouris is National representative as well as pan-European Safer Internet initiatives, Youth initiatives etc. For the past 10 years they have also been applied to facilitate dialogue among bi-communal groups in the context of the Cyprus peace movement.

The Hellenic Society has honored in previous years systems scientists like: Prof. Maurice Yolles, author of influential books like Management Systems: a Viable Approach (published in 1999), Organizations as Complex Systems: Social Cybernetics and Knowledge in Theory and Practice (2004), and Organizations as Complex Systems: an introduction to knowledge cybernetics (2006). Prof. Aleco Christakis, co-founder of the Club of Rome, Past-President of the International Society for the Systems Sciences, with over 100 papers on the management of complexity in refereed journals recipient of numerous awards and distinctions including the “DEMOSOPHIA Award,” and the “Creative Programming Award” from the National University Continuing Education Association. His latest book titled “How People Harness Their Collective Wisdom and Power to Create the Future,” is considered the bible for the scientific grounding and praxis of structured dialogue, known in scientific terminology as the structured dialogic design process