Name, Title, Company/Location and AGE

Dennis Morgan
Employment and Training Coordinator, Catholic Charities Migration and Refugee Services. 38
Five years Refugee employment, fifteen with Refugees and internally displaced.

Which aspect of my job I like best:
Seeing people change as they become vested in their employment. I see everyday people begin finally to put some normalcy in their lives. Sometime we forget how important work is in that process. My clients come from four different continents. They come with a broad spectrum of abilities and skills. I've seen people succeed over and over. Each client is an individual and seeks different things, but it is very satisfying to see them create a stable environment for many times the first time in their lives.

My Most unusual job placement:
Each business is unique. I once placed four Bantu men in a Forge in Cleveland. None of us had ever seen one the day we drove up and applied. Called to a meeting a week later I actually got to see what they do. First I met with the owner who explained the problem. Next I met with his son the foreman who explained different unrelated problems. The crew chief just looked at me and shook his head.
It was a big hammer, bigger than I had ever seen three stories tall. These four Bantu men were actually forging. They let me watch, one of many safety hazards. To this day I can’t believe what they did for ten dollars an hour. They were trained poorly, but they still got 90% of the job in the first week. They worked in their own section and mostly on their own. They fired them after 10 days because of some simple details they failed to explain. I learned sometimes people have no idea what they are seeing. There isn’t much you can do. We can hope to change peoples thinking, but not always understand what they believe to be true. We moved in a positive direction. One of those men has worked with the Cleveland Schools for five years now.

Advice for recently entered into field:
You must read and study all the best practice material you can find. They call them technical providers for a reason. Each person has their own style and technique, but yours will be unique. Understand what others in your profession are doing. Then always be prepared for something new. Strategies will help you open doors, but what you find inside you can never tell. After five years new things occur on a regular basis. Nothing should surprise you in this job. Keeping lines of communication open with employers and responding to their needs is vital. Many employers appreciate having someone to call who knows their employee and can offer practical advice and support. They are a business and that should never be forgotten.

The key to refugee employment and life is positive momentum. Thing will go wrong, but keep going in a positive direction. I try not to overreact to difficulties or victories. The best way I can serve my clients is to do my job. It is impossible to hide my mistakes. If my clients can't work they can't pay their rent and that is simply unsustainable. The best we can hope is to find our clients jobs where other workers are happy to come to work. There are less of those places in the new “new”, but they are out there and should always be our goal.

Parting shot (please add anything you'd like here):
Having worked with well over 1000 refugees that last five years, my works offers unique retirement benefits; I am very interested to see what the next 40 years brings my clients and their new home here in Cleveland.

The Golden Wave Hypothesis aka The Heart of Gold Band

It's the moment you are honest
When you are everything that you are
Where you are not always wrong
There is someone that really understands

How there is nothing that you did
Why one thing is true
What is ancestral in our bones
Where there was someone who knew

That moment when your honest
When there is someone who is there
Where all things are not wrong
There is someone who can feel

How there is everything to do
Why all things will be true
There was no misunderstanding

The Extravagant Giant Lumbers Forth

by j.Morgan

I will write until it is written...and then I will be done with them

The Fogged Window

Hesitant in a sense
And observant prepared
In any direction but one
It being behind

Gone from this moment
Facing fully each possibility
That would become
This sense of clarity

Seeing through the fogged window
Knowing behind limitation
Well aware in prepare
Observant beyond observing

In a place of now
No longer then and
Perhaps almost when
I hold a large smile

Seeing through the fogged window
Surprised behind limitation
Spying almost every direction
I any direction but one

The Extravagant Giant

The story starts to take form in me
I found the title in a dream
I could see the cover of a book
The title arranged and designed
It was all I woke with

A couple of ideas crept inside me
And one combined with a small memory
How she smiles and how we met
Even the title begins to come clear
The story starts to take form in me

I can almost see it complete
Close my eyes and turn my neck
I feel another page around my shoulder
And find a clean page
A few lines it is almost revealed

The story starts to take form through me
But it shall not last long
As it will come out and leave from me

Balkan Blues

There is this poet I know
He hit the corner, but he missed that turn from Zenica to Sarajevo.

