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Joining the Interreg Volunteer Youth (IVY) initiative has been a transformative experience for me over the past two months. As a volunteer at IUCN’s Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation (IUCN Med), I have been contributing to the Dialogue4Nature project, an integral part of the Natural Heritage Mission within the Interreg Euro-MED Programme. This project aims to foster cooperation among diverse stakeholders to protect and promote the unique natural heritage of the Mediterranean region. One of the most exciting aspects of my experience so far has been supporting the communication efforts for the Institutional Dialogue event held in Málaga. This event brought together key stakeholders such as the European Commission, the Union for the Mediterranean and UNEP/MAP SPA-RAC, among others, to discuss strategies for enhancing the protection of natural heritage and particularly about marine and coastal restoration. My role included attending communication meetings for the project and the Mission, assisting with the organization of the Institutional Dialogue event and the setup of the event spot (IEO Málaga), as well as supporting the IUCN Med communication team with social media, news on the website of both IUCN Med and the Mission’s, preparing a yearly policy calendar so anyone in the event could write down and share interesting dates, and ensuring the project’s messages reached a broader audience. It was inspiring to see how collaboration and dialogue can drive positive change. Through this opportunity, I have gained a deeper understanding of how EU-funded projects operate and the significant role of Cohesion Policy in supporting sustainable development. Working on Dialogue4Nature has shown me the power of teamwork in tackling shared challenges like biodiversity loss and climate change. Additionally, I have been developing valuable skills in communication and storytelling, which are essential for raising awareness about environmental issues. Being an IVY volunteer has been incredibly rewarding so far. It feels meaningful to contribute to a project that not only protects our natural environment but also strengthens cooperation across borders. This experience is teaching me the importance of collective action and inspiring me to continue advocating for environmental conservation. I’m grateful for this opportunity and hope my story encourages others to engage with EU initiatives and have an IVY experience like mine. – Marina, IVY Project Partner at Interreg project Dialogue4Nature  Discover more about Interreg Euro-MED Click Here

Hello everyone! I’m Dimitra and I’m currently volunteering as a project partner at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki on the Interreg project “MARMAPS – Open environmental eFolio for joint maritime spatial planning and conservation of the valuable Black Sea Basin marine ecosystems”, under the programme Interreg NEXT Black Sea Basin. MARMAPs’ objective is to raise awareness about the importance of protecting the Black Sea’s unique ecosystems. We aim to engage people in developing a Decision Support System (DSS) for maritime spatial planning, helping to guide conservation and restoration efforts for marine biodiversity. We also want to improve access to the DSS through eFolio, involve stakeholders in training sessions to promote conservation planning for marine protected areas, and explore opportunities for cross-border collaboration. In this exciting project, I have the chance to collaborate with partners from the Black Sea NGO Network (Bulgaria), Mare Nostrum NGO (Romania) and the Black Sea Branch of Ukrainian Environmental Academy of Sciences (Ukraine). I work on simplifying complex ideas into clear messages and sharing them through platforms like social media, videos, and online forums. A big part of my work involves connecting with students and young people in and outside the AUTh campus, encouraging them to see the importance of protecting the Black Sea. Currently, I’m working on creative initiatives like the MARMAPS photo contest, brainstorming ways to raise awareness in fun and interactive ways through social media. As a biologist, volunteering with IVY on a project that focuses on conservation and protecting the environment means a lot to me and it has helped me understand more about what I want to do in the future, all while knowing both the IVY team and my mentor will help with anything I may need. Every day, I learn more about marine conservation and the power of cooperation, and I’m excited to keep contributing! – Dimitra, IVY Project Partner for Interreg Project MARMAPS at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Discover more about Interreg MARMAPS Project Click Here Discover more about Interreg Black Sea Basin Click Here

