Youth and Tourism

“The role of youth and technology in tourism” was the title of the ceremony organized by LOST on June 20, 2011 at Tammouz hall-Baalbeck in the presence of Mr. Elie Saba representing H.E. the Minister of Tourism Mr. Fadi Abboud, Dr. Ramy Lakkis the founder of LOST in addition to several social and academic figures. After the Lebanese Anthem, Miss Tahreer Awde from LOST welcomed the audience and considered that the Academy of Youth and Municipal Work is not just four words but it is four seas full of movement, change, energy and creativity. This creativity is shown by the skillful use of technological tools by youth in order to advertise and market many touristic places in Baalbeck- Hermel.
Following Miss Awde’s welcoming note four short films prepared by the youth of the Academy were shown to pinpoint the beautiful touristic attractions of Baalbeck, Fakeha, Chmestar and Hermel.
Mr. Salah Zayter from LOST delivered a speech in which he stressed on the active role of the Academy of Youth and Municipal Work in developing Youth talents and enhancing the youth activism. “Citizens may help in developing tourism provided that the public institutions involved become more receptive. Government must cooperate with the various organizations of the civil society in order to expand touristic milieux in Lebanon”, added Mr. Zayter.
In his turn, Mr. Elie Saba thanked LOST for her generous efforts in serving local societies. Mr. Saba affirmed that the Youth of Baalbeck-Hermel are able to serve their community and participate in the development of their society. He considered that the short films prepared by youth reflect their patriotism and how much they love their villages and their country Lebanon.

Enjoy Poetry in Hermel

The Lebanese Organization for Studies and Training-Hermel branch organized a poetry evening for the Lebanese poet Mr. Bassam Mousa.
This event was a part of the “Academy of Youth and Municipal Work” program that LOST is implementing in its four branches in Baalbeck-Hermel. Several political, social and academic figures attended the event with massive participation of youth and their parents.

Miss Rouba Makhour from LOST welcomed the audience and stressed on the role of the Academy in engaging youth in social activities so that they become Lebanese active citizens capable of developing their country.

In his turn, the Lebanese poet Mr. Bassam Mousa thanked LOST for her nice gesture and delivered to the audience a set of his wonderful poems.
At the end, Dr. Ramy Lakkis, the founder of LOST handed a honoring shield to Mr. Bassam Mousa.

“Mapping peacebuilding knowledge production in the MENA” by Dr. Ramy Lakkis

Dr. Ramy Lakkis, the founder of LOST presented a research entitled “Mapping peacebuilding knowledge production in the MENA” in Comodore Hotel –Hamra. This research was prepared for the Peacebuilding Academy Project in Lebanon in cooperation with Permanent Peace Movement.

After a speech delivered by Miss Sonia Nakad from Peacebuilding Academy, Dr. Ramy Lakkis presented his study which is a qualitative evaluation of existing studies of conflict and peace in the MENA region. He started by defining the concept of peacebuilding distinguishing between the notions of “Positive peace” and “Negative peace”.

In his research, Dr. Lakkis attempts at spotting four categories of peacebuilding writings according to various contents: peacebuilding and conflict resolution, peacebuilding and governance, peacebuilding and youth engagement and peacebuilding and democratization. The study reveals two general methodologies used in peacebuilding writings: the normative approach and the analytical one.

The normative approach is more utilized by international agencies and organizations. However, the analytical one is mostly used by independent studies of researchers. Moreover, the research enlists a group of organizations that are issuing peacebuilding researches in MENA region mainly in Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Palestine and Libya. This list could be considered as a database for future networking and cooperation. The research also acknowledges the shortage in peacebuilding writings and recommends the multiplication of efforts in networking and coordination among state and civil society organizations.

Cleaning campaigns go ahead in Baalbeck- Hermel

On the occasion of “World Environment Day”, the Academy of Youth and Municipal work at LOST launched several cleaning campaigns in various regions of Baalbeck- Hermel.

The campaigns started in the morning of Sunday 5th of June in Iaat, Hermel, Labwe, Tamnin, Nabi Osman and other regions. While the campaign kicked off the in Iaat public garden with a group of youth, other groups were cleaning Labwe public square, Tamnin square, Hermel square and Nabi Osman public garden.

Farah Lakkis, a youth club member confirmed that “this campaign is one of the most remarkable activities that LOST is doing in Baalbeck- Hermel. So, we, the lovers of environment and plants, thank LOST for this voluntary work which urges cooperation among youth to support and preserve the environment”.

In his turn, Mr. Ali Abdel Sater, the mayor of Iaat municipality valued highly the role of LOST in enhancing the youth belonging to their community and helping them to achieve environmental benefits.

After cleaning Tamnin square, the youth participated in the cherries’ festival which was attended by the Minister of Agriculture Dr. Hussein Haj Hasan, the Italian Ambassador in Lebanon in addition to representatives of the Lebanese security forces.

“It was an event to remember. It was a chance provided by LOST to serve our community and to prove how much we love Lebanon”, said Hanan Zein from the Academy of Youth and Municipal work.

Social Media Training for 30 NGOs

More than 30 NGO representatives attended workshop on social media in the 4 centers of LOST (Baalbeck, Hermel, Ein and Beit Shema) during the month of May.
These workshops are part of a series of training sessions organized by LOST in order to empower NGOs of Baalbeck-Hermel in different fields. Mahmoud Bwary was leading the training in Baalbeck, Alaa Abi Raad trained 4 NGOs in the region of Chmostar, Ahmad Sahili and  Hussein Mawla trained many NGOs in Hermel and Ein. The training sessions offered different models of social media tools (Facebook, Blog, and Twitter) and explained the importance of social media in the development of any NGO.
“Such workshop is very new to us in Forsa. It helped us develop our communication and technical skills. It was a chance to learn how to use the social media tools in developing our NGOs” said Mahdi El Masri from Forsa.
The workshop was followed by a lunch at Baytna restaurant.