Category: Sin categoría

My name is Rosita Balducci, I am Italian and I am an IVY volunteer at the GECT-Euregio Senza Confini in Trieste, the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC). Founded by the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, the Veneto Region and the Land Carinthia, it aims to favor, facilitate and promote cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation in the European Union (EU) among its components, implementing common projects for the development of the territories. “Economic and social cohesion” and “economic, social and cultural ties between populations” are thus strengthened, contributing to the development of the respective territories.  It’s been a month since  I started my experience here and I am already very happy and satisfied of my contributions and tasks carried out. The project I volunteer with is “EMOTIONWay”, the main aim of which is preserving, protecting, promoting and developing the natural and cultural heritage through the creation of a cross-border network of cycle routes and paths of the Eastern Alps (ReCAO), integrated with the local public transport of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Veneto, Carinthia and the Autonomous Province of Bolzano. The project aims to address two problems in the cross-border area: difficult accessibility to some sites of natural and cultural interest by cyclists and tourists on foot due to insufficient links between cycling routes and sites of interest and poor inter-modality bike-bus bike-train service for cycling routes and paths; poor visibility of some sites due to lack of information on how to reach them, inadequate services, unvalued nature sites. In pursuit of the objective of creating a cross-border network of cycle routes and routes in the area of the Eastern Alps by improving their connection through the inter-modality bike-bus bike train, new cross-border local public transport services have been activated. The missing links have been identified and pilot actions have been launched for the inter-modal connection of bike-buses and bike-trains to create the Cycle Network 2.1 Eastern Alps. In this regard, the experience is very interesting and helpful in order to learn a lot about cross-border cooperation, since I am in contact almost every day with different regions and realities and to acquire information on how public authorities work. Moreover, I do many other things with my host organization, supporting my colleagues in their activities and I am learning a lot of new skills and better understanding the world of work and of European projects. It is a great opportunity to meet new people and understand the different dynamics of collaboration, but also to contribute in order to increasingly strengthen cooperation and new relationships. I have already learnt so much and I can’t wait to keep going with my experience, which I would recommend to anyone who would like to learn about cross-border cooperation. Moreover, Trieste is a beautiful city by the sea, which always makes me feel good! Rosita, IVY Project Partner for the Interreg Italy-Austria project “EMOTIONWay” at the GECT-Euregio Senza Confini

Since the beginning of my IVY Volunteer experience within the ENI CBC-Med project “MY SEA: Mediterranean Youth, NEETs and women advancing Skills, Employment and Awareness in the blue and green economy” I am participating and supporting the activities for the implementation of the project in Tunisia with the Union Tunisienne de Solidarité Sociale (UTSS), one of the six partners of the project. During my first month volunteering, I could already witness the importance given to the Tunisian local community. The project tackles a group considered vulnerable in the professional insertion, such as young, women and Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEETs) and aim to insert them in the professional world combining economic actors and formation trainings specialized in the agrifood and waste management sectors. We launched the form for the candidature of 250 beneficiaries who will participate in trainings to improve their employability, thanks to the strengthening of their digital, sector-related, and transversal skills, with the aim of reducing the skills mismatch while strongly contributing to two fields that will provide a sustainable and eco-responsible impact on the Tunisian context: the agri-food and waste management sectors. The project will finally lead to the professional insertion of young willing Tunisian within enterprises, but not only! It will also contribute to the creation of three associations within the field of agrifood and waste management, a long-term solution that will hopefully contribute to the development and continuation of this action. Last week the Union Tunisienne de la Solidarité Sociale (UTSS) organized a meeting with the experts to discuss the logistical aspects of the trainings that will soon start for young Tunisian people and women in the region of Grand Tunis and two Tunisian Governorates: Nabeul and Bizerte. The transnationality of the project embraces a partnership without borders: as an IVY volunteer I am participating in meetings with all project partners (Centro Informazione Educazione e Sviluppo (CIES Onlus); the University of Palermo – Department of Agricultural,Food and Forestry Sciences, the EuroTraining Educational Organisation in Greece, Lebanese Development Network (LDN) in Lebanon, the Jordan University of Science and Technology, and the Tunisian Union of Social Solidarity (UTSS). As an IVY volunteer, I am contributing to the continuous exchange and dialogue of good ideas and knowledge in the project.

