Association of Vienna Youth Centers

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Association of Vienna Youth Centers
Logo of the VJZ
Data
Founded: 1978
Chair: GR Marina Hanke
Employee: about 300
Purpose: Open and mobile
youth work,
community work
Seat: Vienna
Website: www.jugendzentren.at

The Association of Vienna Youth Centers (VJZ) has existed since 1978 and comprises almost 40 institutions, most of which are active in open child and youth work , mobile youth work and community work. This makes the VJZ the largest non-profit supporting organization for open child and youth work in Austria. The Association of Viennese Youth Centers is financed as part of an overall subsidy from the City of Vienna , whereby the Board of Directors includes delegates from various youth organizations and representatives of the municipal council.

history

On July 1, 1978, the youth centers of the city of Vienna (up to then there had been 11 youth centers) were spun off from the Association of Wiener Jugendkreis. The Association of Vienna Youth Centers was founded. The VJZ Open Child and Youth Work was set as a task. In addition, the association offered various youth organizations, clubs and associations a home as an additional offer. To date, the number of VJZ facilities has been gradually increased in line with demand, for example the first district center was founded in 1978, the first mobile facility in 1992 and the first youth meeting place with outstanding work in 1995. Today the association has a total of 35 facilities and around 300 employees.

The working principles of the Association of Vienna Youth Centers

The primary target group of the VJZ are young people living in Vienna. As part of the community orientation, the offers of some institutions are also aimed at children and adults, especially women. The goals of the Association of Vienna Youth Centers are to promote the personality and identity development of young people, the expansion of their alternative courses of action and the development of new perspectives as well as the promotion of political participation, social participation and public influence.

The offers of the facilities of the association are designed according to the following principles and methods:

  • Voluntary participation
  • Openness and flexibility of the offers
  • Needs and lifeworld orientation
  • Socio-spatial youth work
  • Participation, codetermination, participation
  • Gender mainstreaming
  • Orientation towards the skills and strengths of the target groups
  • Opportunity to participate, regardless of worldview, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, culture and economic opportunities

Structure of the Association of Vienna Youth Centers

In addition to the largest business area, open child and youth work in 25 youth centers and clubs, there are 6 mobile youth work facilities and 6 seasonal park care facilities and a course center. In addition, there are some Vienna-wide projects and institutions.

Open child and youth work

Open child and youth work for children, teenagers and young people is carried out in the 25 youth centers and meetings. The offers are developed with the participation of the target groups, keyword youth participation . The main areas of work are divided into the following areas:

  • Meeting point room youth center and meeting place (location-oriented youth work)
  • Gender sensitive work - girl work, boy work
  • Diversity / intercultural work
  • Thematic and youth cultural offers
  • Career orientation / employment / education
  • Experiential education
  • Media, sport and exercise
  • Extensive work (methods e.g. social space analysis, active visits to clique and group meeting points, conflict moderation, events, etc.)
  • Networking / cooperation / lobbying
  • Holiday activities / youth mobile in Europe

Mobile youth work

The work areas of the mobile facilities Back on Stage 5 (BoS 5), Back on Stage 10 (BoS 10) and Back on Stage 16/17 (BoS 16/17), Mobile Youth Work Donaufeld, 19 KMH and Mobile Youth Work SEA are the streets and parks of the districts in which they are based. The promotion of self-organization, strengthening of self-confidence and the potential of the young people living there are in the foreground of this community-oriented youth work. Street work , group and project work, individual aid and lobbying for youth issues are central .

Musical Center Vienna

The Musisches Zentrum Wien is an open art and culture house with a focus on art education and cultural education. It enjoys experimentation, draws on the diversity of child and youth culture and offers a place for creative engagement with music, dance and theater.

Vienna-wide projects and institutions

The VJZ takes up current developments and needs of youth culture in supraregional institutions and projects. These include B. the fashion project "Kids in Fashion", the television program "CUtv" on Okto or sports tournaments.

Publications

  • "Scientific series of the Association of Vienna Youth Centers": specialist books on topics of youth work, so far 5 volumes
  • "See You": magazine with specialist articles and reports from the VJZ, appears twice a year
  • Mission statement, guidelines, position papers and quality features on various topics and work priorities

Web links

literature

  • Deinet, Ulrich / Sturzenhecker, Benedikt (ed.): Handbook of open child and youth work. Wiesbaden. VS-Verlag. 2005. 3rd revised edition.
  • Krisch, Richard: Open youth work as active participation in youth policy discourse. In: BAG of the open children and youth organizations (ed.): Open youth work. Magazine for houses, youth centers, play vehicles. Tübingen. TB publishing house. 3/2006. Pp. 39-48.
  • Krisch, Richard: Socio-spatial perspectives of youth work. In: Braun, Karl-Heinz / Wetzel, Konstanze u. a. (Ed.): Handbook of methods of child and youth work. Vienna. 2005. pp. 336-351.