Most Sarajeli do
It is the heart of Bosna
My heart

Edin asked me, "Why are you standing there? lets go."
I answered, "There is a reason I am standing here."

and there was
my Balkan supernova

I just wonder
How does he not see the Balkans green

No question mark I know
I worked refugee resettlement five years now

How to avoid burn out?
you don't

It is called Entropy
But have faith it is green

2007

(1) Name, Title, Company/Location and AGE
Dennis Morgan, Employment Specialist, Catholic Charities Migration and
Refugee Services. 36

(2) Best thing about my job:
Seeing people change as they become vested in their employment. I see
everyday people begin finally to put some normalcy in their lives.
Sometime we forget how important work is in that process. My clients
come from four different continents. They come with a broad spectrum of
abilities and skills. I've seen people succeed over and over. Each
client is an individual and seeks different things, but it is very
satisfying to see them create a stable environment for many times the
first time in their lives.

(3) Biggest challenge:
Finding opportunities. As a small office we are always looking for new
relationships. Finding jobs never gets easy. It is not easy for anyone
to find opportunities. Each relationship is important in my work; you
never know where things will lead.

(4) Biggest surprise:
We are a charity organization, but our refugee clients are highly
marketable in the Cleveland area and all placements are win-win
situations and not charity.

(5) I worry about:
Keeping lines of communication open with employers and responding to
their needs. When problems do rarely develop it is usually more to do
with confusion than malice. Keeping open lines of communication is what
I worry about most. Many employers appreciate having someone to call
who knows there employee and can offer practical advice and support.

(6) Most important lesson learned:
The key to refugee employment and life is positive momentum. Thing will
go wrong, but if things are going in a positive direction there is
always the chance for the miraculous.

(7) Best advice I ever got:
The best way I can serve my clients is to do my job. It is impossible
to hide my mistakes. If my clients can't work they can't pay their rent
and that is simply unsustainable. Employment is the critical element of
refugee resettlement. Real-estate agents say "location, location,
location." Resettlement workers mantra is "employment, employment,
employment.

(8) When the going gets tough I:
Re-double efforts to head in a positive direction. I try not to
overreact to difficulties or victories. Working for the Catholic Church
we tend to take a longer view of things. My job entails specifically
getting refugees to avoid public assistance. My strategy is to find
work places that people are genuinely happy to be at. If no one is
happy working somewhere, my clients will face the same difficulties.

(9) For relaxation I:
Spend time with my family and volunteer in the community. I'd rather be
going 30 mph either down a hill or across the water on skis. Also I
have found Yoga has helped me stay in one piece as I get older. I try
to read and write as much as I can. I have stories for a couple books
from this job.

(10) What I'm doing 10 years from now:
Moving in a positive direction. I will be working with people and not
numbers. I enjoy work on the frontlines. I will be working with
refugees in some capacity or another field under the catch all of
Sustainable Development. I graduated from the Urban School at CSU and
really see all of our difficulties and possibilities as a community
under that category. Even the Cuyahoga county commissioners have been
talking about a green city on a blue lake. I am happy to see my
community moving in a positive direction and I know that my clients are
actively contributing.

(11) Parting shot (please add anything you'd like here):
Having worked with well over 500 refugees that last three years,
my works offers unique retirement benefits; I am very interested to see
what the next 40 years brings my clients and their new home here in
Cleveland. I often imagine running into a former client 30 or 40 years
down the road.

Outline of a Fifty Year Plan Zenica BiH (1996)

Premise: Before the war, Zenica was a dangerous place to be. The river had no fish. The nights had no stars. Zelezera (the largest steel factory in the Balkans) was the city and a small town on the Adriatic coast. Today, for the first time in fifty years, you can see the entire city from a nearby ski resort. The greatest liability was the environment. The reality of war in Central Bosnia has reversed this situation. People eat ever-larger fish from the river, but no one seems too interested in the safety questions. Quantifiable environmental assets have returned to life in Zenica. Two symbols regional environmental projects should exploit: fish and/or stars.

