Cork teens head to Bulgaria to discuss identity and what it means to be European

I recently helped to organise a trip to Bulgaria for 14 Cork teenagers from Cloyne Diocesan Youth Services (CYDS).

The visit was part of the Erasmus+ project - the European Union’s flagship funding programme for education, training, youth, and sport - and the youngsters were accompanied by five staff.

The theme of our Erasmus+ is EU & ME and is looking at young people’s identity and what it means to be a European citizen.

We left CDYS Midleton in late October and headed to Dublin for our flight to Bulgaria early the next morning. Despite weather reports of showers and cold temperatures, we arrived in a sunny Sofia where we met up with our Bulgarian partner and some of the country’s young people.

It was a long bus journey to the town of Banya, which would be our home for the week, picking up more of the Bulgarian group along the way, but spirits were high and we settled in quickly.

We were made feel very welcome and the young people and staff mixed so well that by the following day we were all one big happy group.

Workshops began and we got straight into our topic of EU & ME, looking at our place in Europe and what it meant to be a European citizen.

This was of particular interest to this group as the young Irish people were very conscious of the rise in far-right groups and issues around immigration in Ireland.

There was also a feeling identified within the Irish contingent of a slight disassociation from Europe due to being an island nation.

From the Bulgarian point of view, the young people were from various backgrounds and felt their identity was strongly tied to their families’ origins, as Bulgaria is relatively new to the EU and still finding its place.

Throughout the week, the young people got the opportunity to create their idea of an ideal Europe and how that would look to them.

After much debate over different points of view, a constitution was drawn up and a flag drawn, combining the work of the whole group.

Other topics discussed were around prejudices and stereotypes, what each word meant, and the differences between them.

The young people were challenged to think of any prejudices and stereotypes that they held and discussed how they could learn to let go of these to be able to treat everyone equally.

As an exchange of culture, both groups held a night where they showcased traditional dance, music and food from each country along with presentations around the history of both countries.

The Bulgarian night included a trip to a local swimming pool filled with natural spring water, which is flowing underground all around the region we were staying. This was full of natural minerals, and the temperature was always around 36C.

The Irish night was held on Halloween so the origins of Halloween and Samhain were explained to the Bulgarians, many of whom had not celebrated it before.

To finish the night, we decorated the local park in Halloween decorations and dressed up while giving out sweets to the Bulgarian group and some other local children who came by.

The group were also introduced to the Youth Pass system, which is used by Erasmus+ to record skills gained by the young people while on the exchange.

These included competences such as personal and social areas, citizenship, cultural awareness and expression, digital and literacy competence.

As the week progressed, the young people would log on to the youth pass system and write about a skill they had worked on that day, and this would all be uploaded on to their certificates.

At the end of the week, there was a closing ceremony where each young person was presented with their Youth Pass certificate, showing what they had learned during their time there, after which the goodbyes had to be said.

Overall, the Erasmus youth exchange gave 29 young people an experience that they would never have been able to do without the funding and support from the EU and Léargas, our national agency.

To finish, here are some quotes from the young people who took part.

“Before this exchange, I felt more Irish than European. From this exchange, I definitely feel more connected as we talk about the similarities between our countries and we see that we’re not that different.”

“Before this challenge, I didn’t think much about my European identity. Now, I feel more connected to Europe, especially through the shared values, diversity, and collaboration I’ve experienced with others.”

“The Youth Pass certificate at the end of the trip, recording all your new competences and everything you achieved, makes you feel proud of yourself.”

“Every young person should be able to experience this kind of fun and make these kinds of memories. I’m grateful that I was able to take part in this trip. I’m grateful for the people I went with and the people I met along the way.”

“I would absolutely recommend Erasmus+ to my friends because you can make really good memories, you can do fun teamwork, and that informal studying is way better than the school one. Definitely a hit!”