Cooperation and Development Network Eastern Europe

The Cooperation and Development Network Eastern Europe (Acronym: CDN) is a Network of green youth organisations from Central, Eastern and South Eastern Europe as well as the Caucasus.

History
CDN was founded in December 2002 with the goal of developing and supporting green youth organisations in Eastern and South Eastern Europe through cooperation and exchange of knowledge. Mainly the development of a network which was able to work independent from Western European approaches to green politics should support the further development of the existing competence and enlarge the field of political work for greens in Europe. Also differences in methodology of educational work and cultural differences made it clear, that the green ideology in practice has to be differently implemented in Eastern Europe then in the West.

The first activity done by CDN was the Summer Camp 2003 "Peace and Reconciliation on the Balkan" in Jahorina, Bosnia and Hercegovina, with 80 young participants from all over Europe. The Summer Camp since then became the main activity of CDN held on a yearly basis. Following Summer Camps were held: "Sustainable Peace & Prosperity in The Balkans" in Ohrid, Macedonia; "Human trafficking in Eastern Europe", in Costinesti, Romania, and "European cultures - Strengthening diversity" in Kopaonik, Serbia. The Summer Camp 2007 is held in Ukraine with the topic Youth Mobility and  Visa problems. The Summer Camp 2008 was held in Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina with the title "Youth Culture as a sustainable path to democratic societies". Further approved projects are "Minorities rights, youth and ethnic conflict prevention" - Belgrade 2009 and joint Study Session "Youth and time consuption" - Budapest 2009 (with FYEG).

Structure and Organisation
CDN was build through the structure of the Federation of Young European Greens (FYEG). Both organisations are forming a close connection, mainly because of common educational and political work. Also a lot of CDN member organisations are member of FYEG.

CDN is a network build of Member and Partner organisations. Partner organisations are those organisations with seat in a country of the European Union. This distinction aims on focusing the work on organisations from non-EU countries and on showing a signal towards these organisations. It was decided on the Network Meeting 2005 in Bitola, Macedonia. In difference to Member organisations Partner organisations do not have voting right on the network meeting and only one of the member of the CDN Executive Committee can come from a Partner organisation.

The highest decision making body of CDN is the Network Meeting. All Partner and Member organisations can send up to two delegates. Each Member organisation has one vote. The CDN Network Meeting decides upon the budget of the last and the coming year, the political and work report of the last year, the activity plan for the coming year and it elects and dismiss the CDN Executive Committee.

The CDN Executive Committee is realizing the political and organisational work of CDN between two CDN Network Meetings based on the decisions of the CDN Network Meeting. The CDN Executive Committee consists of 5 members. At least two of them have to be female and only one of them can come from a Partner organisation. The CDN Executive Committee meets at least five times a year.

Since mid-2006 CDN has a Gender Working Group. With the support of the CDN Network this Gender Groups on the issue of (un-)equal treatment of women and men in the societies of Eastern Europe. Mainly the question of compatibility of family and career which is a current problem of many young women in Eastern Europe is tackled by this Working Group.

Founders
The initiative for establishing CDN as a green network in Eastern Europe came from Macedonian Young Greens (DEM - Youth) and Serbian Young Greens supported by the Federation of Young European Greens in December 2002.

Since its foundation CDN is sustainable supported by the Green Forum Sweden. Another main source of support is the Council of Europe Youth foundation. The most of the current CDN activities are realized through the Council of Europe "All different - All equal" campaign. Also from the very beginning CDN takes part in the Youth program of the European Commission, mainly through Exchanges. According to the changes in the Youth program (from 2007 "Youth in Action") future youth work in Eastern Europe will be closer to its necessaries.

Further more activities are realized through the support of the Bundesverwaltungsamt, Referat Internationaler Jugendaustausch im Bereich des Bundesministeriums für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend sowie des Auswärtigen Amtes (German Federal office for international youth exchange within the range of the Federal Ministry for family, seniors, women and youth as well as the Foreign Office) as well as Member of the European Parliament and the Federation of Young European Greens.

Educational and Political Work
The main instrument of the educational work of CDN is the exchange of young people from all over Europe. These exchanges are either seminars (like the Summer Camp) under the support of the Council of Europe Youth Foundation, Youth Exchanges under Action 1 of the Youth program of the European Commission, Study Sessions in the Budapest Study Center of the Council of Europe and Pilot Projects as part of Action 3 of the European Commission Youth Program.

Further more the CDN homepage, e-lists and audiovisual materials are used for the exchange of knowledge and competence within the CDN Partner and Member organisations.

Member and Partner Organisations
Recently (October 2008) following organisations are member of the Cooperation and Development Network Eastern Europe:
 * DEM – Mladi The Ecologists' Movement Youth Macedonia
 * Zelena omladina Srbije Serbia
 * Zelena Molody Ukraini Ukraine
 * Green Party - Youth Club Bulgaria
 * Asociatia VERZII Romanian Young Greens Romania
 * Albanian Young Greens Albania
 * Ecosphere Belarus
 * Young Greens Turkey
 * SAEM Georgia
 * Earth Savers Kosovo, Serbia
 * Revolt! Bosnia and Herzegovina

Following organisations are partner of the Cooperation and Development Network Eastern Europe:
 * Zöld Fiatalok Hungary
 * Green Alternative Latvia
 * Young Greens Poland
 * Green Youth - Grüne Jugend Germany
 * Gibanje Slovenske Mladine Slovenia