The Youth Exchange Enjoy Eat! has 3 main goals:

To increase the healthy lifestyle of young people in the following areas:

1. Eating habits: by bringing awareness about the nutritional values of food and how to create balanced and tasty meals for different kind of daily activities.​

2. Physical activity: by experiencing the physical benefits of sport, body movement and outdoor activities. By introducing physical activities in their weekly agenda.

​3. Use of media: by understanding the effects of an abuse of social media and technology; disconnecting from them and experiencing direct human interactions for 10 days.

​

To learn about other cultures, increase and spread a sense of European belongings through:

1. National food: food is an essential part of each culture; what people eat and how they eat represent their worldview. Learning foreigners eating habits reveal a fundamental part of their identity​

2. Movement: Dance is a tool to represent who we are and where we come from through movement in combination with music. Sport: cultural traits emerge also in the way we play in a group context. Getting out of the doors of the accommodation and interact with local people allow creating an intercultural exchange in an informal context.

3. Disconnecting from technology: taking a break to the use of the internet and phones allow establishing direct human contacts within and outside the group of the participants rediscovering a more authentic and deep way of interacting and knowing people.

To improve soft skills and group work skills of young people and their chances to enter the labour market through:

1. Cooking activities: cooking is a playground for practising cooperation, communication, leadership, delegation, working result-oriented, working in a time frame and practical cooking skills. Learning to cook it allows fulfilling basic needs and raise autonomy.​

2. Sport: learning to play with others teaches how to cooperate, interact, improve personal attitudes, manage inner energy and maintain self-control. Dance: It allows us to fully embody our inner energy and express it. It’s a space to become something new. Outdoor activities confront us with ourselves: when we dive into the wild, we realize that we are part of Nature and our connection with the whole.

3. Healthy use of technology: creating balance in the use of technology supports also in creating balance and connection with other people. Technology can be also supportive in finding new jobs or improving work position.

working methods

The working methods used are mainly in the field of non-formal education and experiential learning. Participants are going to work all together as a group, in small groups and individually; they are going to learn by doing and by their involvement in the activities, which allows each of them to take further steps starting from their current position, independently form the differences present in the group.

The success of the exchange is based on a pro-active attitude of the participants, the method is also called learning by involvement

What kind of activities?
We use cooking, educational games, sport, body movement and dance, reflection groups, brainstorming and sharing techniques, simulations, teambuilding activities, icebreakers, meetings with experts, workshops, presentations, outdoor activities, direct interaction with local people in a digital detox retreat context.

By choosing to get out from your comfort zone, you enable yourself to expand your limits and evolve. Allow yourself to discover the unknown!

When we will stay in Bergolo, we plan to implement a program that embraces the whole day as described below:
10:00 – 11:30 morning session 1st part
11:30 – 12:00 coffee break
12:00 – 13:30 morning session 2nd part
13:30 – 15:30 lunch break
15:30 – 17:00 afternoon session 1st part
17:00 – 17:30 coffee break
17:30 – 19:00 afternoon session 2nd part
19:00 – 21:00 dinner Break
21:00 – 23:00 evening session

This is just a general idea of the schedule, very often it will happen that the schedule will be adapted to the dynamic of the activities and to the needs and wishes of the participants. The draft schedule is here to let you know that free time will be limited, keep it in mind before applying! Despite the intensity of the program and together with your contribution, we aim to make it entertaining and variated. We plan to make the evening sessions lighter, still, they are not optional, they are part of the program. We are planning also outdoor activities and/or visits that will change the usual schedule of the exchange.

