EKO is happy to announce that one more amazing youth exchange has been successfully completed. The project “AGORA” united 45 young participants from Greece, Netherlands, Italy, Lithuania and Slovakia. It was organized by the Italian organization Associazione Viaggi Senza Frontiere Onlus, and took place in a small and graphic village of Florence, called Barberino di Mugello (Italy) from 6 to 16 of April 2023. 

Aims & Objectives of the project

Nowadays, human societies across the globe are more interconnected than ever, thanks to technological advances & communication revolution, which have turned the world into a “global village”. Despite this great interconnection, it is more difficult than ever, for people to be integrated and connected among themselves, people feel more alone than ever, as the internet and social media have reshaped the way we approach and build new relationships. Therefore, there is a real need to unite young people through direct contact, dialogue, and cultural and personal sharing, through initiatives aiming to bring active participation in cities.

More specifically the objectives were:

-to promote active citizenship and to increase the sense of initiative of young people from different backgrounds.

– to promote social integration, inclusion, and solidarity through active participation and common working.

– to promote diversity and increase the involvement of marginalized young people.

– to establish and strengthen cross-border partnerships and inspire follow-up activities.

Workshops & Activities of the project

The project’s main aim was to address everyday issues and try to make a change in our everyday lifestyle. Through this project, participants had the opportunity to discuss, reflect, and raise awareness about civic participation and also had the opportunity to develop their creativity. In this way, the participants felt empowered, with initiative and with the opportunity to create and participate in society. During the week, they worked with a non-formal methodology, with dynamics, and debates, they worked in small groups and had creative presentations, theatre and expression exercises as well as artistic creations. 

In summary, all participants worked together and reflected on the topic of active participation in social life and developed activities based on the NFE related to awareness concerning active participation, citizenship, integration, and cohesion. All team members developed different skills and competencies while acquiring new knowledge. They were able to develop skills such as a sense of initiative, creativity, artistic expression, teamwork, the ability to energize, practice languages, reflection, and critical thinking… and certain skills.

An amazing opportunity and a great experience for EKO’s team

Eirini, Panagiotis, Ilias, Ioanna, Konstantinos, Thomas, Vanessa, Michalis, and Timoleon were the members of this amazing Greek team whom we really wanna thank for all their contribution and collaboration throughout the project!

As EKO, we are very grateful for that amazing opportunity given to the Greek team and we thank our partner Laura Bartoletti and the members of the hosting organization for all their hard work and for creating such an impactful project!

Thank you – Ευχαριστούμε – Grazie mille