International Youth Gatherings
International Youth Gatherings (IYG) are held annually in one of the member countries belonging to IPA. Bids to host each IYG are submitted for approval to the International Executive Committee (IEC). As examples, IYG2006 was held in New Zealand, 2007 is in Cyprus and 2008 will be in Australia.
The National Section organising an IYG is responsible for all arrangements, and may delegate this responsibility to any Region or individual appointed for that purpose.
To have a fairly equivalent maturity amongst the participants, it is important that they are of a similar age group. It has thus been decided that those persons who qualify for participation should have reached the age of 15 yrs but not have exceeded the age of 18 yrs as at the commencement date of the gathering they wish to attend.
Participation at an IYG will be open to the children or grandchildren of current IPA members, and the completed registration form will indicate the IPA number of such parent or grandparent.
These events are not only meant as a very pleasant holiday, but are an essential part of the endeavour of IPA to create contacts across borders and to reach mutual understanding and peaceful relations with people in other countries. In order to achieve these aims the various programmes include activities where participants are engaged in study groups to undertake research of different kinds.
IYG's comprise a minimum of 30 and a maximum of 50 participants, depending on the number of applications received and the capacity of the organising country. Based on past experience the average number of applicants being accepted is two per country.
New Zealand participants.
Any current IPA member who wishes to have their child or grandchild participate in a gathering should firstly contact their Regional Secretary to confirm the venue and dates of future IYG’s, and to request application forms and other documentation.
Completed applications, endorsed by the Regional Committee, are to be sent to the Secretary General of the New Zealand section, (to reach him by 1 December in each year) who will arrange for all applications to be seen by the Selection Committee. Once selections have been made, the decision will be communicated to all applicants and the appropriate Regional Secretaries.
The cost of participation is set by the host country. The NZ Section may contribute funds to cover all or part of the registration fees. Travel costs are, however, the responsibility of the applicant.