ÅBOLANDS UNGDOMSFÖRBUND ÅUF R.F

Activity plan 2019

Youth Association

The Youth Association movement consists of the Central Organization of the Finnish Youth Association FSU r.f. and its four member organizations: Nylands Swedish Youth Association r.f. (NSU), Swedish Ostrobothnia Youth Association r.f. (SÖU), Åbolands Ungdomsförbund ÅUF r.f. and the Åland Youth Association r.f. (Aluf). In addition, the FSU has an associated member: the Finnish Swedish National Federation in Sweden (FRIS). The movement encompasses 292 local youth associations, landscape associations, local associations and youth groups with 245 association houses, 68 theater groups and 49,930 members.

The Finnish-Swedish Youth Association Movement

• is a non-profit, unifying Finnish-Swedish people's movement, where membership is based on interest and voluntariness;

• is primarily a youth organization, but at the same time values connections across different age groups;

• safeguards the Swedish language, solidarity, homeland sense, and is neutral in political and religious issues;

• works to strengthen youth self-confidence, well-being, social responsibility and sense of belonging;

• strives for an active role and more involvement in current youth issues;

• maintains an organisation with clear division of labor between different organizational levels when working together with other associations on national and international levels.

The above-mentioned associations founded the Youth Association Foundation in 2015. The purpose of the foundation is to support and promote Swedish-speaking youth associations and youth association activities. The foundation fulfills its purpose by organizing various types of fundraising and by primarily distributing grants to Swedish-speaking UF member associations and, secondly, by awarding grants to deserving persons who are active or who have been active in Swedish-speaking youth associations; or who have supported any comprehensive project that is of importance to the Finnish-Swedish youth association movement as a whole.

Åbolands Ungdomsförbund

Introduction

Åbolands Ungdomsförbund ÅUF r.f. is a politically unbound youth organization consisting of 32 member associations and about 11,000 members. Some of ÅUF's associations are represented in the union's Board. Our primary task is to be a service body for the member associations and to develop the children's and youth activities in Åboland. ÅUF conducts basic art education in theater for students aged 7-18 in Pargas and Turku through Åboland Theater School (ÅTS).

ÅUF is a member of the Finnish Youth Association and is a member of the Finnish Hometown Association, Curatio and I Same Boat. Our main financiers are the Swedish Culture Fund, the Arts Society, the Foundation Brita Maria Renlund's Memorial, the Ministry of Education and Culture (through the FSU), the Emilie and Rudolf Gesellius Foundation, the William Thuring's Foundation, the Martha Foundation and the Albin Löfgren Cultural Fund, the City of Pargas and the Kimito municipality.

Our four main values are: flexibility, knowledge, communication and voluntary community work spirit.

Staff

ÅUF's staff consists of an operations' manager (Tove Lipponen) and an activities' coordinator (Nicole Mattsson). In addition, the union has a program manager (Linda Åkerlund) and two theater teachers (Marika “Mecki” Ruokolahti and Juuso Matias Maijanen) employed by the Åboland Theater School. In addition, staff are hired on an hourly basis for various projects, events and courses.

Association management

Board and committee: The Federal Board consists of the chairman, six to ten ordinary members and up to three deputies. To support the union's work, committees are appointed as needed, and in addition, staff matters are handled by a working group.

Spring and autumn meetings: Two regular union meetings are held during the year. An accounting meeting in March-April and an election and planning meeting in October-November. In conjunction with the union meetings, useful events or workshops are organized for the associations.

Information and visibility

Persons responible: Tove, Nicole and Linda

Åbolands Ungdomsförbunds communicates information to the members primarly via membership letters and e-mail. The staff seeks to ensure that the information is also available on ÅUF's website: www.auf.fi. In addition, the union informs about current events in the association world on its Facebook page and takes members behind the activities's scenes on Instagram.

Activities

Our business is primarily project-driven thanks to the financing model and our aim is to constantly develop. We operate in the following areas: children's and youth activities, association and cultural events, education, amateur theater and international activities. We also conduct continuous operations through the Åbolands Theater School, whose activities follow the school year's calendar, starting in autumn and ending in spring.