It all began with a communication campaign celebrating the newly awarded 116 URBACT Good Practices. Through this, I gradually gained insights into the URBACT programme and its impact on cities across Europe. Just as I started my IVY volunteering experience, where my primary role was to support the communications unit, the 2024 URBACT Good Practices were set to receive their label. As a newcomer, getting to know these initiatives while assisting with their communication efforts was an incredible introduction to the diversity of cities, regions, and municipalities, as well as the vast range of urban development topics within the URBACT programme. When the initiatives were notified of their Good Practice label, they also received communication support, including visual designs and access to a dedicated forum where they could discuss strategies for promoting their work. The 2024 cohort consists of initiatives from 25 different countries, awarded the URBACT Good Practice label following the decision of URBACT’s Monitoring Committee in October 2024. Beyond recognition, these initiatives will be promoted and invited to the biggest URBACT event of the year – the URBACT City Festival in Wrocław, Poland. The Secretariat is now planning for this festival which will highlight these newly awarded Good Practices, providing representatives from the initiatives and other cities with an ideal setting for proactive networking. The goal is for these Good Practices to inspire the creation of Transfer Networks, allowing cities to share and adapt these innovative initiatives. With URBACT funding, participating cities will have the opportunity to visit and collaborate within these networks. For over 20 years, URBACT has been supporting cities and local stakeholders, creating platforms like the URBACT City Festival for urban practitioners to exchange experiences and develop integrated, inclusive, and sustainable urban solutions. What stands out to me the most is URBACT’s commitment to funding a wide range of urban development initiatives within a bottom-up framework. All EU cities, as well as partners from Norway and Switzerland, can benefit from URBACT’s capacity-building activities or join an URBACT network. Whether by participating in a Transfer Network, learning from a designated Good Practice, or co-producing local Integrated Action Plans through Action Planning Networks, URBACT fosters collaboration to tackle shared urban challenges. From the beginning, I was struck by the level of support cities receive, not just from my colleagues in the communications unit but even more so from those in the project-focused team. With that in mind, I proposed creating an ‘URBACT Behind the Scenes’ video to showcase the Secretariat’s work and how it all comes together in practice. The video will be released soon on URBACT’s social channels, so stay tuned! There is so much more I could share about my experience, including my trip to the EU City Lab in Bucharest, co-organised by URBACT and the European Urban Initiative. But that’s a story for another time… Sunny but cold greetings from Paris and the URBACT Secretariat! – Julia, IVY Reporter at URBACT Discover more about Interreg URBACT Click Here

Dear all readers; I’m Carlotta, a 24-years-old master degree student and IVY Volunteer at the Interreg Programme Italia-Slovenia Joint Secretariat offices in Trieste/Trst. It’s already been three months since the beginning of my experience, thus I feel like I can present to you what such volunteering experience entails. I’ve been assigned to the communication and joint secretariat office, where a team of young people and regional policy officers welcomed me warmly. Almost all the members of the staff are bilingual (italo-slovenian) and for me it’s such an interesting reality to discover day by day. Not being a local (I was born and raised in Venice), I already got the chance to live in this cross-border territory when I was studying for my bachelor degree in Gorizia/Nova Gorica so I was acquainted with the culture and the language even tho Slovenian is no joke to learn from an Italian native speaker. I’ve already reached the first half of my programmed period of volunteering and these months passed by so quickly. Nonetheless I got already so many opportunities to expand my network during all the international meetings that I’ve attended and to enhance my expertise in communication duties. I started my experience strong attending on the first three days of work the Monitoring Committee activites in Venice: my very first occasion to meet my working team and to help them with the event orgranizaion duties. The week after, I got invited to Brussels for the European Week of Regions and Cities, where I also met the AEBR Team. During those days my Program hosted the first ever multi-Program event to enhance a further collaboration among three countries (Italy, Slovenija and Croatia) and between two Programmes: Interreg Italia-Slovenija and Interreg Italy-Croatia. The meetings and the activities have been so succesful that proposals of enhanced cooperation projects have been made on that very day. My volunteering experience was also higlighted by the presence of two EU Commission’s rapporteurs that came for 3 days from Brussels to the Program Area in order to visit the places and the venues where the most important meetings and activities of Gorizia-Nova Gorica Capital of Culture 2025 will take place. I travelled across the cross-border area between Italy and Slovenia, realizing even further all the characteristics of the territory and getting to know some of my future main activities to organize such as the InterregGO Annual Event for youth of March 2025 (don’t forget to come, guys!). I can not miss to mention that beside the very dynamic activities that I’ve described, a lot of time in the months of December and January was also dedicated to fully understand how to write and post an article on our online platforms and to create by scratch new leaflets and booklets describing in detail the projects participating in the Programme. This very experience, even if it’s not my first time being part of an international office thematized on European funds’ administration policies, is making me acquire so many technical and relational skills that for sure will be important and helpful in my near future. I am already recommending to sign up as volunteers to all of my closer friends looking for a valuable opportunity, given my very positive opinion about my work. Last but not least, being an IVY, beside providing you with valuable experiences enriching your CV, has a strong positive impact on your local reality helping promoting cooperation while actively participating in shaping a common future useful for us, young people, to be the lead characters of EU’s cooperation policies. – Carlotta, IVY Reporter for the Interreg Programme Italia-Slovenia at the Joint Secretariat Discover more about Interreg Italy-Slovenia Click Here

