Five participants had an opportunity to join a youth exchange action in Slovenia due to a project Health in the Green co-financed by Program EU Erasmus+. The young participants had an opportunity to discuss their experience with mental health issues in their countries and also good practices to avoid bigger problems.
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We have been organising international summer camps together with our Spanish partner organisation El Bosque de Hielo for many years now. Over these years we have worked together not only with a lot of children, but also with many young people who were on their way to becoming leaders or later youth workers. Also in our joint youth exchanges, leadership, communication and organisational skills are always among the main topics. We decided to take this shared experience to the next level and organise an intensive training course for young aspiring leaders, where they would gain the basic skills and knowledge they will need in youth work.
The Erasmus+ training course took place in October 2023 and we had a lot of interesting moments together - we discussed political and philosophical issues, played communication games, shared our experiences in youth work, inspired each other and enjoyed the autumn magic of Tábor. At the end of the TC, participants organized their own learning activities in groups for others to show what they had learned in the past week.
You can see photos from the gallery HERE.
As part of the project, trainers Isaac and Maya created a "trainer's manual" describing all the activities they organized during the training. If you would like to be inspired and use some of our activities in your work, you can download the booklet here:
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The summer camp in 2023 took place in an unusually late date from 11th to 19th August.It was attended by children and young people from the Czech Republic, Spain and even one participant from Turkey. The camp was led by an experienced camp leader, Isaac Casasola, who was supported by our team of leaders. Although the camp was held in late summer, the weather was unusually very warm and we spent a lot of time swimming and canoeing. The children enjoyed the traditional trip to Tabor and the chain bridge in Stádlec.
You can see photos from the gallery HERE
When I saw the offer of the project in nature, I did not hesitate and immediately knew that I would participate. In addition to the Czechs, there were also participants from Spain and Armenia. After the first few days of shy silence, the ice broke and we all found friends among ourselves. The stress from the language deficits that I had upon arrival fell away from me as soon as the girls from Spain wanted to communicate with me through the translator. From this I understood that I am not the only one who is not completely sure about their ability to speak English.
During the morning program, every day we all learned a lot of information about the functioning of other countries. The topics were, for example, politics, healthcare, social care, education, or the view of all countries on same-sex couples. In addition, we have also been working on communication skills and the impression we make on other people. In groups, we then came up with realistic and less realistic ways to stop, or at least not worsen, the problems that threaten this planet and its inhabitants. What I remember most about this activity was the moment when one of the groups presented a proposal to eat people to stop starvation, which would, at the same time, solve the problem of overpopulation.
During our free time every day after lunch we went canoeing, swimming, sunbathing and the Spanish enjoyed their afternoon siesta. We had a lot of fun during playing games. For example, during the TikTok game, pantomime, or during the kiss or meow game, which was one of the last games we played together.
The last and, of course, very important point are the national days, when the participants of each country prepared a morning program for the others and cooked their typical national food for dinner. Even during these days we learned a lot about other cultures, learned games that are played in other countries and of course we learned many foreign words from each other.
I am grateful that I had the opportunity to be here.
Beáta Pavelková, participant
You can see photos from the gallery HERE
And here, you can find rules of all the games we played during our national days and the delicious recipes we then had for dinner:
During the Czech Easter we participated in a youth exchange in the sunny Turkish town of Mersin. The theme of the project was Green Future, so the workshops were based on ecological topics. The project location was right by the beach in a beautiful hotel in the Erdemli district, and the food and accommodation were of a high standard, as the Turkish hospitality is one of the best in the world. We were also pleased with the weather compared to the weather in the Czech Republic. In total, besides the Czech Republic and Turkey, 2 other countries, Poland and Italy, participated in the project. However, there were also participants from Ukraine who live in one of these countries. At the beginning, it was important to "break the ice", to get to know each other in a group through games such as speed dating and energizers, and of course team building activities, such as guiding blind or otherwise limited persons (we blindfolded each other).
As part of the theme, we worked in teams to create a product from already discarded materials and give it new (economic) value. At the same time, we had various discussions, which mainly showed that we should try to prevent waste in the first place and only after that work on figuring out what to do with it. In the evenings, we devoted ourselves to presenting our countries, performing various dances, such as mazurka and polka for the Czech Republic, which were popular among the participants. We also tasted typical food and drinks for each country. With the help of various quizzes and games we learned interesting, often surprising information about our countries. Also, on Easter Monday we kept our tradition and with the help of pom poms, water, and cologne we ensured the health and beauty of the women in the project. In return, they gave us painted eggs that they had painted the day before.
When we had time off from activities, we explored the surrounding area, visited a local canyon where people lived hundreds of years ago in caves, and a town with a castle on an island. One full day the whole group went to Mersin where the Turkish team showed us around the city and took us to the best places. We also tasted local specialties like Tantuni and Adana kebabs and shopped for souvenirs. We took away a lot of experiences from the project and made friendships, at least some of which I hope will last after the project is over. Thank you TOM Dumanci for the opportunity to participate in the project and we look forward to the next one. :)
You can see photos from the gallery HERE
Tomáš Michalčin, participant
In October 2022, we organized the second youth exchange within our project "Summer Camp Challenge" in the Turkish town Erdemli. The project - as the name suggests - was a kind of a summer camp, where the young people were not half-participants and half-leaders - they enjoyed playing various games, but at the same time created and organized various activities by themselves.
