The topic of the youth exchange that we took part in, in Estonia from the 1st to 10th of March was ‘Cyberbullying’. The four participating countries were Austria, Estonia, Italy and Portugal. The main aim of the project was not only to educate ourselves on and spread awareness about cyberbullying, but also to make new friends, collect new experiences and – of course – to get away from our daily lives and learn in a different surrounding while enjoying the time abroad.

At the beginning of the project we got 

to know each others names and played some team building games to work together even better. Then after that, we started to get familiar with the topic through workshops, presentations and games. We learned a lot about cyberbullying and the activities showed us how serious and emotional the topic can be.  Creativity also played a big part during the workshops! We made a lot of posters, postcards, some videos, and we even wrote our own song! 

But workshops and games were not all that we did, of course. On the fourth day we started to prepare ourselves for a visit to a local school where we went the next day. We talked and discussed with the students about cyberbullying, their thoughts on it and how present it is in their lives. What we also did was to share our cultures and most importantly: we got them involved in little activities which we had prepared before!



The next thing that we had planned was a flashmob. We had many ideas on what we could do and how to make people aware of the issue of cyberbullying. And I am more than happy to say that it has been a total success! It really surprised all of us how well it worked out in the end. But see for yourself :)  Flashmob in Estonia (click to watch)

Just as said before, the project was also about enjoying ourselves and learning in a different environment! After visiting the school we went to Narva, a city close to the Russian border, where we had some hours to explore the city and spend some free time together. During our breaks at the project venue we had the opportunity to get active and go cross-country skiing, or to enjoy the beautiful landscapes by having a walk. In the evenings we even got to jump into Estonian culture and go to the sauna :)

Yours, Chiara

This time wEUnite itself organized a project which took place in Vienna from the 15th until the 22nd of February 2018.

The main topic due to the title „I like to move it, move it“, was the impact of sports in personal daily life. A perfect fitting number of 25 participants from five countries (group of five per country) attended in the project. Besides of Austria with some German influence, also Poland, Italy, Lithuania and Estonia were on board.

Already before we met each other in person, a Facebook group was created along with assignments to get to know the other participants and an idea about the project as well as receiving information about the schedule and other essential stuff.

Move it, move.
I am going to start with our daily sport activities which began every mornging at 10:00 am after breakfast. Each day had another topic and they were built on each other. (01) The first day we did sports without movement and by ourselves. Jumping, stretching and sweating, all together but still alone. (02) The following day was about others and we had to choose a partner with whom we performed the given tasks. It was a lot of fun and together the exercises didn’t feel that hard. (03) The third day was about music. Up to now our sports activities were just accompanied by cheering and moaning, but that day our DJ (Antonio) provided good sounds. (04) On this day we were separated into five groups and had to fulfil several competitions - let the games begin. (05) Despite the forecast (snow and freezingly cold) we had a great walk to the city centre, like schoolkids divided into teams of two. Then we got an intense topic, like talking about love or what makes one happy/sad and after five minutes we had to switch partners. Thereby we again got to know other people better and we had great and meaningful conversations. (06) Again divided into groups we did a circle training with 6 stations. I cannot tell you how long three minutes can feel and how exhausting they can be. Just give it a try 😉 (07) The last day of the project was quite intense. Already before breakfast there were rumours about a hard workout. One and a half our later everyone broke down on the floor. Satisfied and filled with pure happiness. We all did a good job.

    

Hey buddy, hey what’s up.
On the very first day we had to choose a buddy who was from now on always by our side to support and help one another. During the program every participant set a personal goal and without my buddy I am not sure if I would have succeeded, but like that I did! I appreciated this concept very much and within days we became closer and closer. Additionally, there were five reflexion groups, each led by a team member, to talk about the daily experiences, problems and requests.

Yes, we can, yes I can!
I do not have enough time, I cannot do this, I am not good enough, et cetera…. There are so many excuses why we are hiding our light under a bushel. Throughout several aspects we learned to identify our excuses which stop us from doing what we want, reaching our goals and how to deal with them or even end them. Analysing your habits and excuses was quite intense and I will keep up doing it regularly and throwing them away. We are better than this. We can do anything we want. Just believe in you and put effort into reaching your dreams. 

