Month: August 2022

Hello everyone! I’m Benedetta, I’m 26 years old and I come from Caserta. For about a month I have been in Bolzano, at the EURAC research centre, for my IVY experience to follow a project called ‘Living ICH’. The aim of the project is to facilitate cooperation between Italy and Switzerland and to protect the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) as stipulated in the 2003 UNESCO Convention. This in practice translates into a focus on cereal and fruit growing, as well as on traditional practices and techniques that have been handed down from generation to generation. As soon as I arrived, I won’t deny that I had some difficulty in finding my way around all these concepts, which at first glance may seem very complex. For this reason, what helped me a lot was the discussion and dialogue with Ricarda and Elisa, who have followed the project from its very beginnings. They told me all the life stories of the producers – now known as ‘Custodi di Ricchezza/Hüter der Vielfalt’ – that they had listened to over the previous years and how these served to inspire ‘Living ICH’. At the moment I am totally at the service of the project and have different tasks as needed. Some days there are documents to write and creative brainstorms with the team and others we put on our trekking shoes, take the bus and set off to enchanting destinations to spread the project’s objectives. During some trips, it was magic to be able to admire real picturesque centres/natural paradises in the Vinschgau Valley and in South Tyrol in general. I have just returned from a field trip to the centre of Certosa (Karthaus). There, the travelling exhibition “Hüter der Vielfalt” began, which will take the stories of the Custodi to the project areas (Vinschgau and Lower Engadine/Val Müstair), in the hope of inspiring more and more communities to the spirit of cooperation for the protection of the local intangible heritage. – Benedetta, IVY Project Partner for the Interreg project LIVING ICH at EURAC Research.

Did you know that the Balearic Islands in Spain, known mainly for their crystal-clear beaches and their summer parties, receive around sixteen million tourists ever year for a population of only one million inhabitants? The high level of touristic seasonality in the Balearic archipelago makes these flows even more striking since 75% of the visits happen during the three months of summer. Tourism is by far the main economic driver there and represents a major source of income for the local population, as it is the case for many Mediterranean islands, often labelled as Sea-Sun-Sand destinations. However, these flows of tourists in summer also exacerbate some of the most difficult challenges faced by these insular territories. Two obvious examples are the unsustainable pressures on natural resources and the creation of long seasonal unemployment period for a considerable part of these islands’ working force. Additionally, the pandemic and its aftermaths have deeply impacted the industry, bringing forth some of the most critical shortcomings of a one-season tourism model. The Interreg project WINTER MED has been precisely set to tackle these issues in insular and coastal territories with the development of a strategy to support tourism deseasonalisation based on a better and sustainable use of the cultural and natural assets. Launched before the pandemic, this project appears more relevant than ever to fasten the recovery of the sector and strengthen its resilience, but also to drive the sustainable transformation of this industry. As an IVY volunteer at the Intermediterranean Commission of the Conference of Peripherical Maritime Regions (CPMR-IMC), I have had the opportunity to support this cooperation initiative between regions. Since the project was reaching its end, my support has mainly focused on sharing and capitalization on the results. I helped the team organized the final project and capitalization event together with READ S.A., the Greek partner from the South Aegean region. It took place in Rhodes Island on May 31st. Given the active participation of high-level speakers from the UNWTO and the European Commission in the Final Event and the riveting discussions about the project’s results that were triggered, the event was undoubtedly a great success. The day after, a study visit was organized with all the project partners, a privileged moment to strengthen personal bonds and reinforce the sense of common belonging. Additionally, it was a unique occasion for me to see how the policy recommendations issued by the project have been materialised on the ground in the island. Back in Barcelona, I participated during two days in the Second MED Sustainable Tourism Convention which gathered more than 150 representatives of public authorities, universities and organizations working on sustainable tourism from eleven Mediterranean countries. This was an outstanding opportunity to hear from high-Level speakers and experienced professionals, learn more about the challenges and solutions to climate change for the tourism sector and discuss with experts! Two weeks later, I was heading to Rome for a series of events, related to the DestiMED PLUS project, that I helped co-organized as an Interreg volunteer at the CPMR-IMC. The ambition of the project is to make tourism and conservation departments of public authorities work closer together in order to create the enabling conditions for the development of sound ecotourism policies at the local, regional but also Mediterranean level. This new professional trip gave me the opportunity to discover during the weekend the Eternal City, its ruins, its palaces and of course its gastronomy. Two highly intensive days came just after with private meetings on the first day and the Policy Conference and the Final project Event on day two. The organization of these events was as much instructive as it was enriching on a personal level. These last months, I have learnt a lot about transborder European cooperation and the management of projects. I also had the opportunity to connect with many sustainability-driven and inspirational persons from the Mediterranean tourism community, reinforcing both my understanding of the challenges and opportunities that arise from the tourism transition towards sustainability and my willingness to act accordingly. This kind of learning experience corresponds very well to what I was looking for when I became an Interreg Volunteer Youth and joined CPMR: learning by contributing to European Territorial Cooperation projects with the final aims of bringing closer people and building a more sustainable Europe. – Eliott, IVY Project Partner at CPMR-Intermediterranean Commission, Barcelona

