ESC: Promote Intercultural Values and Empower Youth in Northern France!

Association Community is located in the north of France in a small town called Arques. “Working for and with the community” is the driving creed for all our actions. Our core values are solidarity, human dignity and togetherness and our main aim is to understand the needs of the people who approach us and act in their best interest. Cooperation and sharing are pillar concepts for our organisation and this is why we are constantly looking for new opportunities of collaboration with other local or international institutions. In this sense, Association Community is a living space, full of resources, where a dynamic and competent team aims to support everyone at their own pace and according to their expectations. Driven by strong human values, we are committed to welcoming people of all ages, religions and social backgrounds. We work in particular for and with people in vulnerable situations, mainly youth, for whom we are developing customised support approaches. We collaborate thus with local and international partners, in order to give them the means to (re)define their lives and / or professional projects. Presently, our association focuses on activities which are centred on multiculturalism and international cooperation, environmental issues and ecological awareness, health and healthy lifestyle, digital literacy, sports. Focusing on non-formal learning methods, our workshops are mainly held under the guidance of our staff (experienced youth workers) who create and facilitate activities on specific topics, trying to offer their public real learning experiences. The activities of the association are structured on three different sectors of intervention: - Local Solidarity and Sustainable Development Department – covering all actions related to the sustainable development of our community; - Social Cohesion Department – engaged in helping and empowering the underprivileged and striving to create a strong web of support and a sense community belonging; - Youth Mobility and International Cooperation – aiming to give an international dimension not only to our association but to our community as well and to spread concepts such as international solidarity and cooperation. Within these three main areas of interest we are developing a wide range of activities that cater for a large audience (children, youth, adults and seniors). Among the activities that we propose to our public we may count: Sophrology, Digital Workshops, African Drums Lessons, Hip-Hop, English Classes, Cooking Workshops, Intercultural Workshops, Sustainable Development Workshops, Hand Crafts Workshops and many others. Moreover, wishing to offer a wider range of personal and professional opportunities to our local youth, we aim to make them aware of the existence of international mobility programmes. Most of the young people who attend our association come from underprivileged families, being generally excluded from mobility programmes for several reasons: lack of information, lack of awareness on the benefits of an experience abroad, fear of leaving home, lack of support and follow-up, etc. For this reason we believe that it is necessary to implement actions in this direction, in particular by raising awareness on the intercultural component from an early age in order to help young people broaden their mindset to new perspectives and develop their skills. Regarding this, we believe that the European Solidarity Corps programme is the piece of puzzle that matches and completes our vision on our local and international long-term solidarity project.