Youth volunteers from BYF took part in a project “Young community organizers for social sustainability”

In the 27.02.2023 – 07.03.2023 period, volunteers from BYF took part in a project under the Erasmus+ program, financed by the European Commission, with title “Young community organizers for social sustainability”. On it, they had the opportunity to spend a week on the Black Sea coast in Constanta, Romania, together with 15 other young people from Italy, Spain, Romania and Turkey. The main goal of the project was to develop coaching skills to support young leaders of unorganized communities.

The mobility program was quite intensive and full with various activities, combining theoretical knowledge with practical ones. The learning principle was the so-called “experiential learning”. This means that participants first “experience the activity” and then discuss and reflect on what happened. There were also many group activities with which the participants formed new skills and competencies that would be useful to them in the future. During the project our volunteers learned many different methods of how one can clarify and formulate one’s given goal and subsequently start working on it. They learned to ask open-ended questions and to be good active listeners.

Here are the impressions left by the Bulgarian participants after the project:

“It was my first, but it definitely won’t be my last project. I met unique people who motivated me every day. I learned many things that I can use to help myself and others. The teaching method was fun and allowed for quick memorization and absorption of the material. My experience was filled with many great moments and I will remember it for the rest of my life.” – Valentina Ilieva

“The project consists of three mobilities and this is the second one in which I am taking part. From the previous time in Italy, I gained knowledge that I was able to build on now in Romania. The trainers managed to provide us with information that is not only interesting but also useful in an easy and accessible way. Also, it was a great feeling to see familiar faces again and meet new people, which is one of the most exciting things about the project!” – Andrea Ermenkova

“I returned home with many positive emotions, good memories, new knowledge and friends, as from any project. Without an iota of worry, I embarked on the various practical tasks. I had fun learning and trying new things. I dare say that I also improved my formal communication with people. Undoubtedly, this will remain one of the projects from which I got the most food for thought. Don’t be surprised, go to Erasmus!!!” – Teodora Koleva

“Participation in the project was an enriching and exciting experience for me, thanks to which I learned a lot of new things. I met wonderful people with whom I created unique memories! Every day we worked on different tasks that were extremely interesting to me! I came back recharged, inspired and grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this project! I look forward to the next part, where we will meet again to apply what we have learned and work together with the other participants again!” – Irena Georgieva