A lot of funny and happy moments. Interesting skills and pure humanity.

Why am I part of wEUnite?
By a coincidence I did some help at a project and got a desire for more. It’s the socializing that enthrals me.

My name is Maria and I am 27 years old. My main studies are Culture Sciene and Media Communication. Art, music, sports, sociology and exploring different cultures are my hobbies.

I am very lucky to grab the chance to be part of some training courses of Erasmus+ and I am very proud of it. For me it means a lot to get to know many very different people from very different cultures, backgrounds and livings. I have won a numerous great experiences. It breaks all the self-established opinions you have in your mind. This means a lot to me and my life to live more freely and make life more attractive and fancy.

How it started? Why am I part of wEUnite?
It began 2 years ago, when I was looking for an opportunity to go abroad. I made an appointment at the Landesjugendreferat Kärnten und afterwards, they send me a lot of training offers and youth projects. With time, I got connected with more and more people interested and working in this field – and most importantly, with wEUnite. Luckily, I met the two girls, Tini and Nina, who found their own NGO last year and I am very happy to know them. I also was asked to join their training courses and be part of wEUnite. Within wEUnite I created a lot of special memories, which make my life more adorable and precious.

My name is Tini , I am 22 years old and just
started my master degree in „Media and Convergence Management“ at the University of Klagenfurt. In my free time I love to travel and spend time in nature with my friends and family. Reading books, cycling and swimming can also be considered as my favorite hobbies.

What do I like about youth projects?
I like about youth projects that they open a variety of new opportunities to the people that take part in such. Those do not only include the possibility to travel, learn and get in touch with new cultures, they also open up new perspectives on numerous topics. During those projects sometimes also live-changing situations come up that lead to a personal development.

What have I experienced by taking part in YPs?
During my participation in several youth projects I gained many competences in different fields. I can proudly say that those experiences are responsible that. I became the person I am today.I found this NGO with Nina in 2014 in order to create new possibilities foryoungsters in the region of Carinthia. With wEUnite we try to activate andmotivate young people and show them new opportunities to travel, experienceintercultural exchanges and learn in a non-formal way about various topics.

Why am I part of wEUnite?I found this NGO with Nina in 2014 in order to create new possibilities for youngsters in the region of Carinthia. With wEUnite we try to activate and motivate young people and show them new opportunities to travel, experience intercultural exchanges and learn in a non-formal way about various topics.

Hey everyone! My name is Nina, I’m 20 years old and study to become a teacher for English and Religion at the Karl-Franzens-Universität in Graz. In my leisure time I enjoy travelling and working for our NGO, but I also like to spend time with my family and friends. Sometimes, when I have a lot of time, I bake cakes and other sweets.

What do I like about youth projects?
The question should be what anyone can’t like about them. Youth projects are a great opportunity in every way. Not only can you meet new people and gain knowledge, but you can learn about other countries and cultures. All youth projects open up new perspectives and show how efficient non-formal learning is. Apart from the topics you work on during projects, you always get to know a new facet of yourself.

What have I experienced by taking part in YPs?
Through my participation in numerous youth projects I have gained more self-confidence, developed my competences and made many new friends. Being part of a group is a different experience every time and I am happy that I had the chance to participate in so many projects until now. I can’t wait for more to come : )

Why am I part of wEUnite?
As Tini and I took part in some projects together, we had the idea to create our own NGO in 2014. That’s what we did – we founded wEUnite. Now we host youth projects and partner in as many as we can in order to give other young people in Carinthia the same opportunities that we had throughout the last years. wEUnite is an organization that aims to open up the world for youngsters and show them how easy it is to visit new places, make new friends and learn about various topics in an informal way.

Manuel, 21, from Vienna participated at an Erasmus+ project for the first time… read on to see how he has experienced it 🙂

I had a great week filled with a lot of joy, interesting workshops and a lot of new experiences. Nevertheless, for me the most important aspect of the training course was meeting people from so many different countries and the cultural exchange that took place. Everyone met the challenge of expressing themselves differently from the way they were used to do it. I believe that everyone grew on this, got the chance to improve their communicative skills and observed every days life from another point of view. I wasn’t aware that different cultures bring so many different aspects with it.

I have learned how to use hand gestures to underline the things being said. This was mostly brought to us by the Italians. (on the right you can see some of them)

There was a Polish guy who used his voice very cleverly and an energetic guy from Estonia showed me the power of smiling and positive thinking. At home, I live my life more passively and I think others do it too. We don’t try to communicate well and sometimes we are not interested to even try. It is different on occasions like this training course. We see people from around Europe and all of us try to get the most out of it. Sometimes it means the most to find new ways to express ourselves and trying to understand others. This effort can and should be done in our day-to-day lifes to improve life quality.

I think, through this experience, that people should frequently meet people from other cultures to enhance their spectrum of observation and communication. This is one of the most important things I have learned at SpeakUp! and I am very grateful for that. If I would get another chance of participating in events where many cultures meet I would, like Erasmus+ projects, with no doubt, take it. I would recommend everybody to take the chance as well if they can because the experiences are and will always be unforgettable.