MEET UP! Youth for Partnership

Georgian and German young people develop perspectives for sustainable rural development

What does the EVZ Foundation intend to achieve with the project?

Poverty, unemployment and lack of prospects for young people are typical examples of problems in rural regions with structural weaknesses. The project aims to give young people access to international youth exchange projects, to address current issues of sustainable development and to become involved in the implementation of their ideas.

Who’s involved, and who does the project reach?

Together with trainers and mentors, young people from Georgia and Germany address the needs of rural areas in think camps and digital meetings. They develop innovative ideas, products and prototypes for sustainable development in the countryside. The results are summarized in video clips and presented on a website.

Why is the Foundation supporting this project in particular?

The Foundation supports the project because, by addressing sustainable development issues, it allows young people to become involved in their local communities to improve living conditions in rural areas.

Duration of the project: 01.08.-31.12.2021
Project sponsor: Entrepreneurs Association, Georgia
Funding countries: Georgia, Germany

From NS-forced labor to today's labor migration

Belarusian-German-Ukrainian meeting in rural areas

What does the EVZ Foundation intend to achieve with the project?

At the heart of the project is a combination that initially appears unusual: the memory of National Socialist forced labor and ecological agriculture.

As the participants were travelling separately in country groups because of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021 in Belarus, Ukraine and Germany but still wanted to engaging exchanges as much as possible, they made movies during their excursions. The topics addressed in the movies were based on questions and areas of interest that participants from partner countries had discussed with them beforehand.

Who’s involved, and who does the project reach?

The German group visited a Solidarity Farm located at a place steeped in history - a former Hachshara site. There, until the 1930s, young Jewish people and adults completed agricultural and craft training in order to emigrate from Germany to Palestine and other countries. The National Socialists converted the site into a transit and forced labor camp (1941-43). It served later as a place of agricultural work for prisoners of war (1943-45). The project also reaches the local population and develops awareness of the history of the location.

Why is the Foundation supporting this project in particular?

The Foundation supports the project so that young people - especially those from rural areas - can confront the issue of National Socialist forced labor in the agricultural sector. It is intended to encourage people to take a closer look at ecological farming today and the working conditions in the agricultural sector.

Duration of the project: 01.08.-30.11.2021
Project sponsor: Apollo e.V., Germany
Funding countries: Belarus, Ukraine, Germany