 Under a forming democratic government the will of the people has entered the political spheres of influence currently forming in the Balkans. Shown by the oldest democracies in this world the environment is of direct concern to those individuals who must live in it. Reopening the steel factory to full capacity is an economic impossibility. The competitive nature of the world steel industry was leaving Zenica behind even before the war. Now after dealing with a refugee crisis for five years neglect has become the greatest war damage in central Bosnia.

 From these premises I begin: A. The greatest benefit to the Zenica region because of hostilities is a quantifiable improvement in environmental factors and a small but strong professional humanitarian local work force. B. Zelezera has the infrastructure to create a new industry with in the central Bosnian region.

 Phase One: Perceptions of Zenica must be changed. Zenica has always been a dirty industrial town. The fact of the matter is that Zenica is no longer. The natural beauty and location is what first brought Zenica to the attention of socialist regime. Zenica is in a unique position now to reclaim it's role as a cross roads of Bosnia.

 A cultural center is the most environmentally and economical sound idea to move forward into the future. The current cultural centers of Europe are no longer a simple matter of history .The industry of cultural has grown to dominate the world media and agenda. Central Bosnia has no access to the sea stable enough to count on business as usual in municipal planning. The negative aspects of a community can be identified and used to the benefit of every member of the community in a diverse and free world community .The largest steel factory in the Balkans now stands as a monument to a municipal planning policy that considered the state before the people. No policy that created the environmental catastrophe that was Zenica can be seen as anything else.

 This aging neglected structure can be transformed into a cultural awaking showing new generations why the policy of state before people can never survive, and why as a world community our generation has choose to change it. The political, religious, economic, and environmental aspects of this transition phase must all be taken into consideration. Zenica is developing a future role in the religious divide of east and west. With in the central Bosnia institutions are developing close relationships with the west as well as the mid east. This historical cross roads is best recorded in the Zenica Canton with its remaining diversity of religious institutions. A community with historical religious diversity located centrally in a region cut off from the sea must be recognized if any policy for community development is to lead to the ideal of government by the people.

 Problems: The concept of the NGO role in Bosnia is outdated. The role of an international NGO in Bosnia has always been to do the job in an environment where no one else could or would deliver the assistance needed. That was the emergency phase of war. In this first phase of re development NGOs are disconnected in Bosnia from the government and the people of Bosnia. The idea of an open forum where concerns are given an appropriate place at the table simply has not existed in this situation to date. NGOs fighting battles of taxation and international customs in an emergency phase has led to the ultra competitive environment that is the NGO community in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The simple reality of the NGO world is that we do what we get money for.

 In an environment of donors competing agendas the large successful organizations have been force4 to take sides. In creating these divisions donors and NGO alike are developing strategies for the future based on partial information. These divisions are formed around personal conflict that manifests itself in every coordinating body thus far implemented in Central Bosnia. The openness required of an organization to make positive changes for the future has become impossible in the very premise of an international NGO located in Bosnia.

 The salary gulf that is clear to every person involved in the community is simply accepted and never brought to an open discussion. The lack of coordination is present in every aspect of coordination meetings which try to solve a problem for which they have been mostly to blame. NGO identity is pounded in to the implementing staff members. Strength of presence has greater marketability in this environment than strength of ideas. The very defining concept of a NGO is lost in this environment where basic ideas are never given the same simple checks and balances as the simple procedure for refueling a project vehicle. The present NGO community is the dinosaur of Bosnia. The only chance for survival is the resumption of hostilities.

 This basic problem is the heart of the need for a fifty year plan in the Zenica municipality. Defining concept are the reality of any project implementation. The international push to create local NGOs in Bosnia has no bases in the concepts that originally formed these international organizations. The sad reality is that an NGO created by an NGO reflect the same flawed structure and leads to grid-lock. Traditional emergency based responses of the NGO community in Bosnia is creating a local NGO community of competition. Where the value of an organization is not measure by what it implements, but by how much; with little or no concern for the direction of the organization.

 In creating a local work force familiar with the workings of NGOs in the emergency phase the local economy has viewed these positions as little less than good jobs. The work of humanitarian relief is a basic concept in the culture of the world that has never been fully applied to the experience in Bosnia. Many factors have lead to this stagnation of ideas. The speed at which these organizations where formed was based on the changing agenda of donors which was never clear to even the donors themselves lost in there own competing agendas. The reality of funding changed. Local NGOs where capable of broadening the funding base of international NGOs. The international NGO came to the idea of local NGOs supporting there own outdate administrative over-head.

