LUSCO FUSCO 2
LUSCO FUSCO 2 : YOUTH EXCHANGE, 15-22 September 2021
The Erasmus+ Youth Exchange “Lusco Fusco”, took place in Ourense, Spain from 15-22 September 2021 and was coordinated by the Spanish Organization Sustinea. It united 22 young participants from Greece, Spain and Portugal with the aim to generate a space for the exchange of experiences and for reflection on different environmental initiatives and projects, to address environmental problems and promote sustainable growth.
The Organisations involved were:
The project had a special focus on fires that have been devastating the forests of Greece, Galicia, and Portugal in recent years. In parallel this exchange offered a large variety of activities which promoted active citizenship, intercultural dialogue and social integration. EKO’s team enjoyed new challenges and amazing experiences which enriched their knowledge on the subject.
The motto of the project was “Think globally, act locally“.
DAY 1
On day one the participants from the different national teams got to know each other and discussed ground rules and the importance of covid-19 measures.
DAY 2
The second day was dedicated to presenting the three organizations cooperating in this project. In the afternoon participants were divided in family groups (mixed groups from each country) and set the rules of an efficient communication.
DAY 3
The third day started with energizers from each group The Greek energizer bonded the participants with each other through trust games. More activities led people to comprehend and accept cultural differences. Participants were taken to a special spot in the forest to have their first introduction to nature, the “forest bath” as it was called.
Issues of coexisting with nature were discussed and included ways to facilitate the rebirth of a forest. Then participants went hiking to understand how the forest grows and how people interfere with natural habitats. The afternoon session comprised two very interesting presentations with the title “What if” on the ways daily life practice can be sustainable and less harmful for the environment.
DAY 4
The fourth day, following a presentation on permaculture, the group dove deeper into the topic of climate change and the broader ecologic crisis, discussed extensively and shared eye-opening information about the situation in the partner countries – this activity let the participants understand the international perspective on this important matter.
The most enjoyable workshop of all days was the construction of 4 insect hotels and 1 Jay board out of scraps of wood, paper and branches. In the afternoon participants had the Nendo Dango’s workshop in which they made seed balls out of clay, compost and oak seeds. Then they had a stroll in Ourense and tried to have a thermal bath.
DAY 5
On the fifth day, following a presentation on the food forest participants went in the forest with their Nendo Dango’s, their insect hotels and the Jay board. All these were placed in the field which was firstly and cleaned from voracious fauna. In the afternoon, participants were taken to a hot spring in the forest and then watched a documentary about the future of our planet.
DAY 6
On the sixth day we started with the Greek energizer in which we played role games introducing mindfulness. Day 6 was devoted to the topic of the Circular Economy and its pros & cons. After analyzing some theoretical aspects of responsible consumption, we had hands-on workshops where we created toothpaste from natural ingredients and herbs! In the afternoon an open market for the local community was organized and local people came to share and exchange products and opinions.
DAY 7
The final day was devoted to evaluation, reflection, connection and some relaxation. The participants discussed their impressions from the project, reflected on their experiences, got informed about the Youthpass certificate and enjoyed some leisure time with their new best friends! In the evening they had an intercultural goodbye dinner and gave promises on meeting again around a small bonfire.
SPECIAL THANKS TO:
Special thanks to Marta and Carolina from Sustinea for making this project happen and offering all participants an amazing educational experience and lots of wonderful memories! Last but not least, special thanks to EKO team – Zoi, Dimitrios, Orfeas, Semeli, Yiannos, Konstantinos and Vasiliki – for being so open-minded, motivated, passionate and active and for giving the project’s backbone a heart!
