RIDE - Rivers of IDEas

(2021-1-IT03-KA220-YOU-000029198)
International Project, supported and financed by the Erasmus+ Program, under the Key Action 2, sector of Cooperation Partnerships, with a grant of 209.300,00€, for the period 2022-2024.

About the project

The RIDE- Rivers of IDEas project derives from the observation that often few young people have the chance to participate in decisions that affect their lives and the lives of their communities. Their potential contribution to society is often overlooked, underestimating their role as agents of positive change. In particular, the RIde project will focus on the environmental crisis, we consider a complex global issue to deal with. In recent years, in many European countries and worldwide we observed the rise of youth organisations active on environmental issues and the fight against climate change: it is the sign that young people are interested in dealing with this critical issue. The project moves precisely in the direction of working on the empowerment of the young people in the community and promoting a sense of belonging starting from the rediscovery of historical-cultural values and environmental resources. The main assumption starts from the issue that only by promoting an active involvement of young people in activities deeply rooted in the territory and providing them with the opportunity to feel "active" in the change, it will be possible to produce significant results of participation and active citizenship. And only by managing to activate local participation and making it truly effective it will be possible to create trust in participation mechanisms also at European level. In 2018 the European Commission, reporting a study that notes that more than half of Europe's young people (53%) are involved in organised activities, with participation in a sports club (29%), a youth or leisure-time club (20%), or a cultural organisation (15%). But this participation does not find enough space in decision-making spaces, in the places of politics. In addition to this need to involve young people in participating in decision-making processes, a great interest was noted in the themes of environmental recovery and the enhancement of small villages and natural resources. These two aspects can therefore be connected by using the desire to affect and enhance one's territory as an element of engagement and participation of young people. In its most recent speech (https://www.worldwatercouncil.org/en/publications/news-and-activities-february-2020) the World Water Forum underlined the commitment to promote the adoption of a system of rules in which the criteria of public utility, economic performance, social value, environmental sustainability also intervene in the search for effective solutions for the redevelopment of a river basin, in order to avoid environmental and economic risks. The communities belonging to countries partners of the RIDE project experience a lack of caring and protection towards river ecosystems. Also, a lot of traditions and history related to rivers and its communities is being lost and there is the abandonment of tangible heritage. In addition, in the countries of partner organisations few young people have the chance to participate in decisions that affect their lives and the lives of their communities. However, the partner countries of the project are representative of a similar European situation in which, in the face of a great opportunity for work on environmental recovery, young people are very little involved and youth workers need new tools for engaging and working on environmental issues.