 The usefulness of an emergency based response lasts as the emergency phase does. NGOs are no longer the only players on the block. Large contractors have entered the fray and have been viewed by the NGO community as their latest competition. Several advances in cooperation have occurred with the opening up of central Bosnia, however these manifestations of cooperation have come from a realization of a greater threat to the large NGO presence in Bosnia. Instead of identifying the still great needs in the areas of alternative media, cultural re definition, community development, and social order the NGO in Bosnia still is driven by the concept of we will do what we can get money for. Not from the basic concept of informing the donor community of the real needs of the communities on the ground and changing their agenda.

 We are following a stumbling policy of half information. Competing agendas are not being discussed, but merely defended. On the ground and in the offices of large international organizations there is a highly skilled and informed segment which has gained unique working experiences in the emergency response to Bosnia and Herzegovina. These are the people fueling the cultural revolution in Bosnia along side the citizens of this developing democracy.

 The greatest accomplishments in the third sector of Bosnia are occurring despite not within the long term policies of international NGOs in Bosnia. The question needs to be asked is why does the third sector in Bosnia need a large international emergency response from large international NGOs. They have created a place for themselves in creating the third sector which is growing more and more ineffective yet more and more visibly present. The piggy-back approach to local organizations, coordination of projects not ideas, and the lack of real information being gathered from experienced humanitarian workers is leading to a third sector in Bosnia that purports the sustainability of an organization is attracting money to build the structure not using the structure to promote the community.

 

 These battles lead to the hallways of a donors home nation. The American Foreign policy arm in Bosnia has pursued initiatives at break neck speed here because it is a policy of an outsider. Foreign policy for a nation can no longer attack a problem in the world as an outsider. The quick fix that is acceptable for Bosnia is not acceptable to main street. Politicians solve symptoms and the agendas of large international funding bodies have remain directly linked to the political atmosphere of the country of origin. International and local NGO alike and the entire third sector in Bosnia must define there own agendas before dealing with donors competing agendas.

 The real leverage for an NGO is its ability at the grass-roots level to gain support. If this leverage is not nurtured then donor leverage wins before the questions are even asked. In defining the role of international organizations into the next century real support must be in place with paper support. Humanitarian initiatives have their bases in government by the people. This is not an exercise in tearing down the structures of the current NGO community in Bosnia, but it is a call upon all participating members in this peace process to define simply on the ground the most reasonable approach to take and present one agenda to the world community of donors.

 Phase Two: The clearest step forward in the current environment in Bosnia is to re affirm grass-roots support for the initiatives of NGOs in Bosnia. By broadening the funding base to include areal input from individuals we can expand the initiatives leverage against competing donor agendas. Bringing qualified volunteers into well defined roles can create an organization that is valued by the diversity of experience with in the staff. 

In Zenica this could best be implemented in the cultural life of the city and its citizens. Zeps, an international trade fair each October, has shown that people will travel to Zenica for regional events. Forty years ago people came to Zenica for steel. The government for the state first overlooked environmental impact and then long term sustainability of the largest steel mill in the Balkans. The state needed a reason for Zenica and in turn for itself. In creating large dinosaur organizations the international donor community is overlooking the long term sustainability of the region. A cultural center needs to be begun in Zenica. It is a misinterpretation of the facts when Zenica is linked only to the former socialist regime. Zelezera is something that shall not simply slip into the past of short sighted planning. Short sighted planning builds real infrastructure if approached from the right direction. The physical size and presence is a dominating presence in this community .The physical space and infrastructure for creating work space can not be left to rust in neglect. 

Imagine for a moment, before I continue, the largest steel factory in the Balkans becoming the largest cultural center in the Balkans. Transformed from a short sighted past to a bright long term future. Zenica could become home to the greatest free standing monument to the failed policies of division which are the policies of poverty from which war is derived. 

