Day 7: Wait, Is It Really Already Time to Say Goodbye? 🥹

So... last day of workshops. And honestly, it felt a bit weird. We had gotten used to seeing everyone every morning, working together and spending our evenings talking or playing games. Now we were supposed to go home and somehow return to normal life? 😭 But before the goodbyes, we still had a lot to do.

We started with a post-assessment questionnaire, answering the same questions we had received at the beginning of the project. It was interesting to compare our understanding of participation with how we thought about it now. At the start, some of us mainly associated participation with volunteering or attending events. After the workshops, we could also connect it with decision-making, youth councils, local budgets, advocacy and the ability to influence what happens in our communities.

Next, we discussed how to share our experience after returning home. In national teams, we planned follow-up activities and considered how we could introduce the ideas from Impact Makers to other young people. It made us realise that participating in an Erasmus+ exchange shouldn't mean keeping everything we learned to ourselves. If we want more young people to get involved, we need to share opportunities and show that taking action is possible.

Then came a workshop with a pretty funny title: "What the Hell Is Erasmus?" 😂 We learned more about the programme, including youth exchanges and cooperation projects, and discovered how international initiatives can be developed. Afterwards, we had to create our own youth exchange ideas. We chose problems, considered possible host countries and planned activities. And honestly, after experiencing this whole week ourselves, thinking about organising a project felt much less intimidating than before.

Finally, the goodbye ceremony. Youthpass certificates, final reflections and, of course, emotional moments. ❤️ We talked about what had stayed with us from the exchange, both in terms of learning and personal connections.

If there was one thing we were taking home, it was that participation doesn't have to start with something huge. It can start with noticing a problem, talking to others and deciding to do something about it. We came here to learn about youth participation, but somewhere along the way, we also learned a lot about ourselves and each other.

And yeah... we're definitely going to miss this group. 🌍

~Reporting Group 7