PROGETTO "EU CULTURE @ Agueda", ERASMUS+ Marco Di Cuia, 27 anni Portogallo
European Youth Week in Águeda Águeda is a small city in Portugal, famous all over the World for the “Umbrella sky Project”. Every year, during the hot Portuguese summer, colorful umbrellas float in the streets, creating a great and fresh atmosphere. I am Marco, and I have been doing my EVS in this beautiful city. However, Águeda is not just umbrellas. It is a young city with a lot of children and a deep sports culture; the first question here, when you meet a new person is: “Benfica or Porto?” I have been volunteering in Psientífica, an association for social promotion directed to young people. “O dia a dia” is full of activities; I work in school, promoting non formal learning and intercultural dialogue. I could speak about many days here in Águeda, but I would like to talk about an important week: The European Youth week. The 2° of May, after one week of preparation, we have started!!! The first day was in school. We organized a world café, we spoke with students about volunteering, traveling, fears, aspirations and anything concerns European mobility. The second day was in the gymnasium. We ran a Basket tournament called “ Alley-Euroope”. The kids participated in skills challengers and on three-on-three basketball tournament. All the while, we organized games related to Europe. For the third day, during an open house event in school, we prepared a European stand. More than 4.000 students were present; there were food, music, art and cultural stands organized by different schools. I have never seen too many kids together. The schools, with the several activities that organize, and the kids, always full of ideas and energy, are the heartbeat of this country.
Over the night, we did a “guerrilla marketing” action, spreading European poster for the whole city. We concluded the week, running a European party, with deejays, games and fun. After this long week, I can say that I reached one of my objectives: leave a mark and create an impact in the community. The activities that we carried out for the European youth week have led young people to get more information about Erasmus + project and….maybe to take important decision for their future.