FEMYSO Climate Action Statement: Environmental justice, social justice and much more 

FEMYSOs sustainability pathway 

Sustainability and climate action have been part of our work for nearly 10 years. Climate change is an ongoing issue, therefore we have taken the decision for it to be a theme that runs through all of our work more visibly.  

Sustainability is closely linked to the Islamic values of our organisation. The earth was given to us humans by God as a responsibility that we need to protect and take care of. The best way to take care of the earth is by sustaining the natural balance of the environment and living a moderate and thoughtful lifestyle. In addition to that by acting just towards all living organisms including people, animals and plants through environmental justice, social justice and human rights.  

FEMYSO’s participation as an organising member in the “Interfaith Youth Convention” on the European Green Deal showcases how sustainability and climate justice is an important across faiths.  This event allowed Muslim youth to actively partake and get involved in the dialogue together and was a beautiful example of the progressive policy a religiously plural society could achieve.  

“Thus We have made you trustees (khulafaa) on the earth after them, to see how you would act.” [Qur’an 10:14].  

FEMYSO plans the intensification in eco-friendly and sustainable habits in numerous ways. Firstly, before we advocate for others to become sustainable, we aim to focus intensely on the sustainability factors inside our INGO. We want to introduce and also continue habits like, sustainable waste management, reduction of digital waste, a complete avoidance of plastic use, monitoring CO2 emission caused by traveling and other important measures – described simply as “Reduce, Resue and Recycle”.  

Secondly, by advocating for sustainable and climate friendly actions not only in projects and campaigns solely related to climate change, but equally as well in other initiatives. Some examples are the “Green delegation” FEMYSO sent out at the European Youth Event 2021 in Strasbourg and the engagement of our members in the 25% percent project 2022 where climate activism became one of FEMYSOs contributions to the event. As the voice of Muslim Youth in Europe representing 33 member organisations across 20 European Countries, we also recognise that our membership is actively engaged in this theme. A good example would be the Green Iftar Guide encompassed in the “Ramadan Blossom campaign” for FEMYSO, for its member organisations and also available for anyone who is willing to organise a sustainable iftar during the holy month of Ramadan. 

Thirdly, it is important to us to highlight the link between climate action, social justice and human rights. This was one of the many topics discussed during the training on sustainability and climate action “Step- up and take action” that took place in Sarajevo 2021. 

Ever since our first major project dedicated towards sustainability, “Green up my community” which we launched in 2013, we have seen this type of work as an important area of focus, the decision to embed it thematically across our whole organisation was not taken lightly. However, we recognise the true need, we hope we can provide an example to others in and outside of our community to make the same commitment – for a more sustainable world for all Insha’Allah (God willing).  

 
Implementation of FEMYSOs Green Iftar Guide of the “Ramadan Blossom” campaign 

After a very supportive and insightful call with representatives of FEMYSO’s Campaigns Department, as well as the Environmental Officer, we felt very inspired and empowered to continue planning and organising the most sustainable public iftar we could. The framework and tips provided led to a significant reduction of single-use plastics, usage of eco-friendly recycled paper for all cutlery and plates, and recycling and re-using the small amount of plastic we did have to end up using. Encouraging our guests to only pick up the amount of food they realistically think they can consume during the night significantly reduced food waste. 

Generally, these small interventions and adaptations were really easy to implement but made a tremendous difference to the waste produced and the awareness it created in the community 

Alaee Ziani, Vice President, Muslim Youth of Gibraltar – A FEMYSO Member Organisation 

25% project – FEMYSO’s participation in the international event the 24/04  

FEMYSO is a partner of the 25% is a project, which is an initiative for young people, by young people to ensure that their voice is heard in decision-making processes and that they are given the tools and resources necessary to advocate for causes they care about.  
Moreover, On the 24/04/2022 we took part in the international event of the 25% where we took part in different working groups, including one regarding sustainability and climate change where FEMYSO’s newly recruited Environmental officer, presented the policy recommendation of the working group to the MEPs present at the conference. 

Sustainability is one of the most emerging themes expressed in the ideas collected. Young people think sustainability and climate change should be a political principle that shouldn’t be isolated from other important discussions. Moreover, youth also think that we cannot achieve climate justice without environmental justice, meaning that climate change can only be effectively fought if the measures are bearable for all citizens. as FEMYSO, we are convinced that climate change has a multiplier impact on existing inequalities and injustices on racialised communities, therefore it crucial that the fight against climate change reflects social justice principle to guarantee a fair allocation of responsibility of the actors involved.  