Let’s just kill someone and grab a beer!
During our free-time we gathered together and played the well-known mafia game in the children area of the hostel lobby, went to grab some beers in a cozy bar around the corner, had funny as well as deep conversations, awesome live-music in the staircase and so much more. All in all, these intense days together brought a strong bondage in our group and to say goodbye at day 8 ways really hard. I cannot mention everything we did or describe the feeling you are going to have in such a project, or the impact it will have on you. Just one thing: DO IT, you will love it!

Yours, Anna

From 3^rd until 9^th of March wEUnite had the pleasure to take part in the second part of the Youth Exchange “I feel good” which was called “Music Makes Feelings” organized by Syncro Synergy Croatia. As the title already says, the participants explored their experiences and feelings about all that has to do with music while being in the beautiful city of Rijeka. Pato, Tini, two Manuels, Marion and Nina started their journey to Croatia with lots of motivation and enthusiasm. And they came back happy and with many new songs stuck in their head! 

The first day started with great teambuilding activities in the sun. After finding all the seven dragon balls the participants could make a wish. They chose Karaoke, and magically, their wish was granted later that week!

Apart from nightly jam sessions and cool activities in the hostel, the participants got the chance go to the city as a group. Half of them visited RiRock, an organisation that helps to connect youngsters with music through music lessons and providing them with places where they can practise, and the other half Radio Rijeka. Both trips were really interesting and everyone was happy sharing their impressions later in the big group.

Another great experience was the flashmob that took place in the centre of Rijeka. It started with everyone standing frozen on a spot and then being “defrosted” by the tunes of “Don’t Worry Be Happy” played on the clarinet. The joyful atmosphere was enhanced by the sunny weather, and later everyone gathered for a picture.

During “I feel good” the participants did not only learn about music and feelings, but also about different countries and cultures, numerous languages, their personal strengths and weaknesses (enhanced by acting out all Youthpass key competences during the city rally in Rijeka), the idea behind those Erasmus+ projects, and most importantly: they made friends. Spending a whole week with 30 people from officially 5 (but really more) different nations makes you see the world from different angles and understand opinions that differ from yours. You learn so much about others but also about yourself and your country as you talk about all the similarities and differences in your free time. (Which was always a lot of fun, as you can see on the pictures below).

Now each member of the Austrian team will share their thoughts on the Youth Exchange:

Nina:

Music makes feelings - what a beautiful title for an amazing youth exchange. Being in Rijeka again with many people I had the pleasure to meet before and also lots of new faces was simply great! Never have I seen a group of strangers grew together to such a strong team this fast. Having been part of it makes me feel proud. This experience and all the memories will stay with me for a very long time :)

Tini:

It’s hard to describe this week in just a few sentences. I learned a lot about myself and experienced what it is like to be dragged out of my comfort zone right into the stress zone. But life starts where the comfort zone ends. I’m very thankful that I got the opportunity to improve myself and got inspired to try new things that used to scare me. This week in Croatia made me a better person :)

Marion:

This was only my second Youth Exchange, but I could feel from the beginning that we all would have a great time together. Our group dynamic was just so purely friendly and full of positive energy. When thinking about it now, I feel really grateful to have been part of it and to have shared happy and sad feelings with such wonderful people.

Pato:

This YE was something very special. I think it was one of the greatest experiences that I could have ever had. Creating music out of nothing with people who are unique in every different way you can imagine. Starting from the first day on we all shared a deep connection together. It was being open-hearted and open-minded. In fact, it didn’t take us a day to learn all those names by heart just because we were so different. Some played an instrument, some didn’t. Some had their funny dance workshops some had their own private time with a companion at the seaside. And everybody was still part of this amazing group. We were one big amount of kindness and amazingness.

Manuel E.:

Never have I ever … felt so emotional on a project. This Youth Exchange was not only interesting or just a good idea. It was timeless and sometimes breathtaking. Now I know that music truly makes feelings. 

Manuel G.:

After this project I really believe that “Music Makes Feelings”. Within this awesome week with so many great and lovely people, I learned and experienced a lot that helped me to grow once more. I feel so much better, so much more motivated and so much more positive than ever before. I am still overwhelmed by all these wonderful memories in my head. A big thanks and a lot of hugs to every single one of you! You made this project very special to me!

From 3^rd until 11^th of November wEUnite had the pleasure to take part in the Youth Exchange “I feel good” which was organized by Syncro Synergy Croatia. As the title already says, the participants punched their daily routines while being in the beautiful city of Rijeka. Alex, Bartek, Konrad, Manuel, Marion and Nina started their journey to Croatia with lots of motivation to do sports and experience a different, healthy lifestyle – as those were the main themes of the exchange. And they came back with an even higher level of motivation!