One month has passed since I first stepped into the Managing Authority of the Interreg V-A Italy-Slovenia 2014-2020 Programme in Trieste, Italy.   My first impression of the Managing Authority was that of a welcoming and friendly environment where employees do their best to contribute in the field of cross-border cooperation and I was thrilled to be able to join them as an IVY volunteer. For the period 2021-2027, the Interreg VI-A Italy-Slovenia Programme will have a financial budget of more than 88.6 million euros and its Cooperation Programme will implement its strategy on the basis of three Policy Objectives (POs): a more competitive, innovative and smarter Europe (PO1), a greener, low-carbon transitioning towards a net zero carbon economy and resilient Europe (PO2) a more social and inclusive Europe (PO4), as well as an Interreg Specific Objective for an efficient public administration (ISO1). The Area of intervention extends over a total surface of 19,841 km2 and has a total population of approximately 3 million inhabitants. It covers 5 Italian NUTS 3 regions (Venice, Udine, Pordenone, Gorizia and Trieste) and 5 Slovenian NUTS 3 regions (Primorsko-notranjska, Osrednjeslovenska, Gorenjska, Obalno-kraška and Goriška). As an IVY volunteer some of my daily tasks are: translating, editing and printing documents; writing and posting news or articles for the Programme website; collecting polls from public events; helping with the organization of events or meetings. What I like the most about being an IVY volunteer is that I can do multiple creative tasks and every day at the office brings some new different activities. Moreover, I am learning a lot about topics that I am very passionate about: cross-border cooperation and European regional policy. Having being born and raised in a multicultural family of a cross-border region, I developed the strong belief that cooperation between public authorities and citizens from both bordering states is necessary to achieve a harmonious level of development in the cross-border area. –Anna Labinac, IVY Reporter at the Managing Authority Interreg Italy-Slovenia.

They say time flies when we are having a good time and my first month as an IVY Volunteer has really passed so fast! My name is Flavia, I am Italian and I am now in France as an IVY Project Partner at Parc Naturel Régional des Vosges du Nord. This Natural Park is, together with its German counterpart (Naturpark Pfälzerwald), part of an UNESCO Transboundary Biosphere Reserve. Sounds like the perfect place to be, doesn’t it? I am working on the Interreg project “Endangered Animal Species” which focuses on the protection of a very diverse groups of animals which includes butterflies, bats and crayfish. They can be found all over the Reserve and therefore need a collective effort to assure their conservation. Protecting nature is essential to assure a bright and healthy future for everybody and I really like this project because it is the perfect example of why cross-border cooperation is necessary and useful to achieve that. My main mission here is to help the team during the conservation actions in the field and to assist in the coordination with the German partners, in order to exchange knowledge and establish a cohesive action plan. Moreover, I have been participating in various dissemination activities like writing some scientific articles or proposing games and performances to children: we teach them how to recognize all the animals they can meet around the Natural Reserve and we show them how easy yet important it is to respect nature and its inhabitants, no matter the species they belong to… or the language they speak! The Parc des Vosges du Nord is putting in place so many different and interesting actions to protect and valorize not only the natural but also the cultural and architectural heritage of this amazing territory and I am very happy to be part of this team. Moreover, our office is located inside the Castle of La Petite-Pierre, a little village surrounded by the forest: a truly magical place! I have already learnt so much and I can’t wait to discover even more about the multiple aspects of cross-border cooperation and biodiversity conservation during the next five months. Thank you IVY for this opportunity…  the best is yet to come! Flavia, IVY Project Partner for the Interreg project Endangered animal species in the Vosges du Nord – Pfälzerwald Cross-border Biosphere Reserve