Activities for children and youth

Vårturné, Spring Tour

Persons responsible: Tove and Nicole

The union continues to organise the popular annual Spring Tour, which is held during the month of February. The Spring Tour offers ÅUF's member associations a completed program in the form of a workshop at a favorable price. The workshop is led by an artistic leader and therefore does not require major efforts by the member associations. The tour is aimed at children in the middle school and entails cake baking, dances, travels, photos... The idea is to present to the member associations a finished program at a favorable price; to offer inspiring leisure activities for children in sparsely populated areas; to increase the activities in the association houses; and reduce the workload of the association members. The theme for the year 2019 is set during autumn 2018.

City camp

Persons responsible: Tove and Nicole

In summer 2019, ÅUF will test a whole new camp concept. As so many other associations offer different camps in the archipelago, this year, ÅUF will organize two city camps that will mainly target the children in the outer archipelago. The two-day adventure will happen in June in the city of Turku. Participants will experience exciting things and visit new places as well as spend the night in the city. At the same time, the camp will also inspire traditional values such as cooperation and friendship. One camp will be directed to children aged 1-3 years and the other to children aged 4-6 years.

School Start Event / Night of the Arts in Kimito

Person responsible: Tove

ÅUF will participate also this year in the School Start Event / Schools in. The event is organized in conjunction with the Night of the Arts in Kimito and together with the municipality of Kimito Island, Luckan in Kimito and the Youth Parliament. The Youth Parliament hopes to increase the sense of security and togetherness for the new students through this event. The event consists of music, various theater plays, workshops and other activities such as sumo wrestling, graffiti painting, rodeo bulls and more. The program is tailored according to young people's wishes and is planned for spring 2019.

Race Åboland

Person responsible: Tove

In autumn 2019, ÅUF will organize the event Race Åboland. The event consists in teams of 3-5 people competing in a race where every team will follow a predetermined route as quickly as possible and perform various tasks placed along it. The event is aimed at all family members and it is possible to participate in teams of different ages, but with at least one person. The idea is that this will be a fun event that engages both the contestants and also a wide audience that we hope will join in the event. The winners will of course receive a prize. ÅUF hopes that the event will increase cohesion across language, generational and cultural boundaries and increase awareness of the Åboland region. The event will be conducted in collaboration with f.e. the tourism student at Axxell.

International Clubs

Person responsible: Nicole

The International Club will continue its activities under the leadership of ÅUF also in 2019. The club emerged as a continuation of the international youth exchange project IFGA. The International Club organizes monthly meetings for young people who are interested in international activities. During the meetings, current project applications and programs are discussed and the idea is to improve young people's knowledge in creating, developing, participating and completing international projects. The goal of the activity is to help young people find their strengths in an international context and learn to be involved citizens on a local and global level. The participants plan the content of the international clubs themselves.

Training and support

The Association's educational activities consist of both shorter courses and longer educational programs. The goal of the union's educational activities is to offer courses and training to support the development of the projects of the member associations.

ÅUF's Activity grant

Persons responsible: Tove (content and correspondence), Nicole (economic management) and Board (decision)

Åbolands Ungdomsförbund supports its member associations by distributing an operating a grant twice a year with calls for proposals in February and September. The grant is meant to support all types of activities that the associations carry out during the year, but children's and youth projects and new ideas are prioritized in order to encourage the development of the activities of the youth associations.

Just do it! (Grants for young people own projects)

Persons responsible: Tove (content and correspondence), Nicole (economic management) and Board (decision)

In the year 2019 ÅUF will distribute small grants to youth groups who have their own ideas or projects that they want to realize. The goal is to encourage young people to plan and implement their own smaller projects and ideas. Through the process, they also have the opportunity to receive support and assistance from the office staff and thus learn more about the practical management, application and accounting procedures. Thanks to the direct contact with them, ÅUF also hopes to be able to increase cooperation and visibility among the young people.

Field visits

Persons responsible: Nicole and Tove

Field visits to the union's member associations continue to be an important part of the union activities. During its visits to the associations, ÅUF wants to explore and help the member associations to find new development opportunities, solutions to possible problems, and to achieve their goals. In addition, the field visits contribute to the development of ÅUF's member service and provide a good basis for cooperation. In 2019, the union will visit newly formed associations and invest in meetings with possible future member associations. In addition, attempts will be made to activate "sleeping" compounds.