Directly after arriving, the team decided to explore the hostel’s

surroundings – as you can see it was breathtakingly beautiful and the weather made the view even more perfect!

With such an amazing view and the welcoming atmosphere, it wasn’t even that hard to get up for Yoga, which started at 7am, the next morning. After having tried out a new sport early

in the morning, there was breakfast and free time until 10am every day. And because all participants were very active and keen on sports (that’s why they chose to take part in this project) there was another sport session from 10-11am each day. Right after the workout all participants had time to write down their feelings and thoughts about the sport activity in their personal sports diaries. Using this tool was new to nearly everyone and seemed strange in the beginning but gave positive energy at the end of the exchange while reading how one’s fitness level and attitude towards sport can change within only a few days.

During “I feel good” the participants did not only learn about healthy lifestyle and sports, but also about different countries and cultures, numerous languages, their personal strengths and weaknesses (enhanced by ‘finding’ all Youthpass key competences during the city rally in Rijeka), the idea behind those Erasmus+ projects, and most importantly: they made friends. Spending a whole week with 30 people from officially 5 (but really 7) different nations

makes you see the world from different angles and understand opinions that differ from yours. You learn so much about others but also about yourself and your country as you talk about all the similarities and differences in your free time. (Which was always a lot of fun, as you can see on the pictures below).

For most Austrian participants this Youth Exchange was the very first Erasmus+ project but definitely not the last :) They all agree that this week was fabulous due to the big variety in the program, the mixture of nationalities, the unexpectedly minute-to-minute changing weather and mostly because they learned in a way that was unusual to what they were used to from university. Non-formal and informal learning was the biggest punch in the Austrians’ daily routine and they will miss it. By the vast amount of hands-on activities and creative tasks throughout the week they learned without having to sit down and study. Having had extremely well-prepared organizers and facilitators all the team realized how easy it can be to feel better and feel good with just little changes in their daily lives.

And what they said right after coming back home from Rijeka:

“Really nice, new experience and a lot of fun!” (Konrad)

“This week in Rijeka was an unforgettable, pleasant experience for my body and my soul that I would not want to miss. :)” (Manuel)

“I really enjoyed the week and I am happy that I learned so many new things.” (Alex)

“Definitely one of the best projects I've been to, where I’ve learnt numerous useful things for my future!” (Nina)

“It was great to do so many different activities and having a good time together.” (Marion)

“I really liked the sport activities and that I could push my limits a bit further.” (Bartek)

Big thanks once again from wEUnite, Alex, Bartek, Konrad, Manuel, Marion and Nina to Syncro Synergy Croatia for this great Youth Exchange! See you soon :) 

Once again we were lucky to send a team on an amazing project - Palmse (Estonia) it was this time. Wanna know how it was and what it was all about? Read Manuel's impression :)

The Youth Exchange 'The Science of Boomerang' was not my first Erasmus+ project, but it was my third project. It was the first time, though, that I participated in another country. We started our journey on 14th October and came back home on the 24th October.

First arrival was in Tallinn, where Pato, Elena, Julia and I met. We spent the first evening checking out the secrets of this town and enjoying the tasty medieval food. On the next day we met our last participant of the Austrian team, Manuel. And here's our first group-picture: (left to right Pato, Julia, Manuel, Elena, Manuel)

At evening all 50 participants of the project gathered at a meeting point and we drove off to Palmse by bus. I remember me talking to myself: “Oh my god, who are all those people?”.

Everybody seemed very excited so we spend our first night with some drinks, talking and singing together. It was the beginning of some awesome nights with a lot of joy and activities prepared by the participants. Now, being back home, I would definitely call them friends.

The next day the first project session started, so I was curious and really wanted to know what the “Science of Boomerang” is. As in any of my attended projects so far we started with some icebreakers and group activities. Pretty soon everybody could feel the awesomeness of this group. I never learned 50 names that fast before!

During the project we learned lots about formal/informal/non-formal learning, Erasmus+ and EVS projects, intercultural learning (ICL) and of course about volunteering. But still I couldn’t see what the science of boomerang was... Coming to the end of the project we prepared some volunteering activities, which we were actually doing in Tallinn. 50 people separated in groups were walking with dogs or helping at an animal shelter. Some of us worked with kids like my group. We prepared some dances. At the end we found out, that some of them where awesome dancers. It was a mistake to think that we could teach them something new. After the dancing we all sat down in a circle and talked about our hobbies, dreams and of course about volunteering. Hearing those kids singing, dancing and talking about their dreams was very touching to me. I still think about that sometimes.