Hi everyone! I am Effrosyni Maneta, I am from Greece and I’m currently volunteering with MISSION (Multi-modal Inclusive Smart urban mobility SolutIONs) project as part of the Interreg Volunteer Youth (IVY) programme, at the University of Patras. Given my background and specialization on urban planning, this experience has been a great opportunity to work for a project that supports a greener and climate resilient Adriatic-Ionian region. The MISSION project is part of the Interreg IPA ADRION programme and aims to decarbonize urban transport in the Adriatic-Ionian Region by reducing car dependency and taking advantage of  Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS)  that could overcome the structural lack of Mass Rapid Transport infrastructure. It seeks to enhance the attractiveness of public transport by integrating it with sustainable modes like cycling and walking. A key outcome is the development of a SmartApp, co-designed with citizens and stakeholders, to provide information on multimodal travel solutions and improve mobility choices. MISSION brings together a diverse partnership across six countries. These partners include the Politecnico di Milano (Italy) – Lead Partner, PLUSERVICE S.R.L. (Italy), the Municipality of Maribor (Slovenia), the University of Patras / Department of Civil Engineering (Greece), City of Novi Sad-City Administration for Traffic and Roads (Serbia), City of Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina), and the Capital City of Podgorica (Montenegro). As a volunteer, I contribute to the MISSION goal by helping the development of a SmartApp that provides real-time information on integrated travel solutions. The design of the app needs collaborative efforts involving citizens, businesses and public authorities, ensuring it meets the real needs of urban travellers. Through questionnaires and personal communication with stakeholders and organizations, we collect data and review our feedback to enhance its usability and impact. Throughout this experience, I’ve gained insights into the significance of teamwork and the power of collective participation. MISSION benefits commuters, local communities and policymakers by making cities more liveable and transport more efficient. What I like about this project is its focus on effective, technology-based solutions and its emphasis on citizen participation. Working with a diverse group of people is incredibly inspiring and I’m excited to contribute to an initiative that is shaping the future of sustainable urban mobility! Thank you for taking some time to read about my experience! – Effrosyni, IVY Project Partner at University of Patras for the Interrreg Project “MISSION” Discover more about Interreg project “MISSION” Click Here Discover more about Interreg IPA Adrion Click Here

Hello IVY community! I’m Matteo from Sicily. I’m passionate about European Territorial Cooperation and I love bringing people together to work for a more sustainable future. I studied international cooperation and I have a master in Grant Office Management. I am currently volunteering in Ragusa, Sicily, for my host organisation SVI.MED. Euromediterranean Centre for Sustainable Development. I support them in the URBANFLOODS project, funded by the INTERREG IPA ADRION Programme. URBANFLOODS – “Promoting Urban Resilience Through an Integrated Advanced Decision Support System for Flood Control” started on September 2024. This project seeks to enhance urban resilience to flood risks in the Adriatic-Ionian region through a unified Decision Support System (DSS). Briefly, a DSS is a tool helping actors (in our case municipalities, local and regional authorities, Civil Protection…) to improve their decision-making capabilities, assisting them in making quick and precise decisions, which are vital in emergencies like floods. URBANFLOODS big partnership is composed by 11 partners and 11 associated partners from Albania, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Greece, Italy, North Macedonia, Serbia and Slovenia. The Lead Partner is the University of Western Macedonia, Greece. SVI.MED. is in charge of one the pilot activities for the DSS development, in a torrent that flows between the beautiful cities of Modica and Scicli, included in the UNESCO World Heritage list. I definitely encourage to visit them! SVI.MED. is also responsible for URBANFLOODS’ communication so I assist the staff in coordinating these activities (preparing the Communication Plan, managing official website and Social Networks, setting up the Newsletter, engaging communities and stakeholders). SVI.MED.’s staff is composed by high level professionals, they are great in valorising your skills, and helpful. I immediately felt valorised and welcomed. Last November, I have the great opportunity to participate to the Kick-Off Meeting of the Project in Kozani, Greece. Assisting to a KOM is a really valuable experience for those who want to work in project management. It is the first time in which all the partners officially meet, present each other and start paving the way for project activities. SVI.MED. gave me the possibility to proudly present to all partners our territory, in Sicily, which will be the objective of our pilot activities. I have the chance to meet lots of professionals from different countries of the Balkan peninsula. Everybody was really kind with me. We met also in the evening for a fantastic typical Greek dinner. The next day, we visited the Ilarion Lake and its Hydroelectric power plant. Inner Greece is wonderful, with beautiful mountains and fresh air. Ευχαριστώ πολύ, Ελλάδα! The project has just started, but I already feel part of a great community with a great objective. I think this is the best aspect of being an Interreg Volunteer: the consciousness of working for something good, overcoming differences to work together for the wellbeing of our people. In these dark times for international community, European Territorial Cooperation is silently but relentlessly working for a better world. Thanks, IVY!  – Matteo, IVY Project Partner at SVI.MED for Interreg proejct URBANFLOODS  Discover more about URBANFLOODS Click Here Discover more about SVI.MED Click Here