Discussion 3rd June 2015 @ Jurmala – Latvia

I participated at the active and pro-active discussion that took place on the 3rd of June in the lovely seaside resort Jurmala, Latvia. I went there accompanied by Mihaela Onea as both of us went from Romania.
After a well-deserved good night rest (and the surprise of acknowledging that the night comes very, very late in Latvia, and it’s not actually 100% night!), we all embarked in the minibus and were taken to Jurmala. We spend almost a day’s worth discussing the survey that is to be implemented on the target groups in the near future, a survey meant to emphasize (young) people’s awareness and involvement in activities that prove citizenship and promote values like volunteer work and social inclusion.
During the meeting, we were divided in a couple of groups, and within these groups we discussed the strong and weak points of the survey, trying to find a way to possibly improve it by joining our opinions and views as Europeans coming from different countries, and having different first hand experiences therein. My group was mixed: there were Latvians and Lithuanians; in other groups there were also people coming from Poland and Estonia.
It was very rewarding to be able to talk to people who share my personal views on what citizenship and volunteering means and should mean. It was also quite interesting to discover together the similarities and differences between our countries and points of view.
After a delicious lunch we regrouped, and we finally tackled together all the questions in the survey. We came to great results, and our leader Renate Lukjanska wrote down all our comments and suggestions. The final version of the survey is bound to be ready this autumn.
We spent the afternoon roaming around Jurmala, strolling on the beach along the Baltic Sea, and admiring the beauty and neatness of holiday homes. It was difficult to finally go back to the hotel and sleep, but all in all it was a very enriching experience, and I think it cleared my mind regarding the project’s aims and what we need to do next.

Article written by Iulia Dromereschi on the 27th of July 2015.