Forum Photo!

Youth Forum 2007 - ARRIVAL DAY!

All throughout Trest, faries are aflutter! The participants are beginning to arrive in Trest - the Youth Forum is about to begin. Stay tuned to this blog to find out about the comings and goings at this year's Youth Forum. Daily updates will be provided by Arminda, who is happy to have escaped the heat wave that hit Duino.

Duino Final Days

So, IDEA has moved on to the next event. Youth Forum has begun in Trest!

But, we still owe a few words to Duino. Back in Duino, the Foresteria is empty (but I'm sure the fire alarm is still going off!), the ice cream sales at the Castel and Tuttido have dropped immensely, and the mosquitoes are experiencing a famine. There isn't anyone yelling out the windows of the Foresteria past curfew, and there is suddenly a surplus of Nutella in the village.

Thank you to all participants and staff for making this year at Duino successful and memorable. We will have articles and pictures of this year's Duino Institute in idebate Magazine, and you can view materials that were made at Duino at www.idebate.org/citizenjournalism and also on the IDEA Encyclomedia. There are also articles and debate materials from Duino on the Wiki at www.idebate.org/wiki. You can even add your own material to the Wiki!

Until next year, Ciao Ciao Duino.

It's Officially a Heat Wave

Resolved: The temperature in Duino reached 114 degrees Fahrenheit - 43 degrees Celsius - yesterday. This isn't debatable. Students are still chugging away today, despite another hot one.

By the way, if you haven't checked out IDEA Radio yet, you really should. There are some great stories on there, brought to you courtesy Duino staff and students.

Last night, we put Ioana Cionea, Youth Forum Curriculum Director, on a train to Prague--a sure sign that Youth Forum is beginning soon!

The Duino Day-to-Day

Greetings Faithful idebate Blog Readers,
We're wrapping things up here at Duino. We have two days of classes left. Students in debate classes are presenting their final debates (and they're doing a great job!), and the Citizen Journalism students are working like mad to get final stories finished. We get to see a sample of what some of the Citizen Journalism students have created on Friday during BorFest. In other news, it's about 100 degrees fahrenheit here, and we're all feeling like we may melt before we leave Duino. We'd become permanent Duino fixtures, like the castle: "Oh honey, we really should go to Duino and visit the site of melted students and IDEA staff. I hear it's more fascinating than Pompeii..." I'm signing off; this heat is really getting to me.

The IDEA Weekly Blog-Style

The IDEA Weekly, Volume 139

July 17, 2007

Dear INN Readers,

I hope this issue of the Weekly finds you well. I’m at the IDEA Debate and Citizen Journalism Institute in Duino, Italy. The camp ends on Saturday, and I think it has been a great experience for all involved. At Duino, we have Institute participants from twenty countries, ranging in age from 15-51, who are taking an assortment of debate and citizen journalism classes. I’ve seen some great debates and watched inspiring news stories created by the students here. The staff has done a wonderful job of keeping students interested and engaged—not an easy task when the beach is less than a kilometer away! A Duino heat wave hit yesterday, so we’re all keeping our fingers crossed for a breeze and some rain! For the latest on Duino and the Youth Forum, go to idebate.blogspot.com, see materials on our Wiki at www.idebate.org/wiki, and listen to IDEA radio. See you at Forum…next week. ~Arminda

TPS Global Debates 2007-2008

If you haven’t heard the buzz on the TPS Global Debates yet, be sure to check out the details at www.thepeoplespeak.org. This year, TPS looks different from years past. For the TPS Global Debates, you can get involved by organizing a debate at your school on the topic: “Resolved: Market mechanisms are preferable to regulatory approaches in reducing carbon emissions.” The coolest part? You and five other people from your school could with a trip to the U.N. Youth Summit in New York July 2008! There are also lots of other prizes and special benefits for IDEA members! For more information, go to The People Speak’s website and register. There is additional information on IDEA’s website at www.idebate.org/thepeoplespeak. Learn how you can become involved in the Global Debates today!

