The YE My yEUth Story 2.0 took place in Varna, Bulgaria, from 16 to 20 May. A total of 26 participants from Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia and Slovakia took part in the project aimed to introduce them to the European Youth Strategy and the 11 European Youth Goals (with a specific focus on EYGs #3 Inclusive Societies and #6 Moving Rural Youth Forward).
On the first day, the participants engaged in various “Get to know each other” activities. The team of FECE presented a short introduction of the European Union and its history and values, followed by an activity to help the young people explore the 11 European Youth Goals, part of the current European Youth Strategy (2019-2027). The Youth Pass Certificate was also introduced. During the second half of the day the participants explored their individual and group perceptions of “Inclusive Societies”. On the second day, the participants created their role models reflecting 4 of the goals – Inclusive Societies, Moving Rural Youth Forward, Information and Constructive Dialogue and Quality Employment for All. In the second part of this activity, they created short comics with stories focused on the mentioned goals (with the created role-model being the story protagonist). They spent the afternoon in Varna where they visited the local museums, galleries and cultural events (as a part of the annual Night of Museums and Galleries).
The third day of the project started with an artistic session. Divided in groups the participants had to act to present specific vulnerable group – women, refugees, LGBTQ members and people living in rural areas. Then again in groups they brainstormed interview questions related to the EYGs and created theme songs with AI tools. The afternoon was again spent in Varna where the participants collected video interviews with personal stories from the locals.
On the fourth day the participants explored the relationships between the most important actors in a utopian democratic society – government, citizens, media and NGO and created role model personas advocating for the goals they consider most important. The Green Ethics board game Spaces for the Future was also introduced. The participants also explored and presented various actors fighting for inclusivity (in the past and the present days). The day concluded with intercultural evening – the participants presented their countries, traditions, dances and local foods.
The final day was divided into two parts – presentation of the Erasmus+ Programme and creation of sample Erasmus+ projects and final evaluation of the project (incl. Youth Pass award ceremony). More info about the project, its goals and activities is available in the following report.
The YE My yEUth Story 2.0 is funded by the European Commission under the Erasmus+ Programme.
