From the Exodus to the Future!

“From the Exodus to the Future!”: was a youth exchange in San Giorgio del Sannio and Fragneto Monforte (Benevento, Italy) for art, music and dance without borders to promote inclusion and rights of migrants, refugees and unaccompanied minors.

From 30th September to 11th October 2022, the community in the Sannio region hosted a colourful group of young Erasmus participants for the youth exchange “From the Exodus to the future”. The project, led by the YMCA Parthenope Onlus, involved international partners of the following associations: Alrahallah Theater from Germany, Break the Borders from Greece, CET Platform from the Republic of North Macedonia, Asociación Juvenil Intercambia from Spain, Rosto Solidario from Portugal, and International Labor Association from Turkey.

Each group, made of 5 participants accompanied by a group-leader, had the opportunity to learn about and explore the migration realities of the participating countries. The youth exchange focused on the themes “Creativity, Arts and Culture” and “Preventing Racism and Discrimination” and was driven by the desire to share the participants’ migration experiences and the creation of intercultural evenings devoted to each of the countries involved. The pivotal goals of the youth exchange were to take care of the participants’ personal and social development through art and culture workshops that broke down stereotypes and shed light on the participating countries and people; moreover, the participants were informed of the further opportunities provided by the Erasmus+ programme, based on the values of tolerance, inclusion, active citizenship and activeparticipation.

All these goals were achieved by using non-formal educational methodologies, brainstorming around the themes of creativity, social inclusion and dialogue, and planning follow-up activities to continue the path in participants’ local realities.

The project took place in two towns in the Sannio neighbourhood: San Giorgio del Sannio, where the participants were hosted at the local Franciscan Convent, and were able to explore and practice artistic and cultural activities; and Fragneto Monforte, where during the “Festival delle Mongolfiere” (an international hot-air balloons festival) on 7th, 8th and 9th October the young participants performed music, dance and street animation shows, campaigned on human rights and social inclusion and created digital products for migrants. 

On 10^th  October, the last day of activities, the Municipality of San Giorgio del Sannio invited the citizens to spend an “afternoon with the Exodus community”: here, in the central Risorgimento Square, the young participants created a showcase of European values through artistic performances, cultural activities and animation games for the local community.