13th September 2000

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A high powered conference at the University of Ulster at Jordanstown will look at issues relating to young people in Northern Ireland after the Good Friday Agreement.

Beginning on 15 September, it has been organized by the University’s Community Youth Work Unit in conjunction with the Youth Council for Northern Ireland. The title of the Conference is “Youth, Fact or Fiction”.

Included in its various sessions will be a discussion on the issues involved in a divided society and how relationships can be transformed across traditional divides.

The main speaker will be Professor Mike Baizerman from the University of Minnesota who is no stranger to the broader politics of Northern Ireland. A New Yorker, he has been a consultant for Public Achievement, a new organisation running active citizenship programmes for young people in the province. He has also worked for the Youth Council and delivered two expert seminars. Mike will give a critical assessment of work and youth issues based on his extensive knowledge of youth culture both in America and Northern Ireland.

Among other areas to be explored are homophobic bullying and sexual orientation of young people here, ethnic minorities in Northern Ireland and Cyberspace in East Belfast.

Conference organizer, Tony Morgan and Isobel Hawthorne of the University’s Social and Community Sciences, said

“We hope to disseminate and share information and knowledge which will enhance the contribution of youth work to the building of a more just, pluralist and democratic society.

“The conference will focus on local and international experiences in youth work practice. Not only that but we will aim to actively involve young people and those involved in delivering these services to them.”

The organizers pointed out that the weekend conference would address issues of division and seek to transform relationships across traditional divides.

They added:

“As the organisers we believe that inherent in the new political environment in Northern Ireland, lies the potential to ensure that youth work theory and practice meets the needs of young people more effectively. Particularly as we live in a contested society.”

For further information, please contact:

Press Office Department of Communication and Development
Telephone: 028 9036 6178
Email: pressoffice@ulster.ac.uk