Hello everyone! My name is Miriam, I’m 26 years old and I’m an IVY Reporter at the Joint Secretariat of Interreg Greece-Italy in Bari.

Almost three months have already flown by since I started this volunteering experience, and I can honestly say it has been a great learning experience. I have already gained so much, and I’m sure there will be many more opportunities ahead to deepen my understanding of how cross-border cooperation works in practice, while being part of a great team.

We often perceive the European Union as something distant, but in reality, it is much closer to us than we think: it is part of our everyday life. Every day, I contribute to the storytelling of Interreg Greece-Italy projects, helping to give them more visibility. At the moment, the Programme has 37 ongoing projects, spanning from agriculture to textiles to nature preservation… small drops contributing to a wider sea of cooperation.

Through this experience, I am discovering what is happening across the Italian and Greek eligible areas of the Programme, learning about what projects have already achieved and what is currently in progress, especially in my own region. As an IVY, I am gaining hands-on experience in institutional communication. Being a creative and proactive person, I always try to explore new ways to communicate projects and make them more engaging. I design and create tailored posts and stories to enhance their visibility and bring them closer to people.

I work closely with the Communication Officer, supporting the coordination and management of content from the projects, adapting it to our editorial line, and publishing it across our channels. This often means translating technical content into something clear and accessible, so that citizens can better understand the impact of cohesion policy on their territories. At the same time, I am also gaining valuable insights into the institutional side of the Programme. In addition to project-related content, our channels also communicate Programme-level activities. I have had the opportunity to attend both project events and institutional meetings, such as the VI Monitoring Committee of Interreg Greece-Italy held in Matera. Experiences like this have allowed me to better understand how decisions are made behind the scenes. One of the most interesting activities I am involved in is supporting the organization of the “Communication Officers Network”, a series of meetings that brings together communication officers from all Interreg Greece-Italy projects. I see this as a great opportunity to exchange ideas, share perspectives, and reflect on how to improve the communication of cross-border projects. I am personally curating the visual materials, and during the first meeting on June 25th, I had the chance to present on effective visual communication, focusing on photos and videos. The next meeting will take place on July 30th, and I am currently helping to prepare the upcoming activities.

I’m really looking forward to what the next months will bring. Thanks to this journey, I am becoming more and more interested in the world of regional and international cooperation. This experience is helping me grow both professionally and personally, and I’m excited to keep learning, creating, and contributing to making Interreg known and understood by a wider audience.