Application / Accounting

Persons responsible: Tove and Nicole

ÅUF will hold the "open evening" one evening a month in correspondance with application and accounting periods. The idea is that during the evening the associations can call directly or write questions to the office and quickly and easily look up things they are thinking about. Since the office is not usually open in the evening, and those who work on a voluntary basis often do their paperwork during this time of the day, we think that this daycare service will certainly meet a need. In conjunction with the "open evening", small info notices are also sent with news regarding f.e. possible donors and tips on how to make good applications and balanced budgets.

Online courses

Persons responsible: Tove and Nicole

Svenska Folkskolans Vänner develops its range of online courses. ÅUF will help create and develop this service for the youth associations in Åboland and also offer online lectures on what the current legislative changes mean for the associations. ÅUF will also explore the possibilities of arranging f.e. toy workshops as online courses for children. These courses will be performed under the association's own direction at the time best suited for them.

Courses

Persons responsible: Tove and Nicole

Åbolands Ungdomsförbund organises security guard courses as well as other training courses in Swedish in the Åboland region according to the associations' demands and needs.

ESC: Talk at international level

Person responsible: Nicole

In spring 2016, ÅUF accredited itself as a sending, receiving and coordinating organization in the European Voluntary Service ESC (European Solidarity Corps). Volunteering mainly applies to young people aged 18-30. ÅUF has worked to create a network of suitable partners and carried out a successful volunteer project in summer 2018. Thus, ÅUF will organize a new project in summer 2019. The idea is that the union's member associations will be able to receive volunteers who will serve as extra helping hands, and that young people from Åboland will also have the opportunity to go volunteering abroad. Since ÅUF acts as the official recipient, coordinator and transmitter, the bureaucratic workload of the individual receiving association is reduced.

Association life and archive

Person responsible: Project managed with support from Tove

With inspiration and experience of the project Klockars Online by our colleagues in Ostrobothnia, the Swedish Ostrobothnia Youth Association, Åboland also wants to share its association cultural heritage in digital format. We receive requests annually from both member associations and outsiders about our pictures of specific association houses or events and at present there is no unified and functioning archive for them. Finnish-Swedish association history has formed a large part of the development of society and is therefore not only important for the association world but for the entire nation. We will thus archive our material and make it accessible via the web, gathered in the same place as SÖU's material. We will collaborate with various local archives (including Sagalund's Turku image archives, Pargas city archives and Cultura) and archiving specialists from the Swedish Literature Society. The project timeline is spread in the next 2 years.

Åboland Theater School

Persons responsible: Linda with support from Mecki and Juuso-Matias and Jani Lastuniemi, project manager for the Theater School in Swedish.

Åboland Theater School is a theater school for children and adolescents aged 7-18 years in the city of Pargas and the city of Turku. Åbolands Theater School follows the general course for basic art education in theater. The principal organiser of the Åboland Theater School is ÅUF. The Åboland Theater School is funded by the Swedish Cultural Fund, the Association of the Arts Society, the City of Pargas, Martha and Albin Löfgren's Cultural Fund and the Finnish Swedish Youth Association FSU r.f.

At the Åboland Theater School's, students familiarize themselves with the basics of theater art. Studies in theater art are activity oriented and the pupils learn by doing. Practicing interaction between students is emphasized as well as participating in groups according to theater norms. With the help of theater and role play, the student's expression and observation ability is enhanced. When a play is practiced, students learn many different areas, such as role playing, text interpretation, body expression, scenography, costume management and much more.

The studies cover 500 teaching hours and can be completed in just over six years. In addition, the Åboland Theater School offers art education for toddlers (ages 1-2) where students have the opportunity to become acquainted with theater art before the joint studies. The studies consist of joint studies (4 years) and thematic studies (2-3 years). The students also perform a stage production per year. During the joint studies, the students become acquainted with the basics of theater and playing. The joint studies consist of themes such as collaboration and imagination, body, movement and voice, story and form, as well as improvisation and depth. In the first year, interaction skills and participation in group-based theater activities are trained. In the second year, the overall expression is trained through movement, voice and mimicry. During the third year, the students become acquainted with storytelling art and the art of designing various stories, and during the last year of joint studies this knowledge is deepened.

