Debate organization announces 'Youth Forum Seliger'

The "World of Debate" section of the International Youth Forum Seliger-2010 is bringing together over 150 students from different countries to enhance their debating skills, discuss various matters, promote debates to over 2,000 other participants of the Forum and set up joint projects with other debating societies and clubs.

The "World of Debate" section includes:

• A tournament in the American parliamentary format and games in the British parliamentary, Lincoln Douglas and Carl Popper formats, as well as political debates
• Workshops aimed at developing participants' debating skills
• Lectures by international business leaders, politicians, academics, etc.
• Round tables on joint debate projects and the promotion of debates

Seliger-2010 will take place in Tver Region in the Russian Federation, July 1st-8th. Submit your applications and learn more about Seliger-2010 at www.seliger2010.com

If selected, you will be responsible only for your fare to and from Moscow and a participation fee of 70; we will take care of everything else, including your visa.

If you have questions, please write to debatenet@mail.ru.

IDEBATE Press publishes 'Digital Activism Decoded'

Next week, IDEBATE Press will release Digital Activism Decoded: The New Mechanics of Change. The media has recently been abuzz with cases of citizens around the world using digital technologies to push for social and political change: from the use of Twitter to amplify protests in Iran and Moldova to the thousands of American non-profits creating Facebook accounts in the hopes of luring supporters.

These stories have been published, discussed, extolled, and derided, but have not yet been viewed holistically as a new field of human endeavor. We call this field “digital activism” and its dynamics, practices, misconceptions, and possible futures are presented together for the first time in this book.

Author Mary Joyce is an internationally recognized speaker, trainer, writer, consultant, and commentator in the field of digital activism. She is the founder of the Meta-Activism Project, which seeks to build a new body of activism strategy that recognizes the radically different communications infrastructure of the digitally networked world.

She is also the cofounder of DigiActive.org, an organization dedicated to the study and promotion of digital technology by grassroots activists around the world. Mary was the New Media Operations Manager for President Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign.
To order your copy, visit the idebate.org store today.

International Tournament of Champions wraps up with excellent competition, fun

On May 22 and 23, excellent teams from Canada, the Philippines and several states within the US gathered on the campus of Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, for the 6th annual International Tournament of Champions. The three-person teams debated, in the World Schools format, the topic, "In some cases, juveniles should be tried as adults."

Competition was fierce during the day, but in the evenings students gathered for impromtu talent contests, games on the Wii, foosball, air hockey and movies.

"WOW! We had an amazing time," said parent Karima Kassam. "Our son Armaan is actively involved with debate and we have gone as far as the Czech Republic to debate. Truly, the organization, the atmosphere, the comradery, and yes of course the FOOD exceeded our expectations."

Here are the results:
1st Christina Yu, Armaan Kassam and Annie Jin of Team Burnaby, Burnaby, British Columbia
2nd Annie McKenna and Logan Brog of Bentley School, Lafayette, California
3rd Karl G. Maeser Preparatory Academy
4th Ashley Bowron, Trevor Davis and Liam Carson of West Point Grey Academy, Vancouver, British Columbia

The International Tournament of Champions is known for its more relaxed, fun, intimate atmosphere. Students stay on-campus in dorm rooms, getting a taste for campus life while making friends with students from different corners of the globe.

Registration for the 2011 tournament will begin in January 2011.

2010 IDEA NJFL Nationals biggest ever

The premier US middle school tournament, the NJFL Nationals, closed registration at 219 teams from 45 schools all over the US and Asia. This marks the largest NJFL Nationals yet!

This year, the Nationals will take place in Des Moines, Iowa, within three Des Moines high schools, June 24-27. As always, students compete in several speaking events:

Policy Debate
Lincoln Douglas Debate
Public Forum Debate
Dramatic Interpretation
Humorous Interpretation
Poetry Interpretation
Prose Interpretation
Duo Interpretation
Declamation NEW!
Original Oratory
Extemporaneous Speaking
Impromptu Speaking
Congressional Debate

To read more about the NJFL Nationals, visit the new juniorforensicleague.org website.

And the winners of The People Speak Global Debates are...

Congratulations to New Hope Academy (US), Santee High School (US), Liceul Academie de Stiint (Moldova) and Nancho Popovich (Bulgaria), the winners of the fall 2009/spring 2010 Global Debates! These top two US and top two international teams receive all-expenses-paid trips to the 2010 IDEA Youth Forum in Zeeland, Netherlands. The Youth Forum is an incredible three-week event bringing together high school students from more than 90 countries.
The winners maximized their Global Debates points by completing as many service projects, public service announcements, press releases and blog posts as possible, and they enlisted the involvement of their local elected leaders to help spread their climate change message.
The remaining top six schools will win UN Foundation grants ($2,000) to support their school's climate change initiatives, as well as 50% off Youth Forum registration fees. View the final results here.
Participating schools post their public service announcements and debates to the Global Debates YouTube channel. To participate in the the next round of Global Debates, register here, and be sure to leave "I'd like to receive periodic e-mail updates from this campaign" checked. You will receive updates on the prizes, deadlines, topics, and more to prep you for your Global Debates!