 Problems: In the transfer of governmental, religious, cultural, artistic and recreational initiatives from the old democracies of the world there is a large ideological gap. Professional organizations implementing these initiatives must find a partnership between salary driven professional accountability and the deliberate goal driven voluntary experience. Staff members of large international organizations can not be asked to enter a developing culture and have a real impact with the current real and uninformed concerns of the salary gap.

 The concept of paying a Bosnian ten Duetche Marks for the removal of a mine is wholly inconsistent with basic human rights presupposed in developed countries. There is a need for professionals in this movement, but they can not be expected to be effective in areas in which they hold varying degrees of commitment. No organization in the history of man has found an effective manner of dealing with this gulf and perhaps in the end there is no way to change the reality in which policies of division are created, but we can start to be honest with ourselves as a community and face these issues in the light it should be rightly placed.

 The accountant for a multi-million dollar organization did not decide that his salary should be expected in the mid to high forties, while the beneficiaries his organization claims to support are not held up to the same simple bill of human rights. We must identify these initiative for what they are as Hellen Keller once described her involvement in the American Association For the Blind, "I regard philanthropy as a tragic apology for wrong conditions." 

 We need to be able to speak at the table with moral certainty .International organizations are building empty promises in Bosnia and why? People must be allowed to do their job. The third sector here is implementing short sighted emergency projects designed to justify their own existence. Having an office and this opportunity to draft this outline is an example of the real infrastructure that has been established in the short term. This infrastructure can be salvaged for the long term.

 Phase Three: The system of balance and check must be strongly re enforced in the humanitarian movement being implemented in Bosnia. A balance must be found between an organizations need for professionals and it basic need for acceptance into the community .The ideological checks can not be demanded of an international aide worker in this competitive environment. These checks must come from outside the competition: the role of the volunteer.

 Given a fair living standard in reasonable relation to the situation I as a volunteer in Bosnia for fifteen months was given the unique opportunity to see the competition and to survive in the NGO world and enter in that environment as I saw reasonable. I was also given the opportunity to enter the Bosnian community as a closer related member. Volunteers form bridges in the salary gap. They are not the only solution, but they are a step in the right direction.

 Volunteers along side local staff members enter the community and are taken in, but are also expected to present the concerns of the community as well as their own to a large dinosaur that has become the International NGO model and its premature offspring the local NGO. This bridge can be used as the informational highway of change. Still implemented in a professional way by simply connecting the staff on the ground to the long term planning of an organization. With a half completed structure we can build centers starting with the specialty of each organization.

 Supporting freedom of movement without supporting freedom of thought is a doomed policy of division. In defending our own mistakes we hinder the process of change. In the third phase of a transition we must see the result of the first two. Many aspects can be anticipated. The ski resort overlooking Zenica is placed on rolling hills that look over Zenica and Zelezera. From this vantage point Zenica can be seen for what it truly is: a community of humans and infrastructure. 

 This rusting steel shell can become alive again. Imagine, again for a moment before I continue, a festival of Balkan Art, from the first of May lasting until the first of October, connecting a former steel mill with the perspective easily assessable up on the hills.

 Problems: Changing the way a community envisions itself is what community building is all about. Identifying the characteristics of a community is the first step. New initiatives have to be taken to broaden the experience of living in central Bosnia. Beginning small steps in long term planning appear disconnected at times. How can organizing a small art center and a connection with the ski resort in Zenica be seen as vital in the short term? One approach is with the current flavor of the month, conflict resolution, in the NGO community. The concept of changing peoples perspective is vital in this process. We need to identify the most affective and feasible approaches. Building a small infrastructure on the mountain top for this purpose is certainly possible.

 The identification of Zenica with the steel factory must be changed and accepted for what it was: once again a policy of division. The very nature of life is linked to the structures that house a community .A growing art center changes perceptions about a community .The industry of tourism was one of the great booms of the twentieth century. Zenica has the resources to join the fastest growing industry as we approach the twenty-first century: culture. As the steel mill slowly rusts the NGO community could find a great resource. An organization based in Zenica should certainly have some relation to the largest structure in the area.

  Most people see failure in the rusting infrastructure that needs to be repaired, but the third sector must champion the belief that infrastructure from a policy of division can be used to build a policy of inclusion in the European Union and the world. Required is only the will and the right leverage.

