What an exciting start to this year’s Generation Europe – The Academy international youth encounters: active young people from Thuringia (Germany), Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Spain) and Krzyżowa (Poland) met for twelve days in Puerto de la Cruz on the north coast of Tenerife.
Following meetings in Germany and Poland, the mainland Europeans were now due to make a return visit to the Atlantic island. The international group worked together on concepts of democracy, the problems of mass tourism, climate change and civil courage.
Understanding social patterns and finding solutions together: Balancing interests while organising community life was the focus of an educational method for which the participants first designed their individual dream houses. The groups were then faced with the challenge of putting their houses together to form a village, even though there was not enough space for all of their personal dream houses.
Despite these limitations, the groups worked together to find solutions. In the end, the three villages were united to form a tri-national town, and the young people discussed what common infrastructure their town still lacked because it would not simply result from the addition of private wishes. The participants then used the result of their work to discuss how living together in societies is organised and what is needed to make it as successful as possible.
Travelling Responsibly
“Overtourism”, meaning the negative consequences of mass tourism for local communities and the environment, is currently a hot topic on the Canary Islands. In a workshop, the young people took a close look at the problem, discussed their own role and proposed actions for sustainable alternatives.
In order to minimise their own footprint and as a small practical contribution to reducing the problems, they also organised a waste collection campaign in the following days, in which they collected and disposed bags of civilisation waste from the landscape.
Joint excursions were also on the agenda, for example to Teide National Park, the highest mountain in Spain at around 3,700 metres. According to legend, this dormant volcano, which has not been active for over a thousand years, is home to Guayota, a destructive demon that could one day spew lava again. During the hike, the group discovered unique plants that are only found in this region and enjoyed breathtaking views of Mount Teide, the sea of clouds and the fascinating landscape that looks like a stone tiramisu.
Learning From Each Other: Peer-to-Peer Power
Being active also means sharing your own knowledge and developing yourself through new input. In a series of peer-to-peer workshops, the young people organised opportunities for mutual exchange of experience. These included the chances and risks of artificial intelligence in social media, the sustainability goals of the United Nations, and also very practical topics such as teaching first aid skills for injuries and other emergency situations. A variety of creative projects on various topics were realised in an art workshop, including a song, a play, drawings and stickers.
Multipliers for Democracy and European Cooperation
In order to share the experiences of this intensive time with as many people as possible, the international group organised a public closing event. Here, the participants presented their work, their wishes and demands to the local community and discussed their ideas with them.
To make all this possible, the Jugendsozialwerk Nordhausen (Germany), the Asociación para la Participación, Oportunidad y Desarrollo (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain) and the Krzyżowa Foundation for Mutual Understanding in Europe (Krzyżowa, Poland) have entered into a three-year project partnership. A big thank you to everyone involved in the three local youth groups and the participating organisations for their commitment!