Registration ends tomorrow for 2010 National Middle School Tournament

Tomorrow, May 15th, marks the deadline to enter for the premier debate event that prepares middle school students for competition on a national level. Hosted by International Debate Education Association (IDEA) and the National Junior Forensic League (NJFL), the 2010 National Middle School Tournament will be held at Dowling Catholic High School in Iowa City, Iowa June 24th-27th. Click here to register your team today.

Plus, when you register for the tournament, your team will also receive organizational memberships to both IDEA and NJFL! For more information on tournament events, schedule, travel and more, visit the tournament website or download the complete 2010 tournament manual. For further details, contact tournament organizer Elizabeth Carson-Garland at ecarson@idebate.org.

Application and scholarship deadline extended for Advocacy Institute in China

The deadline to apply for the Advocacy Institute in China has just been extended to May 21st! Don't miss this amazing opportunity to study debate and persuasion this summer with award winning U.S. professors and experienced local trainers. IDEA is also offering full scholarships to applicants from East Asia and developing countries to attend the institute.

Hosted by IDEA, Willamette University, and Xiamen University, the Advocacy Institute invites university students to the city of Xiamen, in the Fujian province of China, for a two and a half week program June 7th-23rd. The institute will give participants the necessary tools to advocate for cultural and environmental sustainability with courses that focus on sustainability, tangible and intangible cultural heritage, argumentation and debate, and new media.

Ensure your spot today at the IDEA Advocacy Institute in China! Click here to download the application. For more information on this event, click here or email Crystal Jeffers at cjeffers@willamette.edu.

Activity points due for Spring 2010 Global Debates competition

The final day for Global Debates teams to submit their points is tomorrow, May 15th! All activities including video PSAs, research blogs, press coverage, or community service projects, must be submitted in order to count towards your team's overall point tabulation. To submit your Global Debates points, click here.

In addition, all debates and climate change adaptation plans must have been completed by April 30th. A showcase of videos on The People Speak blog has been posted of already submitted public debates, adaptation plans and community service projects. More videos of Global Debates activities can be found on the YouTube Global Debates page.

Want to get involved next year? The People Speak Global Debates are free to join and are held both fall and spring semesters. Students organize public debates and write action plans. Then they earn extra points by making video public service announcements and research blogs, inviting local elected leaders to participate in their debate, organizing community service projects, and more. Visit The People Speak Global Debates website for further information.

Position for IDEA Northeast Asia Program Coordinator available

The International Debate Education Association announces an open call for applicants for the position of the Northeast Asia Program Coordinator. The position begins in September 2010 and the contract period is for one year with the possibility of renewal.

IDEA develops, organizes, and promotes debate and debate-related activities in communities throughout the world. IDEA’s mission is to promote mutual understanding and democracy globally by supporting discussion and active citizenship locally.

The Program Coordinator for this office will be based in Seoul, South Korea and will be supervised by Robert Trapp in the IDEA offices in Salem, Oregon.

Essential Functions:
1. Manage a regional debate program
2. Make site visits to establish local infrastructures for programs
3. Coordinate debate workshops
4. Supervise the development and translation of debate education materials into local languages
5. Communicate with other IDEA offices and staff
6. Network and establish relationships with local and regional partners
7. Assist with additional events when needed

Qualification Standards:
1. Must be a citizen of the United States or Canada
2. Must speak and write fluently in English
3. Fluent Mandarin and or Korean preferred
4. Bachelor’s degree or equivalent
5. Debate training experience
6. Flexibility and willingness to travel on short notice
7. Excellent communication skills
8. Self-motivation and efficiency
9. Willing to be based in Seoul, Korea

Application Procedure:
Interested parties should send a cover letter, resume, and contact information for at least three references to Robert Trapp at trapp@willamette.edu and Lin Lu at llu@idebate.org. We will begin considering applications on April 30th, 2010 and will continue until the position is filled.

First annual China Open registration nearing deadline

Only two weeks remain until registration closes on May 21st for the first annual China Open! This large debate tournament for university students will take place May 28th-30th on the beautiful campus of Xi'an Jiaotong University in China. There are no participation fees; schools are only responsible for their lodging, meals, and transportation. The grand prize includes a debate tour of the Pacific Northwest region of the United States.