What does Terka, one of the participants, say about the project? "Together with other Czech participants, I had the chance to meet many great people, who helped me to dive into the Turkish culture. We got to know new places, local markets, restaurants and we tasted traditional sweets and different kinds of dürums. I tried to learn to speak Turkish, fortunetelling from coffee, bought myself a Nazar boncugu and learned to dance traditional dances."
And Kryštof? "First time I took part in this programme, I didin't know what to expect and I was scared, but later found out what it really brings into your life. I believe it changed my life, my perspective on world and my social skills."
You can see photos from the gallery HERE
Mája
On the 27th September 2022, we organized a conference about sustainable development and concrete eco-friendly practices in sport. The conference took place in a cultural centre in Radotín and it was attended by members of the Ministry of Education, National Agency for Sport, deputy major of Radotín, the president of "Sokol" (a Czech sports association) in Radotín and, of course, representatives of our NGO. For us, the conference was the final step in the Erasmus+ project Move in a Green Way, during which we were involved in research of sustainable development of sport and concrete practices in sport that would be considerate to the environment as well as the society. The participants of the conference mainly discussed the issue of financing sports in the Czech context and the possibilities brought by the current energy crisis in relation to more economical energy management.
You can see photos from the gallery HERE
Lukáš
Our Czech team saved a bit of our holidays for September, when we went to Italy to participate in an Erasmus+ project "I am OUT". We split into two groups. The boys went by train to Vienna and then flew to Bari. Me and Míša met in Prague at the airport and flew straight to Bari. We had enough time to explore this beautiful town and, in the evening, we showed it to the boys, who arrived later. In the morning, we searched together for a bus stop, which was quite exciting. We were very lucky and found one. We got on the bus, went to the center of Bari and then by train to Matera. There, we were picked up by the organizers of the project. They took us to the farm, where we spent the whole project.
After us arrived also other participants, which were from Greece, Estonia, Ukraine, Italy and Croatia. The locals had horses, cows, donkeys, hens, sheep, goats, pigs, and also kittens and dogs, which were running all around. The most interesting thing about the farm was its history and also the fact that it was all bio. There were no chemicals used in the process of growing all the vegetables - peppers, aubergines or tomatoes. They also made their own cheese and butter, which we even observed. We tried to make our own past and jam, we took care of the animals, picked the fruits and vegetables, painted vases and one group even fixed the henhouse.
One morning, the alarm came really early. The organizers took us to the lake Lago di San Giuliano. Our target for the trip was the historical town of Matera, to which we went 15 kilometers by walking. I must say the walking was very demanding because it was very sunny and there was no wind or shadow. When we came closer to the town, the weather got better, and everybody started looking forward to Italian ice cream. The historical center of the town was really beautiful. The Italians showed us the best views and best shops. We came back to Matera two more times during our time in Italy.
Thanks to the project, we learned a lot about bio products, recycling and life on a farm, we improved our language skills and learned new things about other cultures.
You can see photos from the gallery HERE
Mája Wollnerová, participant of the project
In the years 2021 and 2022, our organization took part in a strategic partnership project named "Move in a Green Way". Together with our colleagues from Hungary, Slovakia, Lithuania and Turkey, we were studying eco-friendly practices in the field of sport. Each country focused on a different sport, we - for example - were examining sustainability in tennis. As a result of the project, we created a brochure that sums up our findings. You can read it in English HERE. You can also check out the project website for more information.
You can see photos from the gallery HERE
Mája
In May 2022, we hosted an Erasmus+ project "Against Environmental Pollution - Long Live Life", which was organized by our partner organization from Turkey Akdeniz İlçe Milli Eğitim Müdürlüğü Mersin. Youth workers from 7 various countries met in Prague for 7 days in order to discuss environmental problems and their potential solutions. During the project, they shared their experiences and best practice connected to sustainability and nature-friendly projects. The most addressed topics were fighting agains environmental pollution (as the project title suggests), and application of the 3R rule. A big emphasis was put on being able to effectively share this new knowledge with youth (and other people as well) and to motivate them towards a "greener" way of life. Apart from this educational programme, the participants enjoyed also trips to Prague city centre and to Kutná Hora.
You can see photos from the gallery HERE
Mája
At the end of June 2022, young people from Turkey came to visit our campsite within the Erasmus+ project Summer Camp Challenge. The programme was preparing a summer camp, which will take place in Turkey in October. The Turks were greeted in the Czech Republic by our typical summer storm, in which they used canoes to get to the other side of the river Lužnice with all their luggage. During our common activities and building the campsite, we got to know each other. One day was dedicated to visiting the town Tábor - we went through the historical centre all the way to the shopping mall. What our Turkish friends didn't like so much, was the way back from Tábor, because we planned to go by walking. Even though it was hard, everybody managed in the end, and we could enjoy the evening having a rest. Both national teams - of course - had one day for presenting their country. On the Turkish day, we saw a presentation of their country and their city and tasted kebab and other delicious Turkish meals. On the Czech day, we presented the Czech nature to the Turkish team and for dinner, we cooked a typical Czech "svíčková". Some of us, me for example, cooked for the first time in their lives, but it turned out to be very good. We also had "bábovka" for dessert. On the last day of the project, we joined our Turkish friends for a tour around Prague - we showed them the important places, above all the Charles Bridge and Prague Castle. And in the end, we went to finish the trip the Czech way - in a pub.
Vojta Pittner, participant of the project
You can see photos from the gallery HERE
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