Uniting Our Future
Start date: Apr 1, 2016,
End date: Oct 31, 2016
PROJECT
FINISHED
In the past few years a number of organisations have been part of youth worker networking opportunities in Germany, Bulgaria, Romania, N. Ireland and Hungary. Through these gatherings strong relationships have been built and a growing commitment to working together to develop joint youth projects at a European levelBuilding on these relationships it is our goal to bring together 50 participants from 4 European countries - Romania, N. Ireland, Republic of Ireland and Spain - to participate in a youth exchange focusing on: 1. Celebrating our European identity, learning from other cultures, promoting greater inclusion and appreciating the role youth can play in European society. 2. Developing a healthy lifestyle through sport and outdoor activities. 3. Mobilisation of young people in volunteering. 4. Promoting mutual understanding between groups with a history of conflict. The project will focus on cultural diversity, bringing together 6 groups of young people who live in regions of Europe where young people from different cultural identities live in close proximity and where there has been a history of conflict. The groups are as follows: - 2 groups from Ireland - 1 from N. Ireland and 1 from the Republic of Ireland (County Donegal which borders N. Ireland). - 2 groups from Spain - 1 from the Catalona Region (where there is a strong Catalonian identity) and a second from Andalucía with a traditional Spanish identity. - 2 groups from Romania -1 from the Romanian community and a second from the Hungarian minority community. Both groups will be from Transylvania. The exchange - 'Uniting Our Future', will take place in Romania in the village of Sutor where we will be based at the 'Asociatia Exodus' Romanian centre. The exchange will run from the 31st July - 10th of August 2016 with the main language being English, although where necessary, translation will be provided. The programme will include a seminar programme, a Transylvania Trek and service projects in the local community. It is anticipated that the long term benefits will include a greater respect and understanding between young people from different cultural identities who live in close proximity to one another, increased cooperation at a European level between youth organisations, new joint projects will be birthed by this exchange, an increase in volunteering amongst young people and increased participation in sports activities, particularly in the outdoors.