The TPS Global Debates Festival in Haiti

As part of this year's the People Speak Global Debates, IDEA and its partner, Fokal, are pleased to invite high school debaters to the first international debate event it is hosting in Haiti. The event will take place in the beautiful city of Jacmel October 31^st—November 4^th, 2007. The festival will feature a five round debate tournament as well as training, discussions and cultural activities. All high schools who register for the TPS Global Debates 2007 will be eligible for participation in the Global Debates Festival. You can see more information about this event on IDEA’s website.

More about Duino

If you wanted to sign up to attend the Duino Debate and Citizen Journalism Institute this year, but circumstances prohibited you from doing so, plan on attending next year! The Institute offers a variety of Debate and Journalism courses, and we hope to expand on our course offerings for next year. The Institute also includes excursions. This year, we traveled into Venice twice and will be going to Trieste tomorrow. The Institute will be open to high school students, university students, and post graduates next year. Don’t miss out!

Youth Forum Updates

Up until the Forum, please continue to visit www.ideayouthforum.org. Also, please watch your inboxes: Ioana has been sending out new information daily! Also, remember that payment for the Youth Forum must be received prior to your arrival. You can view payment details at the bottom of your invoice, which is automatically generated on www.idebate.org/tournaments. Registration for the Forum has ended. If you registered for the Forum, but have decided not to attend, please remove your registration from the registration page or inform Forum organizers, so we can remove it for you. Lastly, if you haven’t sent your travel information to René, you need to do so immediately! Rene0014@iol.cz

Updates from Duino: Live From the Frontlines

The people in Duino and the surrounding area are getting to know the Debate and Citizen Journalism participants quite well, thanks to those ambitious student journalists seeking stories. Today, as I walked through quaint, friendly little Duino, IDEA-ites were out and about, interviewing florists, artists, and other assorted Duino community members. On Wednesday night, Citizen Journalism students will present their final story and photos. The last batch of stories were great; I can't wait to see what they're all going to report on this time.

We have some exciting events on the agenda for this week! We'll have our usual schedule of classes, with an excursion to Trieste on Wednesday. We also have some great evening activities coming up! Monday night is movie and discussion night; Tuesday night is staff debate night (a little glimpse of the experts, eh?).Wednesday night, we'll be having more Citizen Journalism presentations; Thursday is a dance and Kitsch night; and finally, for Friday, we'll have an awards presentation and a second round of BorFest. We're hoping that "Borfest 6.5" is as much fun as "Borfest 6," but sequels are sometimes disappointing...

We're having a heat wave here in Duino, but participants are still hard at work. There's no stopping these ambitious debaters and journalists! Photos above are from our "Night of Nations" last Friday.

More Pics For My Homies

BorFest: The Legacy Lives On

The scoop on BorFest is that it was a ton of fun. From Danny and Derrigan's mad rhymes to Vera's dance, talents emerged. And, who knew that Sanne could wail like that? Impressive. Our MC/ microphone stand, Nat, also did a great job.

You can hear higlights of "BorFest 2007: Bor's Elegies" on IDEA radio, so, have a listen. Who knows? We may get crazy and have a "Borfest II: The Sequel" next week. In the meantime, check out some pics.

Tonight is Country Night--sans boots and cowboy hats. We're excited about some great country introductions. Rumor has it that the Haitian students are gonna sing a song.

Countdown to BorFest

Tonight's the night. Excitement is growing. Bor has been seen stalking nervously around Duino, scowling at anyone and everything. Even his morning coffee doesn't seem to have given Bor any pleasure this morning. This is a sure sign that tonight's BorFest will truly be a special event. Tun in Live on IDEA Radio starting at 8:30 GMT.

Howling in Duino

If you hear mysterious howls echoing from the cliffs of Duino tonight, it's not because we've added a werewolf to our mix of characters (though the moon is becoming full, and we're a little concerned about Marjan's sudden surge of facial hair). You're probably hearing genuine Duino Karaoke--coming straight to you from the Foresteria lobby. We're keeping our fingers crossed that Noel will decide to do a rendition of "Thriller," but we'll settle for Ioana and "Livin' La Vida Loca."

