Amruševa 10
Zagreb
كرواتيا
- Democracy and community development
Vision: Democratic society in which citizens actively participate in creating positive social change and common good.
Mission: Contribute to social development and social inclusion by encouraging civic participation, informal education and research and advocacy work.
The values and principles of action:
• Participation of citizens in decision-making processes
• Responsibility for the achieved effect - political and social, and personal responsibility
• Learning society - open to new ideas and innovative methods
• Protection of human rights - individual rights and collective rights
• Tolerance and pluralism
• Respect for the rule of law
• Freedom of action and creativity
• Professionalism in the work
• Teamwork and open communication
Program goals 2009 – 2012:
1. Increase the participation and influence of young people in decision-making and social development.
2. Improve the social inclusion of vulnerable social groups in disadvantaged social status.
3. Encourage non-formal education and social development through research and education work.
Program "With Education Toward Quality“ (2009./2010.) which is dedicated to increasing the quality of social services organizations of persons with disabilities and organizations that work on behalf of persons with disabilities. With this training program we contribute to the development of organizational capacity by providing technical assistance and individual counseling and improve professional knowledge and skills of leaders and professional staff associations of persons with disabilities.
Program of informal education of youth "Youth in the labor market" (from 2004 and on-going) directed students final year of secondary vocational schools in order to achieve and protect their social and labor rights as well as preparation for the labor market.
Program has recommendation of the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports, and consent to distribute the educational - informational brochure "Employment Record Card for Youth” and other promotional materials in public high schools. Within the Program, action research study "My Rights Through Learning and Work" was published and designed a specialized website for young people in the labor market www.radoholik.info (eng. workaholic).
Partnership project with the Croatian Employment Service (2008) with the aim of improving social skills of vulnerable groups - women older than 45 years of age and young unemployed people to 29 years of age.
Guidebook for policy paper writing: “Writing Effective Public Policy Papers: A Guide to Policy Advisers in Central and Eastern Europe” (Quinn, L., and Young, E., Budapest, 2002), which is translated, adopted and published (electronic version) in Croatian language by DIM in 2008;
Research projects related to youth unemployment and social and workers right in Croatia: My rights through learning and work (2008) and Commitment under stress – Planning a long term career in organizations of civil society (2009.)
Research project Analysis of Impact and Development of Youth Policy in Croatia presents a pilot project of collaboration between DIM and Faculty of Political Science that has in future continue with new service learning activities with interdisciplinary approach. Their work was presented in the publication “Evaluation of Youth Policy in Croatia: the application of public policy analysis by political science students” (2006)
Service-learning is a teaching/learning method that connects meaningful community service with academic learning. In order to encourage the introduction of the service-learning methodology in the Croatian educational system we created the web site www.service-learning.net, published the translation of the “Academic Service-Learning Faculty Development Manual”.
Research project Learn with the community aimed to increase the transparency of the implementation of the Freedom of Information Act in Croatia by applying the service-learning method within Public Policy course on Faculty of Political Science in Croatia. We published the study “Evaluation of the Implementation of the Freedom of Information Act: the application of Practical Use of public policy analysis by political science students (2007)
Research project Good governance models in civil society organizations dealing with democratization and human rights (2007.). Study was published in 2010. Values in action: Governing and activism in civil society for democratization and human rights.
In 2005 we published a research study Youth in local government, conducted on a national level with focus on measuring the level of youth participation in political institutions and processes.
UNDP has engaged DIM as Implementing Agency to perform services in respect of producing the National Human Development Report 2004: Youth in Croatia. Aim of the Report was to define status of youth in Croatian society, different youth issue as well as possible solutions.