Activities:
The following is a brief report of activities conducted by the Association in the course of the last five years (1997-2002).
Improvement of the knowledge and skills of the young translators through sponsoring and organizing conferences, seminars and meetings including:
Organizing the first gathering of young translators and interpreters (May 1999). This meeting was held in the Conference Hall of the Literature and Foreign Languages of Alameh Tabatabai University. University professors, students and many members of the Association attended. The objective of the meeting was to organize the young translators and carry out extensive consultation on the goals and activities of the Association.
Holding a gathering on Language and its relationship with Reality (May 2002). This was the first of a series of meetings on “Semantics” in the Department of Humanities of the Teacher Training University. Students from several Universities of Tehran (Universities of Tehran, Alameh Tabatabai, and Azad University) attended the meeting.
Organizing a seminar on “Speech, Interaction and Meaning” (December 2001). This was the second of the series of meetings on Semantics. The gathering took place in the amphitheatre of Andisheh Cultural Center. The objective of this meeting was to create training opportunities for translators. During the course of the deliberations of this gathering, the activities and overall performance of the Association were reviewed by the participants.
Participation in specialized seminars and conferences including:
Review of the Challenges faced by translators (Tabriz, Feb 1998);
Organizing the first gathering on Translation of Literary works ((Mashad, Feb. 1999);
Holding a series of seminars on Semantics in Isfahan, (Sept. 2001 and Sept. 2001);
Seminar on Teaching of Language (November 2000);
Bi-Annual international meeting on Comparative Literature ()Aprile 2002).
Empowering members through skills improvement by:
Facilitating participation of Association members in short applied courses and workshops, organized by other institutions, including:
Workshop on capacity building of youth NGOs (Sept. 2000);
Proposal writing workshop (October 2002);
Workshops on rights of young girls (December 2000);
Workshop on Management Training (Jan 2000);
Workshop on internet-connectivity (July 2002);
Workshop on Fund raising by NGOs, (August 2002).
Ten workshops and meetings organized by other national and international partners (1999 to 2002).
[
view less ]
Youth Employment Creation through:
Providing translation and interpretation services to meetings, conferences, workshops and assemblies requiring interpretation and translation services, such as:
Islamic Heads of State Conference (December 1997);
International Congress on Imam Khomaini’s views on Role of Women (Sept. 1999);
Conference on Intifadha (Spring 1999);
Annual Meeting of the Imam Khomaini Relief Committee.
International Conference on women followers of Ahle Bait (Feb. 2001).
Studies and translations including:
Translation of the book of writers and eminent scientists to the six billionth child born to the world;
Translation of several popular novels;
Translation of the Book, Qods-e Iran from Farsi to English: Introduction of Iranian Women leaders;
Preparation and publication of a Directory on Iranian Women NGOs;
Translation of several articles dealing with economic, cultural, social and political and human rights aspects of women, for journals.
Enhancing participation of young translators in national and international events:
Cooperation with NGOs and international agencies in organizing seminars and meetings, including:
Seminar on World Human Rights Day (Dec. 2001). Five working groups were set up during the seminar. The Association assumed responsibility as the focal point for the Youth working group. A report was prepared with the close collaboration of all stakeholders.
Cooperation with the Alliance of Iranian Civil Society for Sustainable Development. The Alliance is made up of representatives of civil society, the private sector and NGOs. The Association is cooperating with the Allaince’s Steering Committee, with the objective of incorporating people’s concerns in development strategies and programmes. The focus of the Associations work in the Alliance is on youth. The Alliance plans to hold workshops and seminars and produce a civil society national document on the challenges of sustainable development.
Participation in the international meeting of southern NGOs on Sustainable Development in Algeria, 16-17 March 2002. Two hundred and sixteen NGO representatives from 15O NGOs of 96 countries attended. Three working groups were formed on women, youth and employment. As a result of intervention of the Iranian team, the importance of education was acknowledged and incorporated in the terms of reference of the employment group. The Iranian team also managed to incorporate the issue of ethics, abstinence and morality as a way of combating AIDs and drug addiction in the youth working group.
Organizing the first preparatory workshop on YES in Tehran (July 2002). Over 150 representatives of youth NGOs from all parts of the country attended the meeting. Government representatives, university professors, parliamentarians and other stakeholders attended. The meeting focused on the youth employment challenges in Iran, and Iran’s participation in the YES meeting in Alexandria. The issue of IT was highlighted during the meeting. The report of the event was drafted by the Association and translated into English.
Setting up the Iranian Secretariat for the Youth and Employment Summit:
The Association members made a strenuous effort to facilitate effective participation of youth and other stakeholders in the YES meeting in Alexandria. These efforts included:
Creation of a national alliance of youth NGOs to promote youth employment;
Setting up the local Secretariat of YES in Tehran
Carrying out information dissemination to government and non-government and other stakeholders concerned with youth employment on YES;
Holding intensive and extensive consultations with national bodies to stimulate their interest. Lobbying meetings were held with the Office of the President and with high level officials from the ministries of Labour, Foreign Affairs, National Youth Organization, etc.
Providing guidance and support to interested bodies and individuals to facilitate registration with the YES global secretariat.
Lobbying with donors and supporters to obtain full and part sponsorships for applicants.
Taking active steps to facilitate establishment of the regional youth network with participation of Islamic countries. This network is continuing to expand.
Contributing to the joint Iranian-Egyptian project proposal for creation of micro-credit facilities for youth from countries, which are members of the Islamic Conference Organization.
Obtaining space in the YES Exhibition to promote youth NGO products and to present the work of the secretariat of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Assuming the responsibility of facilitator on behalf of the Islamic Republic of Iran in specialized workshops.
Playing the role of coordinator in organizing and preparing a group of 50 young participants in the YES event.
Managing the internal affairs of the Association
While being very active at the local and international levels the members of the Association are fully aware of the need to strengthen its internal capacity and quality of management. To this end the following activities have been undertaken:
Holding regular meetings of the specialized working groups, documenting decisions made, and following them up;
Holding regular meetings of the Board members to review the work plans and performances;
Publishing 8 issues of the association’s newsletter;
Issuing annual balance sheets to ensure transparency;
Supplying educational material to members to enhance their skills and knowledge;
Creation of data-base on members in English, French, Arabic and Spanish;
Undertaking activities to expand membership, including associate members and volunteers.
At present the Association has 147 members, of which 98 are women and 49 are men. The education qualifications of the members are quite high:
First University degree 79
Second University degree 33
Ph.d 11
Students 24
Future Plans:
Preparing a work plan on a consultative basis to sustain the momentum generated by work already done, particularly in promoting YES;
Capacity Development of the members of the Association
Establishment of the national committee on Youth and Employment
Sustained cooperation with the global Secretariat of YES for the coming decade
Organizing the regional YES meeting after the Alexandria Conference
Drawing up a comprehensive national report on youth and employment.
[
view less ]