Update: Marjan shaved, so strike that out of the equation.

IDEA Welcomes its Newest Member, Pipo!

Our newest member, Sebastian Doyle Bonomo [Pipo!] was born on July 7th.

Best wishes to Sebastian, Heather and Hernan,
IDEA.

BorFest Plans Continue

Excitement grows in the hamlet of Duino for BorFest. Rumor has it the Duke of Castle Duino may show up - we're worried, though, since Bor still has issues with Duino being considered part of Italy.

Now Zombies?

It's only Monday, but it could be that the mixture of Citizen Journalism and Debate Labs on Saturday combined with a day at the beach/ in the city yesterday was a bit too much for our Duino-ers. It's Monday afternoon in Italy, and we've had a lot of zombie sightings in the classroom building. Participants are working hard--and working together, though--which is nice to see, zombies or not.

Perhaps we could call on our local wizard to infuse a little energy into this Duino afternoon.

Wizards and Vampires in Duino?

Okay, so we know that Duino is beautiful--and that the dormitory where we're staying looks right over the edge of cliffs above the Adriatic. Who could complain about that? I really hadn't planned on it, until two recent supernatural sightings: a vampire and a wizard. Yep, that's right. Right here in Duino. The dormitory is sort of old and castle-like, so it's really no surprise that both of these creepy phenomena have appeared.

Just yesterday, the wizard cast a spell on our cafeteria so that all of the food that was served was exactly identical to the food the day before! Shocking. We're waiting to see what he does next. We hope he's feeling kind enough to magically create a filet mignon out of bean soup...we can always hope.

The vampire situation, however, is a little more serious. By this point at Duino, the amount of time and work the participants are putting in is becoming obvious--as indicated by increased coffee intake and bags under eyes. They're becoming likely victims for our guest from Transylvania. In fact, the other day, one of the Haitian participants seemed to be blinded by the light of another participant's crucifix necklace. And, she wouldn't go near the garlic pasta at lunch. Draw your own conclusions.

More from Duino soon...I hope.

IDEA NJFL Tournament Corrections

Hi Readers,

The IDEA.Blogspot watchdogs and keepers of accuracy have pointed out three errors in the NJFL rankings that need to be corrected:

Prose:
2nd Place finalist: Page Isuani is from the St. Clement's School

Humorous Interpretation:

Both the 1st place winner, Aiden Kennedy and the 7th place finalist Sarah Griffin, are from Sidney Lanier Middle School.

Apologies for these errors and thanks for pointing them out!

Aaron

Preparations for BorFest VI Have Begun

Preparations for BorFest VI, Bor's Elegies, are underway. BorFest VI will be broadcast LIVE starting at 7:30pm GMT on Thursday, July 12. IDEA Radio's new station master, Nat Towsen, will be hosting this year's BorFest broadcast.

IDEA National Junior Forensic League National Championship Tournament Original Oratory, Humorous Interpretation, and School of Excellence Results

And last but most certainly NOT least:

Original Oratory:

This event broke to semis.

Semifinalists:

Ajit Singh (Sidney Lanier)
Yan Li Ni (CNMI Saipan)
Amber Martinez (Ribet Academy)
Max Patterson (Sidney Lanier)

Finalists:

1st: Daniela Rivera (Ribet Academy)
2nd: Myles Miller (Bronx Prep)
3rd: Rafael Go (Sidney Lanier)
4th: David Janovsky (Pike School)
5th: Robin Go (Sidney Lanier)
6th: Olivia Arena (Sidney Lanier)
7th: John French (Pike School)
8th: Andrew Theobold (North MS)

Humorous Interpretation:

Quarterfinalists:

Harry Wood (Pike School)
Chan Woo Lee (CNMI Saipan)
Brianne Powell (Bronx Prep)
Riley Acker (Lewis Palmer)
Sara Volz (North MS)
Bal Eum Hong (CNMI Saipan)
James Hamilton (Pike School)
Kelvin Barnard (Bronx Prep)
Tori Fanberg (Franklin MS)
Brendan Mallory (Ribet Academy)

