The world needs renewable energy, as fossil fuels are non-renewable and require finite resources that are dwindling due to high costs and environmentally damaging extraction methods. This youth exchange has been created by a group of youth who are mindful of the environment and are greatly concerned about climate change. We like to gather for this youth exchange to set a base for leading the future without fossil fuels, a future where we all live in a sustainable world. Globalized energy markets control the market, and sales promotion makes sure we consume what is available or what we are told is good. Through this youth exchange, we gather like-minded youth to explore energy consumption and renewables.
With this youth exchange, we want not only to share cultures of different countries, but also to open dialogue about “What does renewable energy mean? How is it generated? How can we implement those ideas in everyday life? What is healthy for us? What is the journey the "power" makes from the sun to our phone? We are going to debate and provoke critical thought so that the participants form their own opinions around the topic. We are going to talk about energy efficiency, energy production,n and energy production through DIY workshops. We are also going to delve into topics of Climate change and how it is affected by the energy we consume.
This youth exchange will be all about learning by doing. The participants will fully immerse themselves in the world of renewable energy by creating their own appliances/devices/strategies to collect and use renewable energy.
The youth exchange is going to achieve the following specific objectives:
- Raise awareness of renewable energy and foster critical thinking about the exchange topic;
- Share cultures, exchange international perspectives about the topic, develop an intercultural competence, understanding of different cultures, and appreciation of diversity;
- Improve social and civic competence of participating youth;
- Foster communication between youth and stakeholders;
- Develop the sense of initiative and entrepreneurship, and encourage young people to become more active in their communities;
- Strengthen cooperation and inspire future projects between the partner organisation and enhance the international dimension of their work;
Activities
Type of Activity: KA1 Erasmus plus Youth Exchange;
Venue: Catfarm, Poussan, France;
Planned Dates: 13-19 October 2019 (excluding 2 travel days);
Countries involved: The Netherlands, Austria, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Spain, Bulgaria, and Italy.
The participants in the youth exchange are 30 motivated young people aged 14 to 25. For this project, the youth will come from different backgrounds, but what unites them is their interest in the topic and their desire to make a change in their communities.
We have preliminarily agreed on the profile of the participants we expect to choose for this youth exchange:
- Motivated to participate;
- Have no or very little experience of participating in international youth exchanges;
- Interest in the topic and eagerness to experiment with gardening and growing one's own food;
- eager to share their food cultures and exchange with other participants;
- Interested in developing competencies such as intercultural competence, sense of initiative and entrepreneurship, and social and civic competencies.
Impact
This youth exchange will be the first to inspire youth to connect more with nature and become more environmentally friendly. We plan to organise additional youth exchanges in the future to share the experiences of Catfarm as an eco-community built on sustainable values. We plan to hold youth exchanges about upcycling, healthy eating, and other topics.
Participating organisations will gain many competencies, particularly professional. They will acquire skills in organising European projects (some of our partner organisations have never organised one). Through intensive coordination, communication, and peer learning with other groups, project coordinators and/or youth leaders will develop their approach, methods, and personal attitude towards youth work. This will make them desirable candidates for employment in youth work. Additionally, participating organizations will strengthen their international dimension, enhance their activities with young people, receive examples of good practice, and have an excellent opportunity to build future partnerships. The participating organizations should receive an additional booster to follow up on our activities. and additional motivation to continue developing young people.
Coordinator: Stichting Adventures of the Valparaiso
• Start date 01-01-2020 • End date 31-12-2021
• Asociación de los Estados Generales de los Estudiantes de Europa - Burgos 🇪🇸 Spain • Catfarm Education 🇫🇷 France • ETS TWOPLUSTWO 🇮🇹 Italy • KINONIKI SINETAIRISTIKI EPICHERISIELLINIKI SYMMETOCHI NEON 🇬🇷 Greece
2019-3-NL02-KA105-002723