Nourhene Mahmoudi, Head of Campaigns, FEMYSO 

The Interfaith Youth Convention “Striking a Deal for our Common Home”  

FEMYSO collaborated with different faith organisations active on European level to organise two interactive webinars with youth from all across Europe representing of Muslim, Bahá’í, Buddhist, Christian and Jewish confessions, to exchange on the European Green Deal with the background of their religious beliefs. Climate activism and the responsibility towards our earth is a common denominator which connects us all together. Therefore, FEMYSO gave great importance to this interfaith project. We must ensure that everyone can meet their fundamental needs while preserving our environment for future generations. The webinars resulted in a distinguished report gathering all recommendations and ideas collected from the participating youth. 

Yusra Eleslambouly, FEMYSO volunteer, Part of the interfaith team  

Green Delegation European Youth Event 2021 

More than half of the participants of “Step-up and Take-Action” took part in the EYE in Strasbourg as FEMYSOs delegation. Prior to the European Youth Event, preparatory meetings were held by the previous organising team and alumni to discuss environmental topic. During those productive meetings, policy recommendations were developed to be presented at the EYE. We went as a green delegation to continue the work we started in Sarajevo. The common goal for this delegation was to make it clear that young European Muslims stand together with all other Europeans to fight climate change and take action. It was important to advocate for the environment as Europeans with minority background. We aimed to promote diversity and inclusiveness on climate actions and managed to effectively engage in several activities related to topics of climate justice and the environment. Our delegation spread at the EYE to take part in as many green activities as possible, we organised meetings, and had fruitful discussions with various MEPs. 

Member of the Green Delegation 

Step-Up and Take-Action International Activity 2021 

In 2021 I participated in the international activity “Step Up and Take Action”. Throughout the program we learned how to advocate for sustainability on local, national and international level. We also learned what the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) are and what they stand for. And this year -2022- I am inspiring European Muslim youth to become more aware of their environment and act by implementing the gained knowhow on sustainability into the “Ramadan Blossom Campaign” as the Ramadan Campaign Lead. 

Esma Budur, FEMYSO volunteer 

A Message to Leaders from our President 

On the 52nd edition of Earth Day we call upon all global citizens to reflect upon their own impact on our planet. With Earth Day falling in the month of Ramadan, I see it as a unique opportunity for the Muslim community to recognise our God-ordained responsibility to take care of our earth and our obligations towards it.  

Whenever young people are asked about their own political priorities, climate change is mentioned on every single occasion, we call upon policy-makers and decision-takers to take the concerns of youth seriously in this regard, not only acting upon their asks but empowering them to lead in the protection of their own futures.  

As FEMYSO, we hope years from now the leaders of this organisation look back and applaud the significant steps taken by individuals and governments to save our planet – there is simply no other option.   

Hande Taner, President of FEMYSO 

Ramadan Blossom planner 2022

RAMADAN MUBARAK friends!

“Just like flowers blossom every spring, so do we every Ramadan”.

We are glad to announce that the Ramadan Blossom campaign is back!

FEMYSO wishes you a blessed Ramadan to you and to your family.

The Ramadan Blossom campaign aims at providing you with tools to accompany you in your journey of spirituality and self-development.
As this is a month of spiritual renewal, growth and community, the activities we have planned are tailored to increasing your Islamic knowledge and keeping the community spirit alive.

Ramadan Planner: We have created a planner to help you stay organised and focused throughout the period of Ramadan. The booklet includes pre-preparations, dhikr, Quran, goals, salah, reflections and reminders as well as creative pages for you to keep note of some tasty recipes.   

Download your FREE copy here!

FEMYSO calls for the protection of human life in Ukraine

24.02.22

FEMYSO calls for the protection of human life in Ukraine and for dialogue amongst stakeholders as the current escalation in Ukraine disrupts peace and prosperity in our region. This act by the Russian state is a clear violation of the European Convention on Human Rights and its decision must be reversed to prevent further catastrophe.

FEMYSO echoes the statement of the Council of Europe’s Secretary General and the Joint Statement of European Commission and Council Presidents.This current situation is likely to lead to horrible consequences for innocent citizens who seek nothing more than just to live in their lands without fear, with marginalized groups such as young people and women likely to suffer the worst consequences of this senseless act of violence.

FEMYSO President Hande Taner said ‘My generation was privileged to grow up in peacetime Europe, with war merely seen as a dark chapter of the history of our region. Sadly, the events of today remind us of the fragility of peace. Even in these dark moments, I am especially proud of our member organisation in Ukraine ALRAID, who are providing emergency support to families affected by the escalation and violence in Eastern and Southern Ukraine.’

Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Ukraine and all those affected by these terrible events – the consequences of war are always devastating and we must double our efforts to ensure that the most vulnerable are protected.

As the voice of Muslim Youth in Europe we call for peace and stand with the people of Ukraine.

Notes

  1. FEMYSO (est. 1996) is a network organisation for 33 Muslim youth and student organisations across 20 European countries, and is the leading voice for European Muslim youth, developing and empowering them, and working to build a more diverse, cohesive and vibrant Europe.
  2. For more information or requests please email media@femyso.org

FEMYSO Statement on the European Year of Youth 

As we enter the year 2022, we at FEMYSO as the voice of Muslim Youth in Europe are proud to welcome the European Year of Youth. 

The European Year of Youth Youth will focus on re-establishing a positive outlook for European young people negatively affected by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.  In order to mark this important milestone, our organisation will amplify calls for one key message: this must be the European Year for all youth, including minority groups and marginalised voices.  

FEMYSO President Hande Taner said “Young people have been at the forefront of bringing progressive change to our region, and have been supporting their communities in the midst of this pandemic which already disproportionally affected the., Selfless in their commitment to creating a better Europe, they are the leaders of today, not just tomorrow. We sincerely hope this year signals a shift in the way young people are seen in our society.” 

The multitude of challenges young people face in the coming years as a result of this pandemic must not be ignored. We call on our European institutions to fulfil their responsibilities to their young population, removing barriers to meaningful engagement and amplifying our voices to play an active role in policy and decision-making processes.  

The decisions made over the coming years will impact the youth of Europe for decades to come. Therefore it is merely logical that the wishes of all youth are taken into consideration We are skilled, educated and more than able to lead our communities – we just need to be given opportunities.  

As FEMYSO we will continue our efforts to empower and support all youth voices in order to fulfil our mission of working towards a more diverse, vibrant and cohesive Europe for all.

Notes: 

  1. FEMYSO (est. 1996) is a network organisation for 33 Muslim youth and student organisations across 20 European countries, and is the leading voice for European Muslim youth, developing and empowering them, and working to build a more diverse, cohesive and vibrant Europe.   
  1. For more media-related information or requests please email media@femyso.org. 

 

First ever digital European Muslim Career’s Fair

On the 22nd of May of this year, we concluded our very first Digital European Muslim Career’s Fair. 

We hosted 12 professionals from all over Europe and from different industries sharing their experiences and stories. The professionals represented some top firms that included P&G, Amazon, Nespresso, Oliver Wyman and more. The participants had the chance to learn more about the fields they are interested in, ask questions, and connect.  

In addition to getting insights into the different industries, we also had some focused panels discussing some important topics such as diversity in the workplace, working abroad and Muslim women in workplace.   

Our aims for this event were to: 

  • To provide Young Muslims across Europe with better understanding of some of the most competitive fields out there. 
  • To show that FEMYSO can provide more to our members than just activism and politics. 
  • To reach out to corporations and build fruitful relationships. 

Although this was our first career’s fair, we were able to achieve the aims and received very positive feedback from the guest speakers and participants. We were able to arrange talks by many wonderful professionals in many fields who provided great benefit to the attendees with insights in their respective industries. 

We learned much during the planning and execution of this event. We hope that we can use these lessons to expand the scope and reach of our future career’s fairs. 

 

 

FEMYSO Elections Announcement 2021

The weekend of 22-23 October 2021 saw the election of a new Executive Committee of our organisation by its Member Organisations. With that, we say goodbye to our current executive team after two years of service.  

We would like to thank our outgoing team for their commitment to this organisation over the mandate: 

Abdelrahman Rizk – President (United Kingdom) 

Arjeta Xhomara – Head of Communications and Marketing (Albania) 

Ibrahim Kraria – Head of Internal development (Germany)

Hiba Latreche – General Secretary (France) 

Marwan Akari – Head of Fundraising (Ireland) 

Nadia El Faroukhi – Head of Member Organisation Relations (France) 

Vullnet Selmani – Head of Finance (North Macedonia) 

Fatima Halawa – Head of Training (Ireland) 

Burak Barut – Head of Services (Germany) 

Hande Taner – Head of Media (Netherlands) 

Yusuf Hassan – Head of Campaigns (United Kingdom) 

Outgoing FEMYSO President Abdelrahman Rizk said “On behalf of our outgoing executive, I would like to honour the immense work done by my team and this organisation to represent and advocate on behalf of and support the development of Muslim youth across Europe. This mandate has been one of many firsts and this is as a result of the incredible collective carried out by the volunteers of the wider FEMYSO Family. The COVID-19 pandemic definitely provided challenges, but I’m proud to say this Executive Committee delivered on the goals we set out at the beginning of our term. Even as some of us leave the organisation formally, we will all continue on our mission to strive for a diverse, cohesive and vibrant Europe.  

