YIP (International Youth Initiative Program)

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Sverige
Järna
YIP (International Youth Initiative Program)

Ring Vägbeskrivning Webbplats Kontakta universitetet

International Youth Initiative Program (YIP) is a holistic educational program for youth 18 - 28 in

40 participants aged 18 to 28, from all over the world, live and learn together for 10 months in Järna, Sweden. Participants work with international experts, doers and innovators to gain a holistic understanding of the current challenges humanity faces. Through hands-on workshops, projects and internships, they learn to use entrepreneurial principles and skills to create initiatives that meet these challenges while practising collaboration and moral integrity. Find out more at http://www.yip.se/

Sign up for YIP Newsletter at http://yip.se/news/newsletter/

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21/10/2026

Last Week was the ‘Economics and Politics’ Week. Below you can hear some of YIP participant Jonathan's experience …

“This week we talked about economics and politics with Gerald Häfner and Armin Steuernagel, but not in a way I would ever have expected. During this week we approached this rather sensitive topic by asking clear questions and looking at initiatives that answer those questions. We started the week by talking with Gerald Häfner about how the world came to be in the position it is in right now, in particular Europe.

On the second day, after a brief overview of the history of ownership, we talked about how the active economic systems in the world are causing a disconnection between people and their responsibilities. Armin therefore introduced us to steward ownership, a model based on self-governance and purpose orientation.
…
On the fifth and last day, everything came together on the subjects of responsibility and trust. How can we build systems that create trust instead of mistrust between human beings? We also talked about how and why we can contribute to the world in a true way....

When I look back at this week, I not only think I learned a lot, but I also feel very inspired by the way Armin and Gerald approached this broad topic. I experienced a paradigm shift that changed my perspective on economics and politics. At first I saw the two as separate from the human being, but now I can clearly see how they relate to each other.

Besides learning a new way of seeing the world in terms of economics and politics, I learned a lot about myself. Before, when I looked at all the problems in the world, I felt strange, because I felt both responsible and powerless to act. I felt scattered and worried. Now I take away a feeling of freedom and trust in the world's rhythm: the freedom to contribute to something I truly and deeply care about, and the trust that other people will eventually do the same.”

The full text, from which the above extracts come, can be read in the October newsletter which will come out soon.

15/10/2026

We have now wrapped up afternoon movement sessions with Gustav Ågerstrand!

Jonas shared his reflections in a conversation:

“It was really nice to sense into your body and to know, consciously, how your body moves - how it can move in different ways than you before thought possible. Having some movement in the week was really pleasant, especially in the afternoons after a morning of sitting, to be able to just move and not have to think about anything - to just be aware and be present in your body”.

“It was a really nice start of the week to be energized through the movement session”.

“I did the whole movement open course week with Yustas last year [Yustas Kučinskas is the contributor for Movement in Complexity]. I enjoyed that week a lot and I was really looking forward to moving again in this conscious way. So I already knew what we were going to do, but I also had not moved in that way since last year as it’s a way of moving that I don’t usually do in my daily life. It was really nice that it was a structured part of YIP in the first months”.

14/10/2026

This afternoon we had our first singing session with Kefas Berlin 🎶 🎵

As well as leading multiple community choirs and working with voice therapeutically, Kefas also has a background in playing, dance and physical theater. We have been lucky to have Kefas as a contributor in YIP for 18 years!

This afternoon we warmed up with playful movement and trust exercises before singing. We learnt songs that have been sung in YIP for years, and so when YIP alumni meet across generations in the future they can join in song.

The YIP curriculum is designed to support the whole human being. Morning courses are often rich with nourishment for the mind, and our afternoon sessions, such as movement and creatives, engage more of our will. The singing afternoon sessions can bring us into our bodies, into play and into harmony with each other 🌱

10/10/2026

An interview with Christianne Aikins about the ‘War and Conflict’ course at YIP! 🗣️🗣️

Christianne’s week long course at YIP helps participants find entry points into complicated histories and current conflicts. Seeking to dismantle narratives that distort truth, Christianne encourages us to look critically at how the information we seek is presented to us (framing). For instance, asking questions such as who is presenting media, who this message serves and what language or lenses are being used? This is an increasingly important tool to hold in times when we often find ourselves overloaded with information and a lack of clarity on which information to trust. With a greater ability to discern which messages are seeking justice and which are upholding injustice, we have more agency to shape the future.

08/10/2026

For the last 5 weeks at YIP we have had weekly movement sessions with Gustav Ågerstrand.

Movement is a crucial part of the YIP curriculum, in which we take time to get into our bodies. To nourish our system as a whole and recognize that learning happens with our bodies and must be allowed to move through us. And with Gustav, this is never boring, exploring new ways to be in movement, in the classroom and in life. With his guidance we have explored locomotion, coordination, feldenkrais and a range of solo and interactive movement styles. Creating the possibility for each of us to feel and tune into our bodies in new, playful and mindful ways.

Importantly, Gustav brings our attention not to the ‘product’ of our movements but a deep listening to the quality of our movements and the subtle changes we can notice if we really listen. And the question he brought to us consistently: How can I bring what I am learning in movement into my life?

