The first Erasmus+ project I participated in was called “H.O.M.E. - Hosting Opportunities for Migrants in Europe”. The youth exchange project took place in the province of Lecce, in the South of the Apulia Region. Its aim and specific objectives were:
● To Promote good practices of integration and development for hosting refugees and asylum seekers in local communities; ● To Foster interaction among young participants, citizens and refugees in local communities; ● And to Develop new consciousness at local and international level, through replicable practices.
The second Erasmus+ project was called “Be part of Europe”. It took place in Sardinia, Italy and its objectives were:
To support youngsters in the process of knowledge and approach to policy,
To encourage them in the development of awareness and critical thinking and make them feel active and proactive
To exercise their rights and duties and create dialogue between young people and policy makers
To create documents that policy-makers can use to target better policies.
The project “Recycle Upcycle” took place in Paralimni, Cyprus. We combined both unemployment and environmental conservation by creating opportunities for employment in these industries and fields.
The idea was to combine the two and try to achieve solutions for both problems. The project gave value to waste and also reduced unemployment.
The participants successfully created and obtained Cultural Awareness from Intercultural Exchange and digital competences. Various non-formal methodologies were used during the project: simulations, discussions,workshops, team building activities and presentations.
The youth exchange project “Balancing Happiness” was held in Stepanavan, Armenia.
The main objectives of the project were:
To promote the concept of balanced happiness among youngsters
To explore the connection between physical and mental health
To introduce the idea of “Happiness -Wellness” as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being
To develop follow-up projects for international cooperation to further elaborate the topics of the project
The first evening was a welcome evening and the following 2 days we had intercultural evenings where everyone presented typical foods and drinks that they had brought from their country. The participants showed interesting presentations of participating countries, their culture, music and dances. We also didn’t forget about bonfire and karaoke night. It was an awesome experience for everybody. The participants learnt a lot, made many new friends and had a lot of fun. Everyone has changed for the better and has become happier.
The youth exchange project “The Great Outdoors” was held in Aberfoyle, STIRLING
The participants, who were from Bulgaria, Austria, Finland, Germany, Italy and the UK shared knowledge, experience and ideas using a non-formal style of education.
The main objectives of the project were:
To learn about outdoor education
To explore different methodologies in delivering adventure and environmental work for young people
To find out how the activity can be accredited to give disadvantaged young people recognized qualifications
To make use of smartphone film and media techniques to capture and record achievement and give the ability for youth workers to disseminate widely the work of their young people
The hosting organization gave opportunity to the participants to reflect on the topic of The Great Outdoors through interactive activities summarizing the outcomes.