In the time I have spent in my IVY adventure I have learned a lot of new things. I managed to identify problems but also similarities between 2 regions sharing the borders between Greece and Bulgaria, that i could never have imagined, having in mind that Bulgaria was completely different in a lot of ways. Furthermore ,the Cross Border area exhibits depopulation trends and includes businesses that are deprived and isolated in both countries, as manifested by some statistics figures for the regions. There is a trend of rising poverty rates and high unemployment rates, as a consequence of this labor market breakdown. The prevailing economic situation shows that services and financial access to agricultural producers and small enterprises is very limited across both sides of the border. Another major problem faced by businesses in the project regions is the lack of opportunity to participate in large exhibitions, as these are organized in large urban and business centers, and there are not the available resources and human resources to take place. Also, the project areas are not strong financial centers so they do not have such a strong infrastructure and state support. The Interreg project “Boosting Business Support to SMEs through setting up Mobile Fair and Innovative Services in the Cross-border Territory – FAIR FOR ALL”, that I am volunteering for, can significantly contribute to the elimination of this phenomenon and enable very small companies to participate in trade fairs. The main objective of the FAIR FOR ALL project is the empowerment of entrepreneurship and SMEs providing the opportunity to participate in fairs and exhibitions without the preparation and the cost-expenses required at global exhibitions. SMEs through networking and an extrovert export strategy dramatically increase the possibility of business survival and viability.  European cross-border cooperation seeks to address shared issues in border regions that have been identified together, as well as to take advantage of untapped growth potential in border regions, by advancing the process of cooperation in order to promote the overall harmonious growth of the Union. In conclusion,my IVY experience is unique and i would recommend it to anyone who would like to learn new things about how countries cooperate to solve mutual problems. – Theodoros, IVY Project Partner for the Interreg project “Boosting Business Support to SMEs through setting up Mobile Fair and Innovative Services in the Cross-border Territory – FAIR FOR ALL”, under the Interreg programme Greece – Bulgaria, at Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Xanthi –

Hello fellow Europeans! My name is Viviana and since June this year I have been an Interreg project partner for the CILIFO Interreg POCTEP project at the host organisation Finnova Foundation Seville. Interreg POCTEP stands for Spain-Portugal Cross-Border Cooperation Operational Programme and is the European Territorial Cooperation programme that aims to enhance, foster and promote cooperation between Portuguese and Spanish entities to collaborate on environmental, economic and social issues common to both territories. CILIFO project is part of this cooperation framework. CILIFO stands for the Iberian Centre for Forest Fire Research and Fighting and its network is composed of different types of partners by competence and territory: the lead project partner is the Junta de Andalucia and within the partnership there are other regional and local public authorities representing the Algarve, Alentejo (PT) and Andalucia (ES) territories. In addition, universities and foundations collaborate in the CILIFO project as project partners. The objectives of bringing all these competences together are: To strengthen and combine the cooperation, the operating procedures and the training between the Forest Fire Preventing and Extinguishing devices in the cooperation area of the Alentejo-Algarve-Andalusia Euroregion. To promote lasting and quality employment creation in the area; reduce the economic cost of fires creating rural economy linked to the landscape. To improve the involved administrations and authorities’ capacity to respond to forest fires in the three participating regions. And through these objectives and activities create and establish a permanent center for the development and promotion of training, awareness, research and cooperation towards forest firefighting. My host organization, Finnova, is the partner responsible for CILIFO’s communication activities with the aim of disseminating CILFO’s achievements and activities. And in this role It is carrying out one of the best practice born from this project: Firefighting Open Innovation Lab. This best practice was honoured last year by European Commission with an important award: European Enterprise Promotion Awards. FOIL-CILIFO is the first business accelerator for forest fire and forest management companies. Through FOIL-CILIFO, all forest fire companies participating in the CILIFO network and activities receive business support advice. For example, the production of material such as newsletters, notices and electronic catalogues on calls, funding programmes, existing in the forest fire sector. In addition, FOIL-CILIFO promotes registered companies by publishing an electronic catalogue with all the information, objectives and targets of these companies, to also improve the network’s matchmaking system and create interesting CILIFO follow-ups. In addition, competitions called CILIFO ACCELERATHON were organised within FOIL-CILIFO to promote innovation of technologies and methodologies in the field of forest fires. During these competitions, green tech business ideas aimed at combating forest fires and climate change were presented and the winner was given the opportunity to apply for a European call for proposals with the support of FINNOVA to see the idea realised. As an Interreg project partner, I am collaborating in these areas of CILIFO communication, producing communication materials which will then be disseminated to the actors of the CILIFO network and I am also participating in the organisation of events such as the above-mentioned ACCELERATHON. Through this experience, I am learning a lot about how European regional cooperation works, its funding structure, the key actors in European regional cooperation and cohesion policy and the main challenges. And I can see how it becomes real and effective in the everyday life of our society. In the hyperlinks you can find all the information on the above 🙂 -Viviana Lattanzi, IVY Project Partner for the Interreg project “CILIFO”, under the Interreg POCTEP Programme, at FINNOVA Foundation Seville-