Gradimo prihodnost Erasmus Project

Project Title

Gradimo prihodnost

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for youth

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Rural development and urbanisation; Youth (Participation, Youth Work, Youth Policy) ; Labour market issues incl. career guidance / youth unemployment

Project Summary

“Building the Future” was an innovative, creative and dynamic transnational youth initiative of two informal groups of young people – the group “Gradnja” of Društvo Zelena centrala, Slovenia, and the group Terraepaglia from Italy. The initiative was the response to the perceived needs of our local communities (rural areas in north-eastern Slovenia and central Italy), among others: a high youth unemployment rate and precarious jobs for young people, brain drain, social deprivation and exclusion, health problems and increasing social inequality among young people. We also addressed the need of sustainable development of rural areas.
The initiative acted by the principle “young people for young people” and actively connected more than 40 young people U30 from rural areas of Central Italy and North-Eastern Slovenia facing big geographical barriers, especially those with fewer opportunities due to health, social, and economic barriers. The participants walked the path of empowerment through innovative informal education about social entrepreneurship in the field of sustainable rural development and natural construction with earth. They learned and tried out more than 5 different traditional and modern techniques of natural construction with clay. In the project, they equipped themselves with relevant and high-quality skills to independently enter the labor market with a niche range of products and services in the field of natural construction with earth, and they improved their starting position regarding the new employments.
At the same time the project addressed specific problems of two initiating groups and their local environments. Group from Slovenia wanted to establish a permanent center for social inclusion and youth work through education about natural construction with earth, for which they needed adequate laboratory and learning center. Group in Italy is faced with the disastrous consequences of the earthquakes in summer and autumn 2016, resulting in a complete destroy of entire village and towns, and young people immigrated elsewhere, also to other countries. The earthquake also destroyed the barn for the animals at learning center Panta Rei, where the Italian partner organisation met and worked.
Both groups realized the initiative by innovative practical workshops of social entrepreneurship and natural construction with earth through the reconstruction of two stables for animals: in Slovenia, the barn became a training center, in Italy, a new, reconstructed home for volunteers of Panta Rei and the animals. Project groups in both lands were developing innovative models of earthquake-protection natural building with earth and promote new youth initiatives in terms of post-earthquake reconstruction.
During the project, two international youth exchanges took place in the form of expertly conducted ten-day practical workshops of natural construction with clay – the first (22.7.-31.7.2017.) at the organic farm of Društvo Zelena centrala in Slovenia and the second (20.8.-29.8.2017 ) at the center Panta Rei (educational center of sustainable development) in Italy.
After that, we conducted four weekend workshops, two in Slovenia and two in Italy, in which participants of summer workshops shared their knowledge with a total of 20 (10 in Slo, 10 in Ita) interested individuals from their local communities, not necessary U30, and thus consolidated their knowledge and promoted the sustainable development of rural areas and natural construction with clay in their local communities.
After a severe winter, we encountered a difficult situation in Slovenia, as the snow and heavy rain destroyed a large part of the renovated building. We carried out more than 10 weekend “working-actions” with project participants, through which we have achieved the goals of the project.Some other results of the project: successful implementation of numerous innovative practical workshops for social entrepreneurship and natural construction with clay, renovation of the stables in Jurovski Dol into a learning center, accessible to public, renovation of the building in Italy, damaged in the earthquake, international exchange of practices and experiences between partner organizations, increasing the visibility of natural construction with clay, increasing knowledge on natural materials, increasing awareness of the importance of sustainable rural development, promotion of the quality youth work in rural environments, which should not only be sleeping settlements, but a healthy working and living environments composed of active citizens.
About our project, a master thesis at the University of Ljubljana was created by Nina Klasinc, a young project participant.
All participants in the project have improved their knowledge of social entrepreneurship, improved their social networks and competences, and improved their social positions with greater social inclusion in the community. Both partner organizations are already continuing their work.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 36400 Eur

Project Coordinator

Drustvo Zelena centrala & Country: SI

Project Partners

• Stella Croci