Global Youth Work: Taking It Personally

This latest book about global youth work has many useful exercises but some of the views expressed are too one-sided. 

This is an ambitious attempt to give face-to-face youth workers a rich and varied battery of exercises, games and ideas for global youth work. Most have the authentic ring of tried-and-tested resources. They include old familiars such as the refugee exercise: "If you had to leave your home suddenly, what would you take with you?"

There are plenty of new ones, too, such as games on global, local and personal approaches to the war on terror.

Just as important to the editors is the underpinning philosophy. Much of the 200-page A4 book explains what global youth work is and why it is important. Some of it is academic or technical. "Unfair Bretton Woods conditionalities" won't ring bells with many youth workers', for instance. It recommends lots of resources - presumably to make the pack useful for students taking Joint Negotiating Committee-recognised qualifying courses.