Hi! My name is Assya and I am the first IVY volunteer to join the Interreg Greater Region Programme team at the House of the Greater Region in Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg.
I recently completed my studies with a Master’s degree in Border Studies. As abstract as it may seem, it is a field in which I found myself very comfortable, having grown up in the cross-border region between the French Moselle and Luxembourg and being quite familiar with borders. During this cross-border Master programme, I had the opportunity to study in three languages, at four universities and in three different countries. This experience was my first contact with Interreg and the Greater Region (Belgium, France, Germany and Luxembourg). Over the course of these two years, I realised that the cross-border region in which I had grown up extended to a much larger territory, that of the Greater Region, and that my opportunities were expanding at the same time.
After this period of intense mobility, I now have the opportunity to settle down in Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg, at the House of the Greater Region, for a six-month experience where I will support the Interreg Greater Region Programme team in various tasks. As an IVY Reporter, my objective is to promote the projects supported by Interreg in the Greater Region, the role of the Interreg Greater Region Programme, while emphasising their objectives and results, in order to bring the local population closer to the projects but also to inform them about the possibilities offered by Interreg in their territory.
Cross-border cooperation opened doors for me and brought me many opportunities because I was lucky enough to have been informed at the right time. So, I would like the local population, especially young people, to be equally well informed and aware of the opportunities they have in their territory, in terms of social, cultural, educational and professional life. The idea is to strengthen community life a little more by promoting cross-border cooperation and solidarity.
A little work about my first steps:
On the third day, I had the opportunity to take part in the meeting of the monitoring committee for the third call for projects 2021-2027, which took place at the Luxembourg Ministry of Housing and Spatial Planning. All the stakeholders were present: the managing authority, the project managers, the partner authorities from the four countries, the contact points and the functional areas. This allowed me to see the internal process of setting up Interreg projects, to understand how they are built, why the partner authorities agree for them to be set up or what they lack in order to receive the funds. So, barely three days in, I already feel like I’ve learned a lot. I can’t wait to see what’s coming next!
I will try to share as much as possible about the stages of this six-month adventure through articles and posts on social networks, follow us!
https://www.instagram.com/interreggr/
– Assya, IVY Reporter at the MA Interreg V-A Grande Région