A YOUTH EXCHANGE IN 4 PHASES

The Youth Exchange of Enjoy Eat! is made by 4 phases. Participating partially cannot be an option: if you want to take part in the exchange make sure that you can take an active part in all the phases related to your role as described below

planning

Advanced Preparatory Meeting (APV)

17th January: Arrival day

18th – 19th January: Activities days

20th January: Departure day​

One Group leader and one participant per country meet in Bergolo, Italy to take a creative role in the development of the exchange:
A) they get to know each other and the local area,
B) they share their needs and competencies that they already have upon the main topics,
C) they create a common pre-exchange preparation plan
D) they get support from the coordinators to facilitate part of the program of the exchange.
E) they share ideas for fundraising activities in connection with food that they could implement to cover part of their expenses during the exchange

preparation

25th January – 25th March

A) The leaders and the sending organizations complete each national group with other 4 young people (6 people in total) and they organize their travel to the exchange.

B) The leader and the participant who attended the APV prepare the workshop they chose during the APV and they check with the other members of their group if somebody wants to share competencies connected with the main topics of the project

C) Each national group decide how to represent its culture through food during the youth exchange: they choose 1 typical food to cook in order to present their culture and also some interactive activities.

D) Participants start knowing each other and break the ice through online tools
E) The leaders and participants who attended the APV share with the rest of their group the fundraising activities discussed during the APV

exchange

26th March 2020: Arrival day of the leaders

27th March 2020: Arrival day of the participants

28th March – 6th April 2020: Program days

7th April 2020: Departure day

It is the core activity of the whole experience, a space where participants and leaders meet, exchange their knowledge about the main topics, experience and deliver non-formal education activities and interact with the local population.
Some of the main points of the Exchange:

A) Experience 10 days of disconnection from any technology (mobile phone, laptop, internet connection, digital watches, MP3, radio, etc.)

B) Learn about each others culture through food and interactive activities

C) Learn about cooking, nutrition and increase group work and soft skills

C) Get involved in sport, dance and outdoor activities

D) Make an action plan to implement a healthier lifestyle once back home

E) Interact with the local population and discover the local area

follow up

8th April – 31st May 2020

​It is the closing step of the project.

A) Each national group organize one activity of its choice to share the competences that they gained in the field of cooking, food, nutrition, sport, dance, movement, outdoor activities or healthy use of technologies involving a minimum of 15 people in the age target 15-30. It can be a presentation, implementing one of the workshops done during the exchange or a new one.

B) Each participant and leader write a short testimonial of their experience, fill in an evaluation form and share the pictures, documentary and web page of the project.

C) Each participant fill in and receive the Youthpass certificate

D) Each participant and leader receive the travel reimbursement

Where

Reimburement & expenses

It is available a reimbursement for the travel costs for the participants and leaders who take part in all phases of the exchange (as described in the dedicated section of this web page) and provide the required travel documents (flight itinerary and boarding passes, bus and train tickets). You buy your tickets and at the end of the project we reimburse them.

Both for Advanced preparatory Visit then for the Youth Exchange, it is allowed to travel in the travel days and maximum 2 days after and before the travel days. It is not allowed to arrive after and leave earlier.
The reimbursement is done after the exchange, when follow-up activities are completed, within the end of May 2020 up to the amounts stated below:

Italy

€  40

Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Romania, Spain, United Kingdom

€ 230

There will be a common transfer from Torino Porta Susa train station to Bergolo and back the day of arrival and of departure. The cost of this transport is 45 Euro both ways and it was already deducted from the travel reimbursement budget. Consider it while planning your travel: it is the only way to reach the venue.

DO NOT BUY YOUR TICKETS BEFORE YOU RECEIVE THE OFFICIAL CONFIRMATION FROM ASSOCIAZIONE VAGAMONDO

This program is supported by a co-funding of the European Union allocated by the Erasmus + program through the Italian National Agency.

We ask each participant to contribute by investing the amount of 50€*
It is a sign of real interest, commitment and a concrete support to the project.

Leaders are exempted: they contribute by an extra involvement in the organizational side.

* Don’t leave the money to be an obstacle for your participation: during the Advanced Preparatory Visit, we will discuss and collect some fundraising activities that could support you in raising that amount and more. Contact your sending organization for more info.

Participants and leaders