When IHEYO announces a new conference or seminar, which we could make happen (and has made happened) over the last years, we mostly invite our member organisations to apply or register for that. Quite often it has worked with youths and youth groups, which have been actively involved in the EC over the last years or had once taken part in the conference. However, it is becoming more difficult to start each year with new contacts while our old contacts do not bother to reconnect with us, even when we made attempts to stay in touch due to lot of reasons.
An interesting scenario played itself recently in London while attending a meeting with the IHEU EC at the BHA house. It seems BHA or some of the BHA members do not know that they are members of IHEYO, although they have been part of us since the beginning. The usual story behind this is often that: some people in an organisation start some communication with an international or other national organisations but never take it further. If their work is linked they will try to stimulate their interests from both sides to stay in contact. But due to changes in both organisations, the contact got somehow lost and it is very difficult to start again with better communication.
IHEYO tried to update their networks and due to structure changes in the EC, we will start a new round of communication levels. But we need you. We need our members being active on the other side as well. Once you have applied for being part of our network, now we are working keen on the matter to put everybody on board.
Are you still interested in being a member of IHEYO? What does it mean for you being part of an international youth organisation like ours? Would you like to attend our next conference and GA? IHEYO would like to be the speaking channel for all young people around the world. We would like to give you an opportunity to take part in our activities, to learn more about humanist work in other countries than in yours. We would like to know more about your work, your ideas and goals for making your society a better place for all human beings. But we do not like to be a network on paper. We want to have a chance being obviously and personally connected with each of you.
So let us not wait longer, let us come closer. Help us to connect and reconnect again!
Silvana Uhlrich