During the theme studies, the theatrical artistic expression, technique and know-how are deepened. During the first year of thematic studies, students become acquainted with different forms of theater (music theater, dance theater, puppet theater, physical theater etc.). During the second year, different sub-areas of theater art are introduced. Students have the opportunity to immerse themselves in actor work, director work, lighting and sound design, costume, makeup and dramaturgy. During the last year, students become acquainted with the history of the theater and modern theater forms. In addition, the students make their final stage production, which is also a working test for the studies at the Åboland Theater School.

Background

Åbolands Theater School's lectures began in the autumn of 2009. Over the years, Åbolands Theater School has offered basic art education in theater for an average of 100 children and young people each year. In total, we have held over 4,500 teaching hours, made 51 theater productions, and also served as a partner in several other productions. Åbolands Theater School also organizes courses and continuing education in theater and drama in schools, day care centers and for various associations, groups and organizations.

School year 2018-2019

The tenth school year of the Åboland Theater School began on September 3, 2018. During the academic year 2018-2019, a total of 95 students participate in the theater studies. Åbolands Theater School has five theater groups for children and young people in Pargas. In art education for toddlers (ages 1-2), 8 pupils have participated, 21 pupils have participated in joint studies (ages 3-6) and 13 pupils have participated in thematic studies (ages 7 and older). In June 2018, the Åboland Theater School's curriculum was also approved in the City of Turku, which makes it possible to start theater groups in Turku as well. Five groups have started in Turku: the art fair for toddlers with 8 pupils, two groups for joint studies with a total of 25 pupils and two groups for thematic studies with a total of 19 pupils. During the spring of 2018, the groups will produce their own plays that will be performed to the public and in schools. A small group of students will also start planning their final work in the spring of 2019 and will implement it during the next academic year. The groups for art education for toddlers in Åboland's Theater School are being realized in collaboration with the Archipelago's Combi and the Turku Workers' Institute. The fees for the theater groups are invoiced directly by the Archipelago's Combi and Turku Workers' Institute and are not included in the budget of the Åboland Theater School. We are planning collaborations between Pargas's and Turku's groups as well as joint projects and collaborations with other art educators (as the Music Institute Arkipelag and the Art School Pictura). Åbolands Theater School's students in secondary school and older have the opportunity to participate in the Pargas City Youth Show 2019 and this activity will be considered as teaching hours and stage production. Training for the employees is planned for autumn 2018 to gain new knowledge and inspiration. During the academic year 2018-2019, planning of the school year 2019-2020 will begin.

Development

The goal of the Åboland Theater School is to continue to develop the already versatile and good teaching tecniques while at the same time developing and improving its activities. The goal is to find a structure that would give both staff and students the time and energy they deserve without the work to become too intense. In August 2018, Juuso-Matias Maijanen was hired as a theater teacher and will be the leader of most of the new groups in Turku. Linda Åkerlund, who has worked at Åbolands Theater School since its creation in 2009, continues as a program manager with a contract of 75% hour. Marika Ruokolahti will serve as theater teacher with a 75% contract, and Juuso-Matias as theater teacher with at 50% contract. From autumn 2018, the joint studies will be offered from the third year instead of the fourth. This is done partly because of the new curriculum but also to be able to create more homogeneous groups and work according to age. Åbolands Theater School sees the development of its activities and the collaboration with others as one of the most important tasks to keep the teaching timely and viable. Åbolands Theater School will continue its collaboration with other Theater Schools in Swedish-speaking Finland.

Courses

During the academic year 2018-2019, Åbolands Theater School will continue to hold courses and training in drama and theater in schools, kindergartens, associations and organizations.

Amateur Theater: support and camp

Persons responsible: Linda and Tove in collaboration with FSU

Through FSU, AUF participates in amateur theater activities. On one hand, we help with marketing and planning of the Finnish-Swedish theater camp for children and young people, which is organized in early June each year (in 2019 the Theater Festival will be organized in Åland). On the one hand, we are a member of the Theater and Culture Committee (TOK), which decides on production subsidies and other grants for the amateur theater associations in Swedish-speaking Finland.

Association houses

Persons responsible: Tove (correspondent), Nicole (economic management) and Board (decision) in collaboration with FSU

23 of our 32 member associations maintain association houses, and many of them are culturally valuable buildings and require a great deal of maintenance. We help our associations to keep the clubhouse in good conditions through information on grants and courses. In addition, through the FSU, ÅUF participates in recommending the allocation of the Finnish Home Association's renovation grant.