Semifinalists:

Katey Haas (Franklin MS)
Jessica Grams (Franklin MS)
Tucker Hamilton (Mountain Ridge)
Kent Healy (St. Mary's Hall)
Shae Davis (Russell MS)
Meagan Rowell (Lewis Palmer)
Mereylen Denora (CNMI Saipan)
Jacob Fox (St. Mary's Hall)
Ethan Vanderslice (Sidney Lanier)
JB Jensen (Windsor MS)

Finalists:

1st: Aiden Kennedy (St. Mary's Hall)
2nd: Ben Kellogg (Sidney Lanier)
3rd: Jared Naylor (St. Mary's Hall)
4th: Stephanie Strehlow (Pike School)
5th: Timothy McLaughlin (Pike School)
6th: Hannah Viroslav (St. Mary's Hall)
7th: Sarah Griffith (St. Mary's Hall)
8th: Max McGillivray (Sidney Lanier)



School Excellence Awards:
(winners of this award are not ranked, and are listed in no particular order)

The Bronx Preparatory Charter School (New York, NY)
Sidney Lanier Middle School (Houston, TX)
North Middle School (Colorado Springs, CO)
The Pike School (Andover, MA)
Saint Mary's Hall (San Antonia, TX)

IDEA National Junior Forensic League National Championship Tournament Prose, Poetry, Duo Interpretation, and Impromptu Results

Not to be outdone:

Prose:

Quarterfinalists:

Elizabeth Carrolo (Pike School)
Lucy Chen (Sydney Lanier)
Jay Scheinman (Jane Long)
Jessica Horton (Pike School)
Ashlynn Mondragon (Brentwood)
Bal Eum Hong (CNMI Saipan)
Anthony Azari (Brentwood)
Jared Naylor (St. Mary's Hall)
Alex Leal (Jane Long)
Ben Kellogg (St. Mary's Hall)
Alex Hollis (Brentwood)

Semifinalists:

Chloe Schafer (St. Clements)
Denora Merelyn (CNMI Saipan)
Timothy McLaughlin (Pike School)
Robyn Straus (St. Mary's Hall)
Adam Arsenault (Pike School)
Abbi Helfer (North MS)
Brooks Naylor (St. Mary's Hall)
Erin Cusenbary (St. Mary's Hall)
Ana Martinez (Jane Long MS)
Aisha Joyner (CNMI Saipan)

Finalists:

1st: Brooke Kantor (Sydney Lanier)
2nd: Paige Isuani (Pike School)
3rd: Doreen Berko (Sydney Lanier)
4th: Katie Raitz (St. Clement's)
5th: Tinglan Dai (North MS)
6th: Sydney Bagley (St. Mary's Hall)
7th: Ara Bilazarian (Sydney Lanier)
8th: Jacob Fox (Pike School)

Poetry:

Quarterfinalists:

John French (Pike School)
James Hamilton (Pike School)
Taryn McQueen (Brentwood)
Aisha Joyner (CNMI Saipan)
Yan Ni Li (CNMI Saipan)
Veronika Reidel (Heath MS)
Natalie Baldwin (Russell)
Ana Martinez (Jane Long MS)
Tabi MacMillan (Russell MS)
Angie Andrade (Brentwood MS)

Semifinalists:

Sally Huang (Sidney Lanier)
John E. Elenzano (CNMI Saipan)
Sydney Bagley (Pike School)
Elizabeth Carrolo (Pike School)
Rilwan Babijide (Jane Long MS)
Becki Yukman (North MS)
Taylor Alvarado (St. Clements)
Anthony Azari (Brentwood)
JJ Hurst (Russell MS)
Brianne Powell (Bronx Prep)

Finalists:

1st: Tess Macapinlac (Sidney Lanier)
2nd: Max Gillivray (Pike School)
3rd: Tiffany McLarty (Bronx Prep)
4th: James Barkley (Sidney Lanier)
5th: Antonio Brown (Bronx Prep)
6th: Chiantee Rosette (CNMI Saipan)
7th: Olivia Arena (Sidney Lanier)
8th: Rachel Stern (Pike School)