06/10/2026

Last week was the ‘War and Conflict’ Week with Christianne Aikins. Below you can read some insights from YIP participant Allison …

“The war and conflict week was intense and thought-provoking. We examined news and media articles through the concept of “framing”—the ways in which media use language and timelines to portray people and events in ways that strengthen a dominant narrative. I found this particularly valuable because it showed me that media does not simply report events; the way an event is selected and portrayed can shape how we understand the truth. This understanding helped me see how longstanding issues such as colonialism, orientalism, and islamophobia can be both undermined and perpetuated through media representations. Framing can influence who is portrayed as the hero or victim of a story, what lives are deemed valuable, and whose suffering we can mourn. We explored the term essentialism and the idea of a “clash of civilizations”. I found these concepts particularly important for understanding how complex political, ideological, economic, and cultural conflicts can become reduced to inherent differences between groups of people. Essentialist representations can portray groups as having a “fixed essence”, while the “clash of civilizations” framework can construct entire cultures as fundamentally incompatible with one another. When war is framed as a struggle between fundamentally different peoples, it undermines the ideological, economic, political, and cultural factors that have shaped the conflict overtime, as well as making violence seem inevitable. I really enjoyed this week, and I feel more equipped to engage with complex issues. Rather than defaulting to what is the “right” interpretation, I have shifted to examining first the frame and narrative of the text.” 🖼️

03/10/2026

Last weekend we celebrated Michaelmas and the harvest period together. YIP 19 gathered with guests from the community to share food, music, songs and warmth. 🍁🍂

It is important that we take time to mark and notice the rhythms of the web in which we are a part; the natural, agricultural, cyclical and communal rhythms that enter into a period of transformation at this time. As it gets colder it felt meaningful that we came together - turning to community and all we can create together, to hold the warmth and light within us as we enter into the autumn and winter months.

And so, we gathered beneath the harvest moon, with gratitude to all the beings that have fed us this year in ways unforeseen.

30/09/2026

Last Week was an ‘Introduction to Biodynamic Agriculture and Gardening’. Contributors Aleksa Domańska, Thomas Lüthi and Martin Fellkvist brought a week that weaved elements of hands-on learning, reflection, theory, conversation and storytelling.

Martin led the morning sessions in which some introductory ideas of the vast Biodynamic world were discussed. Martin is deeply intertwined with his work in agriculture and therefore with the web of things in which we are a part of, yet often unaware.

Aleksa .domanska, our gardener, brought us into the garden gently with curiosity and awe. In her teaching she brings an excitement and sense of play in the garden as each plant, method, tool holds a story. Together throughout the week we began putting the garden to sleep, harvesting, weeding and covering the beds with compost and hay.

Thomas, a local biodynamic farmer delivered an afternoon session on compost making. Underneath the afternoon sun we discovered the approach and mindset to compost making that acknowledges the importance of less visible forces, of energy and biodynamic preparates.

The week was blessed by the last of the summer sun, and the garden was tended carefully to (as it has tended to us), through learning and work, soon ready to rest for the winter.

28/09/2026

Last Week was the ‘Introduction to Biodynamic Agriculture and Gardening’ Week. Below you can hear some inspirations from YIP participant Vibeke … 🐛🐞

“It’s week 5 of our YIP adventure and for this week we were visited by Martin Falqvist to learn about Biodynamic agriculture and gardening… We had four mornings to learn about the mystical and fascinating art of biodynamic farming with Martin….

The art of biodynamic farming is hardly comparable with conventional farming practices as described above. Instead of dividing and controlling the land, I learned how biodynamic farmers work with a living organism and approach their farm from a relational point of view. The soil is honoured, the insects are greeted, the mycelial fungal webs are welcomed and in return the plants thrive. It is in this process of seeking relationships, where Martin’s invaluable knowledge comes in. By listening to Martin, it became clear how working in close relationship to the land for many years, resulted into a deep level of attentiveness to the subtleties of the natural systems and cycles so crucial for farming….

Seed saving is a way to move around this system in which so many conventional farmers find themselves in. By carefully selecting, drying and saving his own seeds Martin engages in the natural cycle of life and creates resilience. As we’ve learned, plants adapt to the specific environment in which they grow. When they reproduce they hold the memory in their seeds, giving life to a new generation. Imagine this cycle repeating itself over many years, each generation adapting a little more and little better to the land. Until those seeds are in a process of becoming more and more attuned to the fungi living in the soil, a tree casting its shadow in the later afternoon, the insects dancing on a hot summers day. This is what it means to grow locally, to claim that the carrot you grow is from here. Martin’s produce is as local as you can get.”

The full text, from which the above extracts come, can be read in the September newsletter that will come out soon.

26/09/2026

Cooking at YIP!

Once every month, each check-in group will be on cooking duty, cooking dinner for the YIP community. The participants design the menu for the coming week, whilst taking into consideration how we can use mainly seasonal, biodynamic and local produce. At this time of year we are so grateful to be able to eat vegetables and herbs harvested from our own garden. 🥔🌽🍅

Last week we got creative; Aleksa and some YIP participants made delicious Pierogi, a polish dumpling dish.

Adress

Kulturcentrum Järna 13
Järna
15391

Telefon

+46730973637

Webbplats

http://yip.se/, https://yip.se/application/

Aviseringar

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