50 international and 60 German participants attended the first camp preparation seminar at Salvador Allende Haus in Oer-Erkenschwick, Germany in October.

Participants started to shape the camp together – getting an idea of what we want the camp to look like, which rules are important for us, what preparation needs to be done and finding other groups to camp with in villages.

In a workshop on communicating without a common language, international participants came up with lots of ideas about how to communicate inclusively in villages, workshops and on a central level, including a colour coding system, visual signs, multilingual workshop descriptions and playing well-known games. In another workshop on fundraising, they also came up with exciting ideas to raise money for bringing people to the camp. Have a look at our updated Fundraising guide to get inspired!

The workshop on camp rules generated lots of interesting discussions, new questions and suggestions. A new draft of the rules is being developed using these ideas with the additions from the boards of SJD Die Falken and IFM-SEI. There was also a separate workshop to develop a concept for the prevention of sexual violence. You will be able to see the result of this in the revised camp rules.

A workshop on camp democracy explained the democracy model, the structure of groups, villages and towns, and a system for communication. There were also sessions on cafés and pubs, big events (the opening and closing ceremonies and ‘Bergfest’), theme tents and a training space, so participants could choose any area they were interested in. Check out the call for workshops to find out how you can contribute to the programme!

We shared the camp cultures of IFM’s different member organisations and there was an open space workshop for delegations to start matchmaking. Have a look at the ‘Matchmaking’ article to find out how you can share your own camp culture and find a village partner!

In between this jam-packed programme, we had lots of fun meeting new people and old friends alike, getting to know each other with games and ended the weekend with a socialist Halloween party!

The next preparation seminar will be held at Kurt Lowenstein Haus, close to Berlin, between the 5th and 8th May 2016. Put the dates in your diary now!