Volunteer Activist Campaign in Switzerland
"ContACT - Interkulturellen Austausch leben! / Live intercultural exchange!"
Background
All those who have had an international exchange experience know what a great personal gain it can be. An experience you could never imagine not having had!
Since the last popular Swiss referendum on immigration, it has become increasingly difficult to participate in a volunteer exchange programme. The new legislation sets a quota for immigrants which impacts on the relationship between Switzerland and the EU. As a direct consequence on youth volunteer exchange, Switzerland can no longer participate in the Erasmus+ programme on an equal footing with EU Member States as initially envisaged. Likewise, its possibility of participation is limited.
About this campaign
After the acceptation of a quota about migration on February 9th 2014, the support of intercultural exchanges in Switzerland was called into question. As a result, Swiss volunteers can no longer participate in the European Voluntary Service, and also incoming volunteers will be affected to a certain extent. ICYE Switzerland would like to draw attention to the importance of cultural and volunteering exchanges as enriching experiences that should be supported by the Swiss government. The aim was therefore to raise awareness about the importance of intercultural exchanges as part of the education of young people.
The campaign consisted of two different actions. The first one - and the main one - was a photo competition among current and former volunteers. The directive of the competition was to send a picture in relationship with the theme “„contACT – live intercultural exchange!” accompanied by a statement about their experience. To widen the target group (active members of ICYE Switzerland, younger than thirty years old) and encourage participation, three prizes were provided for the best statement and picture. As a last step of the campaign, the pictures and statements together with an open letter were sent to Federal Councillor Johann Schneider-Ammann, the head of the SERI.
ContACT goes Brasil - Bern
On the 12th of July 2014, six volunteers of ICYE Switzerland organised a distribution of flyers in Bern. By the help of the Capoeira Group of Bern, they drew attention to a wide public. During and after the performance, the volunteers handed out the flyers which informed about the photo competition that took place in relation with the campaign. The event was quite successful, although it was a bit difficult for the people to make a connection between the Capoeira group and ICYE Switzerland. 
ConACT Goes International - Zürich
The new incoming volunteers from all over the world, who will spend the following year in Switzerland, played an important role in the flash mob, which took place on the 12th of August 2014 in Zurich. The 19 international youths created a street performance while 3 volunteers from ICYE Switzerland were distributing the flyers of the photo competition “contACT – live intercultural exchange”.
Winners of the Photo Competition:
1st. Place: Selina (17), New Zealand, Student “If you don`t like it - change it. You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart will always be elsewhere. That is the price you pay for the richness of loving and knowing people in more than one place.”
2nd place: Dorothée (34), Birmanie, bibliothécaire "Nous devons apprendre à vivre ensemble comme des frères, sinon nous allons mourir tous ensemble comme des idiots." (Martin Luther King, discours, 1968)
3rd place: Amira, (29), Népal 2013/2014, Phd candidate "Life is not about money or material things ...life is about sharing and enjoying authentic moments.“
See more pictures from the Photo Contest here
For the ContACT photoalbum, ICYE Switzerland has received official recognition from Bundesrat Johann N. Schneider-Ammann. See his letter of recognition here.
Learn more about the organisation:
ICYE Switzerland: http://www.icye.ch/de/sozialeinsatz/
In Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/icye.switzerland