Debaters can choose from English or Mandarin divisions of debate competition or Moot Court competition. So far in the debate competition, 72 teams have registered for the English division and 26 teams have entered in the Mandarin division. Each school is limited to two English debate teams; however, for every Mandarin team entered, each school may enter one additional English team. Both of these divisions will use the Four-Team Parliamentary Debate format, which will be discussed during debate training. Learn more about the debate divisions.

In addition, debaters are encouraged to enter the Moot Court competition. This division will introduce university students to the rule of law, legal representation, court etiquette, techniques, strategies and competition in a simulated courtroom atmosphere. There will also be a full day of training for Moot Court debaters before competition begins. Learn more about the Moot Court division.

Click here and register today to improve your debating skills and compete for the grand prize, for free! To view the tournament schedule, click here. For more information, visit the China Open website.

Registration now open for World Online Debating Championships

The second-annual World Online Debating Championships has just opened its registration! Don't miss this opportunity to take part in the best (and only) online debating championships in the world! Entrance costs are $20 per person, however, bursaries are available for deserving applicants. Registration will close at the end of May.

The WODC is also looking for people to help organize the preliminary rounds. These country coordinators will act as liaisons between tournament organizers and debaters, and will sort out who will be taking part in the debates. Preliminary knock-out rounds will be held during the month of June to determine the representing teams of each country. The official WODC will begin in August and finish at the end of September.

Hosted by Debatewise and IDEA, the competition invites national teams from every corner of the globe to debate against each other about important issues facing the world today. Participation in these debates opens up a unique opportunity to gain different perspectives to any debater with an internet connection.

To register for the WODC or apply to be a country coordinator, send an email to wodc@debatewise.org. For more information, visit the WODC website or Facebook page.

Full scholarships available for IDEA Advocacy Institute in China

For two weeks this summer, you can study debate and persuasion with award winning US professors and experienced local trainers...for free! IDEA is offering full scholarships to applicants from East Asia and developing countries, for the first-annual Advocacy Institute in China.

Hosted by IDEA, Willamette University, and Xiamen University the Advocacy Institute is a two and a half-week program for university students and will be held June 7-23, 2010 in Xiamen, Fujian, China. The Advocacy Institute will focus on teaching participants the necessary tools to advocate for cultural and environmental sustainability. Courses at the institute will focus on sustainability, tangible and intangible cultural heritage, argumentation and debate, and new media.

To ensure your spot at the first Advocacy Institute in China, send in your application as soon as possible! The deadline for applicants outside China is May 7th. Download the application here, and for more information, click here.

2010 IDEA/NJFL National Middle School Tournament registration deadline nearing

The deadline to enter for the fifth-annual IDEA and National Junior Forensic League Middle School Tournament is May 15th, just two weeks away. The tournament will be held at Dowling Catholic High School in Iowa City, Iowa on June 24-27, 2010. Hosted by IDEA and the National Forensic League, the IDEA/NJFL National Middle School Tournament is a premier event that prepares young debaters for competition on the national level. To register your team, click here.

Registration fees for the tournament also include organizational memberships to both IDEA and the NJFL. For information on tournament events, schedule, travel or lodging visit the tournament website or download the complete 2010 tournament manual here. Contact Elizabeth Carson-Garland at ecarson@idebate.org for more details.

Resources now available to help prepare for 2010 IDEA Youth Forum

With summer right around the corner, start preparing for the 2010 IDEA Youth Forum with the helpful resources section of the Youth Forum website. This section is aimed to help participants prepare for the Karl Popper Debate Championship. For those who want to get a head start on the second part of the event, this is also a good place to read more about the Mixed Team topic of migration, "governments should preserve rural life." In general, the resources section is a great place for those interested in topics that address migration, youth violence, and child labor!

As the Youth Forum nears, the resources section will grow with more core articles and their summaries, updates from daily press on these topics, and lesson plans that will help prepare your students. Other materials will also be posted, such as games, which will help students better understand the topics in a fun and entertaining way.

Keep updated on the Youth Forum and new resources at the website, and more importantly, share your research with others! If more research is available for all, the debates will be of high quality in general.

Improve your debate skills with videos and materials from IDEA training in Budapest

Do you want to build a better argument? Use videos and materials from a recent IDEA training! Even if you have never participated in a debate training, you can make use of these resources to help develop your argumentation and public speaking skills in general.

On April 12-13, as an extension of the 2010 YouthExchange, IDEA-Netherlands and the Foundation for Democratic Youth (DIA) held a debate training in Budapest, Hungary for students, youth workers and NGOs. Apart from learning other useful debate tools, the participants had the opportunity to debate for the first time by discussing issues such as banning private universities in Hungary and banning extreme right parties in Europe.

http://idebate.blip.tv/

The materials from the training (powerpoint presentations and further reading materials), as well as video recordings of the actual training sessions can be found at the YouthExchange website and IDEA's channel on Blip.TV.com. You can also check out the debate that the trainers presented for the Youth Exchange participants on the topic, "Europe should respond to populism." Click here to learn more about IDEA trainings.

