A/ PROJECT CONTEXT

European construction is a long process. European citizenship is built day after day and in particular thanks to local actions being part of the everyday life of the people. Above all, it is built with young people who are our european citizens of tomorrow.
Local authorities - Conseil général de Loire Atlantique and to a lesser extent the Conseil Régional des Pays de la Loire (elected local councils respectively at the level of the " département " and the " région ") - have realised what was at stake and decided to become partners in the project described below. The Conseil général de Loire-Atlantique, in its will to develop the éducation populaire (popular education : everyone can teach and learn from each other), wishes to include this project in its european youth programm that offers a financial support to the hosting organisations of Loire-Atlantique who are hosting young european volunteers (monthly lump sum of 690 € for each volunteer hosted). It is also the opportunity for the Conseil Régional des Pays de Loire to mobilize the other départements in the development of youth and popular education ; besides it positions itself as an example by hosting a young european volunteer in its Relais Europe Direct (information center on Europe)

¢ The common project run by the CRIJ and the association " Autour du Monde " (Around the World)

Aiming at stimulating exchanges amongst the youth, it is proposed to develop a common project favouring the discovery of local european specificities thus illustrating the european motto : " Unity in diversity ".
The fields to develop with this project have to form a body of principles serving Europe, namely :
- tourism
- environmental education
- voluntary service
- urban culture
- leisure in a big metropolis
- international aid
- human rights

Called " Unity in diversity ", the project aims at promoting the EVS and mark the 5Oth anniversary of the ECC Treaty signing (27th March, 1957). It will be structured around two main themes :
- the Day of Europe on the 9th May, 2007
- a thread by the cultural contribution of events marking the calendar of the countries represented by the volunteers (traditional celebrations …)

This common project will be coordinated by the CRIJ of Nantes and the foreign students association " Autour du Monde " .
- The CRIJ is a (non-profit making) association that works in the field of youth information. It is one of the 32 CRIJ in France. It is an information center on topics such as education, employment, health, leisure, holidays, life abroad …
By becoming a sending organisation and thanks to a first experience of hosting during the 98 football World cup, the CRIJ has noticed that the EVS was coming to the expectations of the people using the services of the youth information centers.

- " Autour du Monde " (non-profit making association) mobilizes more than 1000 students of various nationalities and enables the integration of the young foreigners in Nantes through contacts with French people and their involvment in the organisation of activities and crosscultural projects : polyglot cafés, meetings and nights out, visits, debates and exchanges about mobility, evenings devoted to a theme, theatre projects, photography and the " journées interculturelles " (crosscultural days).

Nantes is the 6th biggest city in France. Located in the Loire estuary, 50 kms from the Atlantic coast. The metropolis with its airport is close to many touristic destinations such as the Atlantic coast, Britanny, Anjou and Vendée. Nantes also is the administrative capital of the region " Pays de la Loire " and the " Préfecture " (main city) of the département of Loire-Atlantique. There are around 350 000 inhabitant in Nantes, 35 % of them aged under 25.

The european volunteers will have the opportunity to discover this urban environment and moreover to discover each hosting organisation through monthly meetings. It is important to say that the hosting organisations are organizing themselves all around the département of Loire-Atlantique as well in the rural areas as in the cities. List of the hosting organisations : Maison des Citoyens du Monde, La Pech', Office de Tourisme de Machecoul, Parc de la Brière, le Centre Régional Information Jeunesse, Unis-Cité, le Relais Europe Directe, l'ARPEJ de Rezé, l'Union Française des Œuvres Laïques d'Education Physique.

All the volunteers participating in this common project will meet regularly in the CRIJ. Nevertheless this common project is an integral part of the following local project.


A/¢ The local initiative

The CRIJ's objectives are:
" To provide young people with information and services to foster a sense of responsibility and autonomy within them.
" To gather and distribute information to a wide public-base.
As a Regional Youth Information Centre we provide young people with information, free of charge, on areas of interest to them such as education, trades, employment, training, health, leisure, holidays, sports and foreign cultures. We also offer Internet access and various other services such as a job finding service, baby-sitting, Euroline ticket sales and concert reservations.
The importance of mobility for young people is undeniable as contact with other cultures and languages opens doors and broadens one's horizon.

We therefore feel that a young European volunteer would be a great asset in helping to set up a regional awareness programme on the importance of European mobility for young people and associations.

The young volunteer would support this programme by providing initial assistance and regular contact to young people wishing to participate in a European mobility project.

The project's main objective is to develop awareness of European mobility within young people from the Loire-Atlantique and, possibly, the Pays de la Loire regions. This objective has been broken down into key goals to allow for the volunteer's learning and development:
- acquisition of knowledge concerning youth information
- promotion of the European JEUNESSE programme

In order to meet these objectives, certain activities are already planned, however others, such as public information events, creation of informational tools and use of success story testimonials, may be put in place by the volunteer, depending upon the situation.

http://ec.europa.eu/youth/evs/aod/hei_form_en.cfm?EID=14000514001