After this activity all 50 participants met again in Tallinn city center. It wasn’t planned by the facilitators but the participants organized another big event at the Old Town Square. We organized a flashmob where we danced together in the name of volunteering. We gave it the Hashtag #voluncare so check it out on Facebook and Instagram :)

So the YE came to an end after this event and I thought about the science of boomerang once again, but this time it hit me. I remembered how many people started to dance with us on the square. I remembered the smiles of the participants when I did some nice things for them. Mostly I remembered the kids we danced with. I knew that all this happiness didn’t come by accident. It acted like a boomerang that I threw away at the beginning of this project and it came back at the end but much more powerful than I expected.

A big thanks to everyone who made this project this amazing!

Yours, Manuel (without beard)

Curious to hear more and get to know wEUnite members? Stay up-to-date, like us on Facebook and follow our blog!

In case you have been wondering why it was so unusually quiet on our blog as well as our Facebookpage ... we worked on new projects and travelled to create new partnerships and get even more ideas to apply for even more projects for you :)

Right after our KeepCalm! training course in February we wrote the final report for it, worked on the budget and last but not least - made this amazing video. As you can see we had a great time!

As we got so much energy from the project we decided "Hey! Let's write some more projects and apply!" - once said, we directly started working on them. The first training course - that hopefully will be approved - is called "DesireToInspire" and will be all about leadership. Why leadership? Well, in youth work it is a highly relevant to work with groups and in order to be even better at what we all do, we want to give you some more tools. Doesn't that sound great?

But of course one project alone is never ever enough for us, and because of all the questions we got on our previous projects, we came up with "Project 101", which will deal with project designing. Most of you have been on one or more youth exchanges or training courses or have heard about those cool things. The question you asked us was: how does it all work? What is going on behind the scenes? Does a project last for one week only? How do you prepare everything? Who actually pays for Erasmus+ projects and how can we get the money? The most important question for us, though, was "Can I do that as well?" - yes, yes and yes! You all can - and this is why we applied with this project, to show and tell you everything you need to know about project designing in Erasmus+ - and of course many lovely new projects will be born on this training course :)

After we successfully submitted our applications, wEUnite went to Estonia!

Having applied for many different seminars, Nina got chosen to take part in a seminar/study visit/training course, called "Formal-Non-Formal", in Tartu/Estonia. Being there she met friends from previous projects - always a cool side-effect! getting to know people from everywhere and meeting them again - and also new partners. Moreover, she experienced the culture a little as well as the education system in Estonia, which is very different from what she was used to from Austria. Having spent 6 days in Tartu, another projects was being born - ENTERpreneurship, which will be applied at the next deadline. Until then, wEUnite, will work with its new partners from Estonia, Portugal, Turkey and Scottland to make this idea something real.

"Estonia is a really nice country! I didn't have too much time for sight-seeing, but it was definitely worth the trip. (and I can imagine going back there to see a little more of the country) I have learnt many new things for my youth-work but also for my studies in those days. Not only did I get new ideas for projects and more knowledge about different educational systems, but also did I meet people from different countries and learnt about their countries, cultures and languages. While reflecting the intense days and writing the youthpass, I realized how much I improved myself in

certain aspects. Also, I met great people that I am looking forward to work with in the future! What I nearly forgot to mention - it was a really cool idea to create t-shirts about our NGOs instead of posters, as we can keep those as memory and even use them again for further projects." (Nina) 

Wow, time passes really fast... Our next project, KeepCalm!, is starting in 10 days already! You surely want to know what kind of project it is and what it's all about :) 
It's going to be a  training course, based on conflict management in everyday life situations and even more on those appearing in youth work. The focus will be put on strategies and techniques for conflict resolution, but also on how to use language efficiently for mediation. Another part will focus on the roots of conflicts but also intercultural exchange. „KeepCalm!” has the goal to teach youth workers how to react to conflicts and how to resolve them in an efficient way. Moreover, the participants will learn how to pass on their new knowledge to their coworkers.

As the beginning of this great week comes closer, we are getting more and more excited. You are curious now who we are? Well, the team that worked the last months to make this possible... 

