On July 10th, the junior group of the Roots of Tolerance – 2012 camp began its work at the Kremenisi tourist camp (Vyzhnytsa, Chernovitskaya oblast', Ukraine). This is the 11th year that the Roots of Tolerance camp is held by the Congress of National Communities of Ukraine (CNCU, Executive Vice President – EAJC General Council Chairman, Executive Director – Anna Lenchovskaya), with the support of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress (EAJC).

Participants of the camp are children aged 8-12, representatives of different Ukrainian ethnic minorities, as well as of Russian and Molodvan minorities. Also participating in the camp are child refugees from Central Asian countries.

The idea of the camp is that each day is lived by the children as a member of a certain ethnic community. Thus, a strong emotional empathic bond with national minorities is formed in representatives of each ethnic community, including the national majority. The unique bonding experience with each culture forms a tolerant attitude to other cultures that lasts throughout the visitors' lives.
This empathic method is a unique know-how of the CNCU psychologists and teachers.

Many councilors of the Roots of Tolerance – 2012 camp were part of this unique school of mutual respect and understanding during their own teenage years. Upon getting an education, they decided to dedicate themselves to promoting tolerance in the next generation, and came to the camp to work.

The junior group will be working for two more weeks, and then the camp will host the next generation of its alumni: teenagers who are 13-17 years of age.