 Zenica Concerns: Progressive developmental strategies are being implemented in the world humanitarian movement. There are people and donors only concerned with making the world a safer and better place. There are even positive sign appearing in the Bosnian government, but the third sector sees these gains only as victories after long battles. The third sector is still fighting the government instead of guiding and supporting which was its primary design. There are examples in Sarajevo of progressive long term planning. The idea of changing the large infrastructure of an ex-JNA army base and incorporating the infrastructure of the university structure is an example of the best of ideas flowing from the third sector. In a new democracy there are no laws written in stone. The only thing required for long term planning is the freedom of thought working directly with the freedom of movement and all basic human rights.

 The placement of military forces in the world is something the citizens of democracy must play an active role in implementing. Land usage is still a fair demand made by the military, but any plans must include the long term wishes of the community. No longer can competing agendas be allowed to drive the third sector of Bosnia. Zenica must join the traditional forward thinking of Sarajevo, which won them the Olympic bid in 1984, and place the cultural re newel in an historical perspective that includes central Bosnia into the world political community.

 By standing on clearly defined long term planning this region has the potential of closing the gap between east and west. The geographical significance of the Zenica can no longer be underestimated.

 The mistakes of an old system must be look upon in the same light as the bright accomplishments are remembered. There was a stable system in the Balkans under socialism. There was a great freedom of life to be experienced. The greatness of socialism was built separate from the politics of division, but in never understood the rightness of a government formed by the people. The state was controlled to improve the lives of individuals. As we enter the next century individuals must improve the life of the state.

 It is their responsibility to become citizens of the global community and… ...hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness¬ That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just power from the consent of the governed.¬ That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundations on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. (Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America)

 Conclusions: There is still emergency situations to address within Bosnia and Herzegovina. These areas of concern should be identified through community forums sponsored by the third sector. We must deal with these concerns directly and together in order to realign a reasonable amount of resources within large international organizations to the developing new visions of community building. In the areas of alternative media a progressive approach must be found. Establishing home pages on the internet is now feasible within Bosnia. We must use preventative steps in the protection of freedom of the press. NGOs need to develop a strong presence on the internet now while the government is still in the stabilizing phase. In accomplishing this task the third sector in Bosnia can avoid the situation, occurring in parts of Asia and the middle east, of growing regulation of the internet and alternative media.

 In acting in the short term the third sector can continue to support freedom of movement by assuring the continue freedom of thought. Thus far stop gap measures have been used to deal with the growing concerns of the reliability of the press. In partnership with the government the third sector can create a forum of clarity .In most case the governing bodies in the Balkans have not worked this way with humanitarian movements and with good reason. The confusion of competing agendas and the attempt of the NGO community to present one view to the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been a lie in its very inception.

 We can not afford to take with us in to the future failed concepts of the past. We must identify them clearly in this proposed forum and understand them for what they are. The concept of safe haven must not be forgotten. This concept has failed in every implementation attempted within the former Yugoslavia (international organizations persist in this label). The concept was never flawed. The United Nations Security Council, the largest NGO coordinating body, must reach compromises based upon the strength of ideas, not solely on the strength of presence. The concept of safe havens was not a North American or European initiative, it came from the simple understanding that Srebenica should never have been allowed to fall.

 In implementing this simple idea the world has failed in every way. Instead of talking openly with the government of Bosnia the largest of world organizations has insisted that the policy was not directly their fault. And in response have offered to help realize the promise of the safe havens, but in never discussing the competing agendas the world has stagnated the growth of the Bosnian multiethnic community .They have resigned themselves to policies of division. Cultural difference is the greatest asset to the modern world. There is not a current war in this world that is not defined by cultural division. 

 The successful peace process is defined by cultural difference. The seeds for this initiative can be found in the central Bosnian canton structure. The safe haven can only be implemented in a forum of moral certainty and cooperating ideas. Never in the politics of separation. Central Bosnia can still become a safe haven and create an industry to stabilize the entire region. Apologies and competing agendas can no longer be tolerated in the context of simple defining concept of the third sector. Donor, International NGOs and local NGOs must all become clear in their agendas. International bodies do not need to create false realities that demand there presence.