Alexander Tscharre, Austria, organizer

“I was introduced to the Erasmus+ projects by wEUnite and they gave me an amazing view over the field of youth work and all it varieties. I want to change something in this world, especially for the youth, all the young people who are forsaken by society should get another chance and I want to give it to them. All of the different tools I’ve learned on my TCs so far and the ones I’ll learn in future will support me and help me to do my work with youth. In addition I got a view behind the scenes of an Erasmus+ project and the opportunity to involve in the organization of projects and I love it, I always give 200% for and during a project so you can enjoy it and have a good time.”

Studies: Paedagogical and Educational Science

Hobbies: Spending leisure time with friends, Youth projects, making videos, Music, Reading, Traveling

Nina-Bianca Anranter, Austria, trainer and organizer

“Thanks to the possibility of witnessing the world through numerous youth exchanges and training courses that I took part in, I developed myself a lot and learnt things that no school or university could have offered. Two years ago my colleague Kerstin and I decided to pass on our knowledge and give young people the chance to become more active. Organizing projects and being a trainer makes me happy as I always see people having fun, learn and grow.”

Studies: Teacher training programme English/Catholic Religion

Hobbies: Reading, Sports, Youth projects

Krzysztof Bruzgul, Poland, trainer

“With formal education in the field of pedagogy and three years in the field of non-formal education as a project participant, group leader, trainer and coordinator, my passion lies in education.”

My studies directed towards language, English and its philology, I specialized towards teaching this language as a second language. So, I am an English teacher by my education.

         My hobbies are wide and broad, for I am interested in a lot of things, but above all I value great stories. Listening, watching, reading or living through them

Kerstin Ess, Austria, trainer

“Taking part in youth projects for five years now made me a better person who wants to share those experiences. I wish for everyone to create such memories and great mind opening happenings. Cultural exchange opens not only your perception of others but also takes a great part in self-development.”

Studies: Meadia and Convergence Management

My hobbies are various, but what I prefer to do is travelling as it usually combines all my favorite activities.

Like our facebook page and follow our blog to stay up-to-date during the training course :)

As we were extremely busy travelling through all countries we barely had time to write about our cultural experience. It would be boring to list all the facts and figures, so we decided to ask around and give you some quotes and impressions by our participants :)

"It was very nice to get to know so many new things about Estonia and I found so many similarities between our nations. From what I have heard at the cultural night I can even imagine to live there some day." - Paula, 21, Poland

"My favorite cultural evening was the Estonian one. They had some really delicious food, showed us a nice traditional dance and their presentations were great! The self-deprecation with the tourist guide video was hilarious. Also, they made me fall in love with Estonia!" - Alex, 20, Austria

"Lithuanian night was great - I enjoyed it so much! I like the fact about the most difficult language and about their passion for basketball. Of course I enjoyed the food they offered as well, it was just awesome and delicious!" - Michal, 24, Czech Republic

(This participant, Michal, is a mystery to everyone else on the training course... We are not sure whether he is Czech, Italian or Polish, maybe Austrian, as he was part of all those cultural nights. If anyone knows more - contact us!)

"I really appreciate the richness of details, food and music, and also the traditional dresses! Turkey is really an amazing place, full of history and culture. A great mix of ethnies! I am charmed by this country and would love to visit it some day." - Federica, 24, Italy

"It was awesome to see the next country which has so many interesting things to offer. Yet again I was 

amazed and charmed. Next year I will visit the Czech Republic for sure!" - Adam, 24, Poland 

"I wasn't aware that different cultures bring so many different aspects with it. I learned how to use hand gestures to underline the things being said. This was mostly brought to us by the Italians." - Manuel, 21, Austria

After hours, days, weeks and months of hard work, the busy bees of wEUnite were waiting in Villach for their participants from Austria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Italy, Lithuania, Poland and Turkey to arrive in Villach in order to start our first training course SpeakUp!

                                (Tini, Alex, Maria, Nina, Manuel, Rainer)

We are really happy that all participants found their way and were full of energy for our first workshop sessions.

Last evening and today we already built a group, who works unbelievably good and fast together. As the two trainers (Manuel and Nina) say: "This is the best group ever! It's amazing to work with them."

And the day isn't over yet - our Austrian team is preparing a presentation for the first cultural night...everyone is curious!

If you want to know how SpeakUp! will go on, follow our blog and like our page on Facebook!