 

Sunday the 24th of October saw the election of the incoming FEMYSO Executive Committee: 

Hande Taner – President (The Netherlands) 

Salman Gadid – Head of Communications and Marketing (Finland) 

Hiba Latreche – Head of Fundraising (France) 

Vullnet Selmani – Head of Finance (North Macedonia) 

Esmanur Aslan – General Secretary (Belgium) 

Nadia El Faroukhi – Head of Member Organisation Relations (France) 

Fatima Halawa – Head of Internal Development (Ireland) 

Burak Barut – Head of Training (Germany) 

Nourhene Mahmoudi – Head of Campaigns (Italy) 

Yusuf Hassan – Head of Media (United Kingdom) 

Ibtihelle Ben – Head of Services (France) 

 

Incoming FEMYSO President Hande Taner said “I would like to thank the outgoing Executive Committee for their excellent work in bringing the organisation to where it currently is. I am proud to lead this organisation in its 26th year of existence, I am also incredibly proud to lead a fantastic team of committed young leaders from different parts of Europe, who are excited to take this organisation’s work to another level. I am thankful to our Member Organisations for putting their trust in me and this team to deliver for them, and we will endeavour to hold firm to our collective mission of trying to serve our communities and our region”. 

  

FEMYSO, together with all our Member Organisations, stay committed to a more diverse, cohesive and vibrant Europe.  

  

Notes:  

FEMYSO (est. 1996) is a network organisation for 33 Muslim youth and student organisations across 20 European countries, and is the leading voice for European Muslim youth, developing and empowering them, and working to build a more diverse, cohesive and vibrant Europe.    

For more media-related information or requests please email media@femyso.org 

Training of Trainers in Human Rights Education

FEMYSO President, Abdelrahman Rizk, completed the ‘Training of Trainers in Human Rights Education for Young People’ 2019-2021 course organised by the Council of Europe in cooperation with the United Nations (Human Rights of the High Commissioner). 

The course started in December 2019 with online modules and ended with a 10 day residential at the European Youth Centre in Budapest, Hungary. More than 30 activists and educators from across Europe and beyond participated at this well thought and holistic course.  

The aim of the training course is to support the implementation of the Charter on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education through building the competences of trainers to develop and apply quality human rights education activities with young people at national/local levels and to advocate for the further mainstreaming of human rights education in youth policy and youth work. 

During the course the participants had the opportunity to strengthen their understanding of the key concepts of human rights education with young people, strengthen essential competences for trainers working with human rights education in non-formal learning settings based on using and adapting Compass, and analyse current developments and trends in human rights education in order to mainstream it in youth policy and youth work. 

FEMYSO stands with communities and organisations fighting for human rights, fundamental freedoms and human dignity. We will continue to work for a more diverse, cohesive and vibrant Europe. 

Building Human Rights narratives to counter anti-Muslim hate speech

You are invited to participate at this online workshop on 27-28 September organised by the Council of Europe in cooperation with FEMYSO !
Registration open till 19 September.
https://www.coe.int/en/web/inclusion-and-antidiscrimination/-/register-for-a-new-workshop-on-countering-anti-muslim-hate-speech

International Youth Forum Against Islamophobia

Register now to attend the ‘International Youth Forum Against Islamophobia’ taking place in Rome, Italy (and online) 24-26 October
FEMYSO President, Abdelrahman Rizk, and Deputy head of Campaigns, Nourhene Mahmoudi, will be among the keynote speakers addressing the forum in Rome.
The forum will be a real opportunity for young people to build a different and more inclusive society. As well a youth manifesto against Islamophobia will be drawn up and published to raise public awareness on this very important and delicate issue.
Register now to attend in person or online: https://yesforum.eventbrite.it/

Call for writings! FEMYSO launches the blogpost project

 

FEMYSO wants to share your ideas! 

Do you enjoying writing, and do you have stories or topics that you would like to share? 

Well, we have an opportunity for you!

FEMYSO has launched the FEMYSOblog project which aims to give to the youth a platform where you can write, share your stories, and have discussions.

 

GUIDELINES

When it comes to deciding what to write about, you can either choose from the theme of the month that FEMYSO will announce or it can be anything that you like or concerns you.

The word limit per blogpost is 1000 words.

Send your writings and questions anytime at comms@femyso .org