The inspiration for this youth exchange arose from our past projects, where we recognized a growing disconnection between young individuals and the authentic essence of rural environments. We noticed that many young people struggle to adapt to the conditions when venturing into the countryside. It became apparent that numerous participants had never encountered domestic animals prior to engaging in our activities, which are a common feature of small farms in Romania.

The young participants, originating from larger or medium-sized urban areas, often dedicate substantial time to digital screens. Consequently, their inclination to immerse themselves in nature is limited, and they hold preconceived notions about rural living and village life. Considering this, it becomes crucial to provide the youth with hands-on experiences to form well-informed opinions. Our aim is to offer an authentic encounter in a picturesque Transylvanian village, allowing them to break away from digital confines. Through engagement with peers from diverse countries in this intimate village setting, the youth will not only acquaint themselves with the countryside way of life, but also get to explore Erasmus+ opportunities. This experience will help them pass over cultural boundaries, enabling them to embrace alternative ways of life and broaden their cultural horizons.

Objectives planned to be reached by the end of the mobility:

O1. Provide hands-on experiences of rural lifestyles and develop the key competencies among our young participants from RO, HU, SK and CZ, while increasing the awareness of the advantages of living in rural areas;

O2. Improve the image of rural areas among the young participants and their peers, and contributing to the Youth goals #3 Inclusive Societies and #6 Moving Rural Youth Forward.

O2. Improve our capacity, as well as the capacity of our partners to align to the E+ quality standards, organize quality and meaningful YEs for the young people we work with empower our staff, volunteers and collaborators to provide quality youth work

We envisage to bring together 40 young participants aged 16-19 from Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. These participants, who are primarily pupils residing in larger or medium-sized urban areas, will be accompanied by 5 group leaders and one facilitator. Our goal is to provide them with a tangible insight into the dynamics of rural areas, encouraging them to detach from their digital devices and genuinely engage with rural realities through direct experience. We are aiming to specifically involve young individuals who may encounter diverse obstacles that could potentially pose challenges to their participation in the project.

1.      Intangible: Developed competences of the young people

2.      Tangible: Digital outputs of the mobility: photos, video, web-page

The YE will enhance our participants' key competences, enabling them to develop a more profound understanding of rural environments and challenge their preconceived ideas. This heightened understanding will subsequently facilitate a smoother adaptation to the challenges associated with exploring the countryside. Furthermore, it could potentially provide an alternative perspective for youths considering a move to rural areas.

1.      Each national group will organize one physical DEOR event and one Social Media Post;

2.      Participants and project team will develop digital outputs during the mobility;

3.      Daily social media posts during mobility;

4.      The digital outputs will be uploaded on the E+ Results Platform;