Duo Interpretation:

Quarterfinalists:

Mark Anthony Liban & Chiantee Rosette (CNMI Saipan)
Riley Acker & Theresa Pucci (Lewis Palmer)
Noah Brace & Clayton Farris (Sidney Lanier)
Michael Hamlin & Joel Nordby (Lewis Palmer)
Lindsay Gaiser & Kristen Myers (Brentwood)
Caroline Howell & Torea Williams (Brentwood)
Hannah Hockley & Jessica Martin (Franklin)

Semifinalists:

Tania Babu & Ana Martinez (Jane long)
Kirbie Huwa & Sontasia Salsman (Heath MS)
Kent Healy & Jared Naylor (St. Mary's Hall)
Chloe Schafer & Christa (St. Celement's)
Sari Imber & Robyn Straus (St. Mary's Hall)
James Hamilton & Harry Wood (Pike School)
Shae Davis & Alex Siverson (Russel MS)
Sydney Bagley & Jessica Horton (Pike School)
Warren Swartwout & Natalie Varnet (Lewis Palmer)
Rilwan Babijide & Alex Leal (Jane Long)
Anthony Azari & Madeline Azari (Brentwood)
Elizabeth Carrolo & Rachel Stern (Pike School)
Jacqueline Laguarta & Chelsea Snipes (Sidney Lanier)

Finalists:

1st: Tiffany McLarty & Brianne Powell (Bronx Prep)
2nd: Kelvin Bernard & Antonio Brown (Bronx Prep)
3rd: Krista Tremblay & Hanna Viroslav (St. Mary's Hall)
4th: Jacob Fox & Ben Kellogg (St. Mary's Hall)
5th: Angie Andrade & Isaac Arellano (Brentwood)
6th: Ara Bilazarian & Max McGillvray (Pike School)
7th: Sara Volz & Becki Yukman (North MS)
8th: Erin Cusenbary & Brooks Naylor (St. Mary's Hall)

Impromptu:

Quarterfinalists:

Vikram Iyer (Sidney Lanier)
Timothy McLaughlin (Pike School)
Sarah Rasmussen (Lewis Palmer MS)
Rilwan Babijide (Jane Long)
Zacc Helfer (North MS)
Sara Imber (St. Mary's Hall)
Jay Scheinman (Jane Long)
Bal Hong Eum (CNMI Saipan)
Alex Hollis (Brentwood)
Sam Epstein (St. Clements)

Semifinalists:

Jacob Fox (St. Mary's Hall)
Jared Naylor (St. Mary's Hall)
Stephanie Strehlow (St. Mary's Hall)
Adam Arsenault (Pike School)
Reid Geissen (Sidney Lanier)
Paige Isuani (St. Clements)
Carter Moon (North MS)
Harry Wood (Pike School)
Cole Huff (Ribet Academy)
Brooks Naylor (St. Mary's Hall)

Finalists:

1st: David Janovsky (Pike School)
2nd: Jessica Rangel (Heath MS)
3rd: John French (Pike School)
4th: Katie Raitz (North MS)
5th: Brooke Bettolo (Windsor MS)
6th: Robert Hollar (Ribet Academy)
7th:John H. Strauss (Sidney Lanier)
8th: Chan Woo Lee (CNMI Saipan)

A Short Reflection

Duino. Day 6. It was July 4th on the bus from Venice with exhausted Duino campers and staff that I realized the beauty of all that's going on here. Beauty is a relatively vague and subjective term, so, let me define it. Beauty is people from ages 15 to 51, representing 19 different countries, spending their days speaking, listening, exploring the complexities of what it is to be a member of a global community, what it is to be human. I know, this is relatively touchy-feely, but, getting beyond the rigorous daily schedule of classes, meals, and the dreaded 11 pm bedchecks, there's some great stuff going on here. Stay tuned for more...I have a feeling there will be some good stories.