 Never has there been an open forum in the third sector in Bosnia; international agencies point to this fact as the need for their involvement and continued funding. The third sector in Bosnia is creating a false economy of competition where there should be reconciliation. Humanitarian initiatives must be clearly defined. Why we do what we get money for must be more important than getting money.

 The fears in the third sector are unfounded. The competitive nature of work has bread a false belief in the importance of presence. Why are we humanitarian workers in Bosnia? Are we here to fight the government for a leadership role or guide a government by the people to its rightful leadership role. In forming a clear agenda here on the ground with openness and cooperation of ideas these initiatives forming in the third sector in Bosnia can add clarity to the problems of competing agendas at the donor level. Long term community based development is a concept that takes the concerns of the community to the donor nations and presents them first. The concerns of the community must be our starting point not the concerns of donor nations.

 International organizations must take a leadership role in joining these two groups together regardless of their current competing agendas. In Bosnia the basic flawed design in implementing safe havens has made everyone vulnerable. International NGOs are not the only creature overly concerned with their own survival. The current long term initiative are simply the mistake of the past. We must identify what is working and what resources are available.

 A Few Bright Spots: Local organizations have been formed on the ground in Bosnia and they are having a real impact on the formation of the new humanitarian law. The local organizations are crying out with definition of purpose and are demanding clarity in the long term. These groups will not be happy with every aspect of the truth of the Bosnian NGO experience, but an end to lies is long over due.

 Local organizations are developing the same tendencies of their large international parents. These organizations have few resources to connect with the community in an open exchange of ideas. The grayness of the large NGOs as a result of choosing side has created a darkness and unsteadiness in the third sector in Bosnia. 

 There our positive signs of the Bosnian government participating in a spirit of cooperation. The humanitarian initiative can be transformed into a vital partner in this process. There is a very professional infrastructure present in this sector. They must be allowed to implement new programs based on there unique experiences. There are progressive municipal development ideas being implemented in the short term. The dinosaur of the international NGO is not extinct yet. Complete information is available from complete honesty. The partial information that is the bases of short term NGO planning must be gathered from all competing agencies to form a clear long term developmental strategy for the cross roads of east and west. If how the community envisions itself is not changed then shall be funding to rebuild again?

 The current NGO community seems determined to maintain their structure and bank upon a resumption of hostilities or long term profitable policies of division. Democracy was not founded on division, but on inclusion. In democracy there should be no competing agendas only competing ideas. Coordination of transport can not be accomplished without coordination of destination. These are the simple lessons to be learned in the third sector. Let’s go back to the table and look honestly at the policy of safe havens that is in fact how international organizations justified their arrival in Bosnia. Now there is abridge to be built from Bosnia that leads back to the United Nations Security Council to finish the debate that was in fact never started. The strength of presence shut the strength of idea out.

 The failed policies of the past have once again built an infrastructure of stagnation. Now is the time to see the steel factory and the NGO community as what they are: large free standing monuments to the failed politics of division and poverty.  Now is the time to build a new multi ethnic community in the heart of Bosnia in the crossroads of the east and the west. The third sector is its own side and must get its own house in order and lead as it was designed to teach struggling communities to look past and live through short term emergencies and see a bright clear future somewhere upon the hills of Bosnia.

Outline of a One Hundred Year Plan Zenica BiH (2025)

A Vision for the Future: Building on Progress and Learning from the Past

The story of Zenica is not just one of hardship but also resilience, transformation, and untapped potential. In 2024, the closure of the coke plant signaled a turning point—a moment when environmental recovery and sustainable planning could finally take center stage. This marks an opportunity to redefine Zenica’s identity, not just as an industrial city, but as a model of ecological and cultural renewal for the entire region.

Environmental Leadership for a Sustainable Future

The environmental challenges Zenica faces—polluted air, compromised rivers, and industrial fallout—are daunting, but they also provide a foundation for leadership in green innovation. By embracing renewable energy, urban greening projects, and sustainable industry, Zenica can turn its past into a powerful narrative of recovery. Initiatives that prioritize clean air, water conservation, and energy efficiency will not only improve the quality of life for its residents but also position Zenica as a beacon of hope for other post-industrial communities.