IDEA holds first debate trainings in Southern China

On April 17-18, 2010, IDEA completed a province-wide training in the city of Nanning in Guangxi, China, which was the first IDEA training to ever be held in Southern China. This was also one of the first British Parliamentary Debate trainings in English and Mandarin to take place in the province of Guangxi.

The Southern China Training event was a two-day debate training held at Guangxi University. About 70-80 students participated in the training, and many came from far distances to do so. Some students and teachers from other cities in the province took up to nine hour bus and train rides. "I was inspired and touched by their motivation and eagerness to learn," said Lin Lu, the IDEA program coordinator in Southeast Asia.

The training was held in preparation for the IDEA China Open that will be held May 28-30 in Xi'an, China. IDEA trainer, Yang Ge, instructed the Mandarin Division, and IDEA trainers Holly Poole and Lin Lu led the English Division. These trainers are also part of the training teams for the China Open. More trainings in English, Mandarin, and Moot Court will be offered before the Open. For more information on trainings for the Open, click here, and for more information on the China Open, click here.

IDEA and Tulane University start new generation of debate in New Orleans

A new wave of debate is spreading throughout the city of New Orleans. The project "Aristotle in New Orleans," is a service-learning course at Tulane University that collaborates with IDEA and the Middle School Public Debate Program. The program was created last fall by Tulane professor Ryan McBride, who was inspired to action by an IDEA training held in New Orleans just one year ago. Read more about McBride's recent actions.

Now, in an effort to form a city-wide debate league, more than 60 students from several New Orleans public and charter schools are enrolled in "Aristotle in New Orleans," which is coached by 39 Tulane University students. McBride is also offering free training sessions for local teachers who are interested in starting their own debate programs.

As a finale event of this year's program, a debate tournament was held Saturday, April 24th at Tulane University. The event brought together middle school students from six schools in New Orleans. The topic of the debate was whether improving the levees around New Orleans should be prioritized over restoring Louisiana coastal wetlands.

To learn more, check out an interview with McBride on a National Public Radio station affiliate in New Orleans. For more information on the "Aristotle in New Orleans" program, click here or email Ryan McBride.

Registration deadline for the International Tournament of Champions extended

Don't miss this unique opportunity to debate with teams from around the world! The registration deadline for the 2010 International Tournament of Champions has been extended a week until April 29th. Register your high school debate team today!

Photo by Ron Cooper

The sixth-annual ITOC will take place May 21st-23rd in Salem, Oregon at Willamette University. The weekend will kick off with a debate workshop hosted by IDEA and the Willamette University Debate Union. Participants will learn how to debate in the "World Schools" format, which will be used during competitive debate. Participants will also enjoy the atmosphere of college life as they stay in university dorm rooms, relax in the Montag Den and participate in fun activities on the beautiful summer campus.

To register for the ITOC, click here!

Register today to join teams from the Philippines, Zambia, Pakistan, South Africa, Canada, and more! For more information, visit the website, Facebook page, or contact Crystal Jeffers at cjeffers@willamette.edu.

The World Online Debate Championships returns this summer

The next round of the popular World Online Debate Championships has just been announced. The debates are tentatively scheduled for mid-July, and as space is limited, teams are already registering for this competition.

Hosted by Debatewise and IDEA, the competition invites teams from every corner of the globe to debate against each other about important issues facing the world today. These debates are a unique opportunity for any debater with an Internet connection to gain different world perspectives. To see the debates from the first round, click here.


National teams are now being formed for the second round of the WODC to take on the defending champions from Lithuania. Even more preliminary rounds are being held this year, as the competition will be restricted to 32 teams. Already, Monica from Venezuela and Deddy from Indonesia are organizing rounds in their countries. To get involved and organize prospective teams from your country, contact David Crane at dc@debatewise.org. To register your team, or for more information, visit the website.

Deadline for The People Speak Global Debates one week away

The clock is ticking for The People Speak 2010 Spring Global Debates! Teams must complete their debates by April 30th. Also, as the IDEA Challenge, teams will receive a bonus 500 points if they submit their climate change adaptation plans by April 30th as well.

The last day to submit all activities points is May 15th. To submit your Global Debates points, click here. Good luck to all Global Debates teams in the final month of competition!

The People Speak Global Debates are held every school year, and are split between fall and spring semesters. Students organize public debates and earn extra points by making video public service announcements and research blogs, inviting local elected leaders to participate in their debate, organizing community service projects, and more. For further information on The People Speak Global Debates, click here.