Hi everyone ! It’s Yasmine from Torino. I started recently my adventure at Joint Secretariat of Interreg ALCOTRA in Turin. I know , there are few terms to process : let me clarify it for you. Interreg is a European cooperation program: a strategy to solve the socio-economic disparities in the European regions. Going more into detail, ALCOTRA is the cooperation program in the territory bordering France and Italy : it taps into the ERDF ( European Regional Development Fund) and invest into projects that implement economic growth and social inclusion respecting the cultural differences of the localities. Let’s go back to my experience. I am a volunteer in the Joint Secretariat, one of the partners that helps concretely beneficiaries to apply for ERDF funds. Probably you are asking yourself what are my everyday tasks. My activities are related to communication: I assist my mentor in promoting initiatives, events and projects funded by ALCOTRA. During the first month, I mostly assisted my mentor in the drafting of the new website: I’m writing the copy and sketching the graphics of the new site that will be launched in July. It is a very detailed and extensive activity that teaches me a lot about ALCOTRA’s initiatives, its institutional partnership and the challenges of building a website. A great aspect of IVY is that it allows me to see how European cooperation works at the territorial level and I get to participate in it. In addition to my mentor, who is very considerate and willing to assist me in even the tiniest of challenges, the ALCOTRA team provided me with a warm welcome. They represent an active support in my day-to-day activities. Soon, I will be able to attend a training about communication and participate in the monitoring committee. As you can see, I have a very full and varied agenda. I can’t wait to see what’s next. – Yasmine, IVY Reporter at the Joint Secretariat Interreg France-Italia ALCOTRA

Hello everyone!! I am Christos and I come from Thessaloniki, Greece. A month has passed since I started volunteering for the Joint Secretariat of the Interreg V-A Greece Cyprus Programme at the headquarters of the Managing Authority in Thessaloniki and I am fully excited about the whole process of volunteering experience. The huge quantity of knowledge I have gained through these days have familiarize me with various aspects of cooperation in EU. The same time, I understand every day, more and more, what Cohesion Policy is and how important is for the harmonious coexistence between regions of EU. During the first days, under the guidance of my mentor I wrote some articles, describing the ambitions and achievements of the projects, as part of the preparation of a book of approved projects of the Program for the programming period 2014-2021. Then, I started contact with the beneficiaries of the projects I took on, in order to collect some specific information. In that way, I learned about the projects of INTERREG Greece-Cyprus and I realized how important it is their contribution to improve the citizens’ quality of life in local communities. Some projects aim to create the appropriate circumstances for a better and stronger social fabric by reducing disparities. For example, ΕΡΜΙΣ ΙΙ, which is one of my favorite projects, has achieved to give equal chances in access to public spaces for people with special needs. Meanwhile, I really appreciate and admire the respect for environment and sustainable development, which projects show. In total, it is an amazing volunteering experience and I think it is a great opportunity for young people to understand how the Cohesion Policy works and gain as more as possible knowledge they can as they are at the heart of the European Union and the future of it. Hence, unfortunately, very few people know about European Territorial Cooperation Programs and what they offer to the local community taking place and above it. If you are informed, you can get involved, and if you get involved, you can provide and benefit from it. We need the youngsters, their ideas, new views, energy and capabilities. Youngsters can promote and enhance the visibility of our programs and projects better than anyone. It is the generation born and living in the technological era, and they deeply know how social media works. So its contribution to the promotion of our program and projects through modern ways social media is valuable. I believe that IVY is a great idea and opportunity not only for the European young people, as though this they can learn and earn valuable new skills and knowledge but also for the European Territorial Cooperation programs as they will become well promoted by young people contribution. – Christos, IVY Reporter at the Interreg Greece-Cyprus Programme

