Review of the years

Review

In 1971 a new partner joined: Jerusalem. In a personal meeting of the unforgettable Lord Mayor Mrs. Luise Albertz with the legendary colleague from Jerusalem, Teddy Kolleg, the foundations for the exchange between both towns were done. Just the same year the first exchange was realized.

In 1986 it came to a partnership with Saporishja in Ukraine. Long time friendships between those two towns were existing, yet. Just the same year the first exchange took place in Ukraine and Oberhausen.

Together with the partners from Middlesbrough, Jerusalem and Saporishja the first multilateral youth exchange was planned and realized in Oberhausen in 1992 : this was the actual birth of MULTI.

In 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2002 some more were following.

Since 1994 a partnership with Mersin in Turkey was organized.

In 1996 youngsters from Tallinn in Estonia took part in a MULTI the first time. This MULTI was setting priority onto culture. During this Multi ours guests performed lots of times in schools, social institutions and on parties, like e.g. on the opening ceremony of Saporishja Square.
Dancing and music groups from Israel, Ukraine and Estonia, as well as photographs from England with their exhibition showed the citizens of Oberhausen that way their home countries. Unforgettable are the mood performances of the Estonian band “Untsakad”, who knew of to arouse enthusiasm, on official as well as on in official occasions.

In 1998 a “classic” Multi took place setting the tone on projects and the jointly expiring of Oberhausen and its environs. There was a premiere this year, too: Our friends from the twin town Freital in Saxony sent a youth group, which help to present our guests our home country with dedication and enthusiasm.

In 2000 for the first time our friends from Quilotta and Recoletta in Chile came to Oberhausen.

It was managed to invited successfully youngsters from South America, which was a new and productive experience for all and which were intensified in the next year at an return visit of a group from Oberhausen in Chile.

At the same time in 2000 we reached the impressing number of 200 participants; dimensions, which were well received far away of the borders of Oberhausen and led to contacts and relations which are lasting until today.

In 2002 there were two premieres: for the first time youngsters from the town of Carbonia and Iglesias of the Italian island of Sardinia took part in Multi 2002 in Oberhausen. In 2003 a official treaty of town partnership was signed. And for the first time there came youngsters from Gdansk (Poland) to Multi 2002 in Oberhausen. A new contact which arose from the project Hanza in Education.

At Multi 2004 from July 25th to Aug. 8th, 2004, August 2004 the multiplicators astonish all more than 300 participants. The normal programm with about 20 projects of the main categories sports, culture and media impressed. But at the weekend there was the big surprise: Multi goes Berlin! Five busses headed for a excursion to Berlin. There the participants visited the German Parliament (Bundestag) and the performance of Blue Men Group at night.

In 2008 MULTI from 27th of July to 10th of August 2008 welcomed beside young people from Baschkortostan, England, Estonia, Israel, Poland, Sardinia, Turkey and the Ukraine two new partners: Bacau (Romania) and Megion (Russian Federation). In addition the Multi-team dared a new item: On social day, all participants were active for Oberhausen and its citizens. At the holiday games they took care of children, visited old humans, helped humans with handicaps with their work, lent a hand at ‘Oberhausener Tafel', supplied animals in ‘Kaisergarden', painted classrooms or poured flowers.

Sharing positive Multi-experiences with others, that was the incentive to a project of the voluntary Multis in summer 2009 . They traveled as small group to Saporishja. In an orphanage for children between 4 and 17 years, which had been renovated before by craftsmen from Oberhausen, they offered a multicoloured taking-part-program in form of workshops (clownery, sports, maskbuilding, theatre). They took along enormous amounts of donated toys and clothes.
Orphanage projekt Ukraine

In the year of the cultural capital RUHR.2010 Multi took place from 25th of July to 8th of August. For the first time groups from France and China took part and a Day of Human Rights was integrated into the official programme.

In 2011 the first exchange of youngsters from Oberhausen in China took place.

In 2012 Oberhausen will be holding MULTI 2012 in town from Aug. 8th to Aug. 19th, 2012.