A Collaborative Approach to Governance and Development

The persistent challenges of political stagnation and competing agendas require a shift in how governance and the third sector operate. Collaboration must replace competition. Zenica, with its historical role as a crossroads, can foster partnerships that bridge local government, international organizations, and community-based initiatives. The focus must shift from short-term emergency responses to long-term planning rooted in the voices and needs of the people.

Central to this vision is the establishment of forums where citizens, NGOs, and policymakers can engage in honest dialogue. Transparency and accountability must guide these efforts, ensuring that development is inclusive, equitable, and driven by shared goals.

Cultural Renewal as a Unifying Force

Zenica’s cultural history—rich with diversity and resilience—should be at the heart of its future. The city has the potential to become a center for artistic and cultural expression, a place where the voices of all its ethnic communities are celebrated. By investing in education, public art, and community events, Zenica can foster a sense of pride and unity that transcends the divisions of the past.

Harnessing Technology for Empowerment

In a world increasingly driven by digital connections, Zenica’s future lies in embracing technology as a tool for education, activism, and innovation. Accessible internet infrastructure and digital literacy programs can empower its citizens to engage with global opportunities while addressing local challenges. By fostering a culture of openness and creativity, Zenica can become a hub for young innovators and entrepreneurs.

A Global Model for Reconciliation and Progress

Zenica’s geographical and cultural position at the crossroads of East and West offers a unique opportunity to lead in reconciliation and cooperation. The region’s multiethnic history, though fraught with challenges, is also its greatest strength. By building a society that celebrates cultural differences and prioritizes mutual respect, Zenica can set an example for peacebuilding in a world too often divided.

Conclusion: Toward a Hundred-Year Plan

As we look to the future, Zenica stands at a pivotal moment. The lessons of the past—both the triumphs and the failures—must inform a bold vision for the decades to come. This vision requires commitment: to sustainability, to unity, and to the idea that progress comes not from division but from collaboration and shared purpose.

Zenica’s story is still being written. With careful planning, a spirit of innovation, and the courage to confront hard truths, it can emerge as a leader in the Balkans and beyond—a city that bridges its industrial past with a vibrant, sustainable future. Somewhere upon the hills of Bosnia, there lies a future that is bright, clear, and built by the hands of those who dare to imagine something better.

Adis

It wasn’t what the reality was necessarily that mattered, but how it was I perceived it. I came across this name all the time written on the walls and through the halls of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Or was it mostly in this Bosna I knew.

There are simple reasons that the multiverse has for doing this all. Is it so absurd to find us the only intelligence in this entire universe? Perhaps sad, but certainly not impossible. It could be a low percentage chance and yet necessarily required to happen if it was to all happen and our improbable happiness real.

It takes a lot of time it is true. Many rules made to be only agreed upon and relative only in this our context. I remember walking the streets of Sarajevo alone and cold. I saw this name one million times and my reality I somehow chose to believe. There was this need to do.

Words string together and one word repeats itself all over Bosnia. Moving all the time I found it in static places. Realities I would never understand beyond the connection to that other wall written upon. Perhaps I was the only connection or there were others. The point is that they connected me to a place and time New Sarajevo a quality from quantity.

Alternative perspectives are difficult to release because they are rare. There are many words written on wall and through to them all are only relative those who perceive them. What do you see? What you see. That is no great mystery. What I see is the only question I have. It never seems I have enough time here.

Happiness is real just a low percentage occurrence when looked for in geological time scales. In this our time it isn’t as fleeting. Anything missing would leave this life less. These are the reasons we are. We build upon the bedrock of our soul. Sometimes a message scrawled on the wall becomes ones point before waking up.

Final is always the end and the all we perceive as life continues forward and certain realities merge and grow to build the biosphere. One universe is a confining space for just one person’s dream. And yet it is filled with six billion at the very least. It seems elusive to find sense of these. Is struggle for alternative perceptions.

Then I find Adis written on a thousand places Sarajevo and remember a story but not the words of a soul awoken by death as he had scribbled upon the wall in Gornji Vakuf.