Youth activism

Young people are the key force in our organization. Ekvalis constitutes of a large volunteering group of more than 50 active volunteers who engage hundreds of other peers in the organization’s activities. The volunteers are based in every region of the country – including both urban and rural regions. The young people that participate in Ekvalis activities come from diverse socio-economic backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, ethnicities, regions and fields of interest. Ekvalis activists are the frontrunners in many social movements for change and have made a major impact for the position of youth in North Macedonia.

Through the work with young people Ekvalis strives to:

Increasing the interest and knowledge of young people on current major social and political events that directly affect them.
Empower young people to take leading roles in the organizational activities that include recruiting peers in initiatives that respond to the on-going social and political events in the country.
Express concerns, dissatisfaction or appreciation through youth-led initiatives for the development of the democratic values in the country through creative and provocative activities.
Petition for their rights and learn how to address the request from their petition to MPs, government officials or other designated authorities.
Practice community organizing and a culture of non-violent activism (based on the 198 methods on non-violent action by Gene Sharp).
Create young role-models and youth activists in the organization and beyond in the society that will serve as inspiration for other young people to take action.

Educational and networking activities with activists

Ekvalis organizes numerous programs and activities with young people that enable them to learn more from other senior or more experienced activists, to learn from their peers and create space for inter-generational and peer exchange of ideas for advancing activist capacities among the youth. Ekvalis regularly hosts several types of events such as:

Social programs for youth networking and cohesions: game nights, cooking, movie nights and non-formal gatherings which directly influence the networking of these communities.
Conceptual events “Conversations with An Activist“ – conversations about youth activism with young people from non-formal youth advocacy groups, protest movements, youth activists and volunteers.
Workshops and educational sessions for resilience and preventing activist burn-out as important aspects of long-term activism.
Events for raising public awareness – planning, analyzing and preparation usually takes place in Ekvalis premises.

Ekvalis youth space is open to use free of charge, for NGOs in development (less than 2 years of existence) and non-formal group of youth activists who identify with the same values and work in the similar strategic areas as Ekvalis.

Ekvalis activists are frontrunners for the advancement of human rights

Young people who have engaged with the educational activities at Ekvalis have always taken a step further into exercising those activist approaches in the society.

Ekalis activists conducted a survey among their peers in the first weeks of the COVID lockdown and have been able to present their needs and requirements into an online petition which has gathered 3300 signatures. As a follow-up, Ekvalis with the activists and the signees submitted the petition to the Ministry of Education and followed-up with being involved in a working group within the Ministry of Education, working to further represent the needs of young people on a more structured level.

Many of Ekvalis’ youth organized direct non-violent interventions in the public space. Their aim was to openly criticize a certain oppressive policy or the inability of the authorities to act on certain kinds of events that have marginalized the youth even further. Ekvalis has supported and rallied together with numerous non-formal groups or protest movements, for a better position of young people in education, improvement in rights for young girls and women, increasing the safe spaces for LGBTIQ+ youth and ending youth-based bullying.

Youth activism – Intervention in public space

Several young women activists from Ekvalis got together on the 1st of May, International Labor Day, to read extracts from the book “Horror Stories of Women Workers“ by Kristina Bozurska. They have showcased the inhumane conditions in which female workers are residing daily. Through a morning action in front of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, Ekvalis activists read those stories in Macedonian, Albanian and Roma language. This brought the attention of the Ministry workers, the public and the media working with the public space as a main sphere where marginal stories can be popularized.