Hello! My name is Maria and I am from Greece. I graduated from History and Archaeology in Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and I had the opportunity one month ago to start as an IVY Volunteer for the program of Interreg for Cross-Border Cooperation between Greece and the Republic of North Macedonia, at the host organization Regional Development Fund of Central Macedonia (RDF CM), in my hometown, Thessaloniki. The project “EuroP@st & future” I am part of, aims in general to encourage tourism and cultural and natural heritage, with a further achievement of a cross border visibility and cooperation between Greece and North Macedonia. Three archaeological sites, two in Greece and one in North Macedonia, will play the role of “regional attractors” for potential visitors both in the region and the surrounding areas. By improving the attractiveness of the archaeological sites and promoting tourism in the cross-border area, new business opportunities in the tourist, cultural and creative industry will arise. Ultimate goal, is to create a boost of the socio-economic and cultural development of the region. My role in this, is to communicate and disseminate the objectives and activities of the project, both online, through web and social media, and in person, in relevant activities. I am very glad to be an IVY volunteer for many reasons. Firstly, I have the opportunity to understand the framework of the European Union Cohesion Policy and realize the benefits for every country in Europe to cooperate with each other. Also, I already had the chance to participate in a workshop related to an archaeological tour, that took place in one of the archaeological sites in Greece, Palatiano in Kilkis, so I met in person all the project beneficiaries and there were discussions that triggered my interest, regarding the suggestions to be done in the framework of cross border cooperation. Furthermore, new workshops will take place both in Greece and North Macedonia and I am looking forward to taking part! Moreover, the building of my host organization RDF CM, Villa Allatini, is a historical building of 19th century, so it is very interesting working in a place like this. On top of that, my project team and mentor, Chrysanthi Kiskini, are very helpful and supportive and I feel truly lucky to be part of such a working environment and learn continuously new things. The RDF CM, hosts many European projects and I had the opportunity to meet and collaborate with another IVY volunteer. The volunteering experience for Interreg, is a very good opportunity for me to learn how a European project works and how a territorial cooperation can be achieved! Find our project in social media: https://www.facebook.com/Europast-and-Future-106262495426456/?notif_id=1653304290713807%C2%ACif_t%3Dpage_fan&ref=notif – Maria, IVY Project Partner for “EuroP@st & future” at the Regional Development Fund of Central Macedonia

Hello everyone! My name is Giorgos and I am from Greece. I live in my home city Thessaloniki, where I currently study biology and I am volunteering in an Interreg Europe project at the Regional Development Fund of Central Macedonia, partner of the SinCE–AFC. I am contributing as an IVY volunteer for more than a month and am writing this article to inform you about my experience. As an IVY Project Partner I am involved in the SinCE–AFC project, which is about the application of circular economy in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of the Agri-food chain. SMEs are currently representing 99% of the business sector, however they remain mainly uninvolved. SinCE-AFC aims at increasing the number of SMEs that are involved in Circular Economy through the promotion of appropriate managing and financial horizontal mechanisms. In order to achieve that purpose, 9 partners from 7 regions from 7 different European countries are collaborating. During my first month in the Regional Development Fund of Central Macedonia as an IVY volunteer, I had a great and enriching experience. I had the chance to learn about the benefits of the European projects in my region and realize their importance. The staff in my host organization is very supportive and helped me at every step there. I am looking forward to meet new people and face new challenges as an IVY volunteer during next months. – Giorgos, IVY Project Partner for the Intereg Europe project SinCE-AFC at the Regional Development Fund of Central Macedonia