Crossing Borders

On the 18th of July 2023, six members from Crossing Borders – Furkan from Turkey, Giselle from Brazil, Anna from France, Karolina from the Czech Republic, Kateryna from Ukraine, and Tanya from India volunteered with the South African Embassy to help the Missionaries of Charity in Copenhagen for Mandela Day. On this symbolic date, the birthday of Nelson Mandela, kindness and generosity were requirements. The volunteers cooked different dishes and helped serve the food to 50 homeless people who came for a little comfort. Everybody also had the chance to taste the wonderful birthday cake to celebrate this day in honor of Nelson Mandela. Here are some words from our volunteers: Anna: I really enjoyed being a volunteer for Mandela Day, helping people in need by cooking and serving food for them. It reminded me of the importance of being good, generous, and showing solidarity towards people who need it the most. It was also very nice to peel vegetables, make salad, and prepare all kinds of dishes with CB members; it felt like a family! Tanya: Volunteering at the Missionaries of Charity for Mandela Day was a truly humbling experience. It allowed me to feel grateful for what I have while also acknowledging the responsibility to help those less fortunate. I enjoyed being actively involved on the other side of the kitchen – preparing, serving, and assisting. It was heartwarming to witness the impact of our efforts in brightening the day for those we served. The day served as a reminder that we can all contribute to making the world a more compassionate and caring place. Giselle: Helping to cook, serve, and talk to homeless people in Copenhagen on Mandela Day 2023 gave me different feelings. Of course, I felt good to help and cooperate with an organization that feeds vulnerable people in Copenhagen. Also, I enjoyed seeing the Crossing Borders team working in beautiful synergy with the South African Embassy team to spread Mandela’s legacy of making a positive impact in our community, and we impacted the lives of the people we cared for that day. As Mandela Day is also a day of reflection, I hope for better days for all nations where no one suffers from basic needs, and I wish we find “AMOR” wherever we go. Kateryna: I am delighted to be a part of the Mandela Day organization for the second year now. Working alongside the team has been a joy as we efficiently and swiftly handled all the preparations in the kitchen for those in need. The venue, our team, and the visitors served as a heartwarming reminder of the significance of compassion and benevolence in our world. Furkan: It was a great opportunity to volunteer at the event to help people in need by cooking and serving food with my colleagues and people from the South African Embassy on a special day such as Mandela Day. Also, cooking for more than 50 people was something I haven’t tried before. I enjoyed my time in the kitchen during the preparation phase. The highlight of the day, for me, was the moment I served the food and received a simple “thank you” with a smile. At the end of the day, I left the place with a feeling of relief by knowing I have done something good for the society I have been living in for almost a year.

Held on 10 June 2023 at the Union Cultural House, the Couleur Café festival aims to raise awareness about, showcase and celebrate African culture in Copenhagen through performance arts, expos, music and food.  Crossing Borders had the privilege to pitch a stand with educational materials. CB was represented by a strong team of 7 members from 7 countries comprising Brazil, Denmark/Cameroon, France, Lebanon, Turkey, Global and India. The purpose of being part of the event was to promote CB School Workshops, the Migrantour and Food For Thought.  Between the sound of the tambourines, the outstanding African dances, colourful booths, the smell of the delicious food, the CB team invited participants to learn more about our organisation and support us in our projects. We did a Coffee & Climate Quiz and a manual activity to engage people, consisting of leftover filter coffee mixed with olive oil to rub hands to raise awareness about food waste and how to use leftover coffee to protect, heal and keep our hands soft and elegant.   I personally really enjoyed being part of this event. It was a truly nice day with great music and food. The performances were impressive and captivating. We promoted our projects to the participants in a fun way. It was nice to experience this event with CB team! I will remember the moment where all the children gathered to dance and listen to kids’ songs, so cute. I also really liked taking part in organising the event, very enriching.  Let’s take a look at other CB members perceptions about the event:  Giselle: Diversity, culture and good vibes surrounded the Union Building in Copenhagen during the vibrant Couleur Café event on the second Saturday in June 2023. Inspired by the name of the event, Crossing Borders team members devised fun climate action activities to engage the event audience and raise awareness on how climate change seriously affects coffee plantations in tropical countries. In addition, participants left the event with soft hands after massaging their hands with coffee scrub made with leftover ground coffee, giving it a second chance to be used in a sustainable and fun way.   Furkan: Through Crossing Borders, being a part of Couleur Cafe 2023 was a great opportunity for us to promote CB works, projects, and events. Also, listening to African music with cultural dances, tasting traditional foods, and seeing handcrafts from all around Africa was a remarkable experience. For me, the highlight of the event was the activity we made with coffee leftovers. I learned a very useful method to make my hands soft by scrubbing my hands with these leftovers.  Tanya: With an incredibly sunny day and good vibes, Couleur Café proved to be a delightful experience. I enjoyed the opportunity to strategize for the event and engage in brainstorming sessions with the entire team to plan marketing activities. My personal highlight of the event, however, was the amazing food I got to taste that was infused with Jamaican flavours!  Aman: Couleur Café made us travel to Africa through good music, captivating dance, delicious street food and amazing performance art! The CB stand was at a strategically located spot to promote our programmes in Denmark and projects. We used fun methods like quizzes and friendly competition to engage and promote to our Food for Thought, School Workshops and Migrantour. My favourite moment: seeing the participants and the CB members dancing to the rhythm of the drums!   Christoffer: The event was great for talking to people about our Food For Thought and School Workshop events, everyone I talked to was interested in our work. The music performances were also really nice to watch together with other CB members. Would definitely attend again!   Maryam: It was a very festive event with lots of colours and good energy. The music and dances were cultural and new to me, which I enjoyed very much! There was great food, long lines but still worth the wait!  Written by Anna Bonenfant, Intern at Crossing Borders

From 13th to 16th March 2023, the Erasmus+ Project Growing Green Communities (GGC) training took place in Bordeaux, France. Project partners from Finland, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, and France met with 8 young students to learn from each other best practices in developing green communities, including urban gardens. Project participants of different ages, nationalities, cultural, educational, and professional backgrounds had 4 intensive days of activities inside and outside the classroom. Our project partner and city host, Salu Terre, took the training participants to visit different projects based on community development, including the first community garden in France. Participants visited interesting green places such ENSAP. School of the Gardens, Jardins de Beaudesert at Mérignac ,the Pedagogical Farm of Les Aubiers, the Alotment Gardens of Les Aubiers and the Ecological Park of Domaine de la Burthe Ardins de Beaudesert Mérignac. The GGC project coordinator Giselle Mesiara mentioned in her GGC training reflection that visiting different sustainability-related projects gives training participants the opportunity to better understand not only what a community garden is and its benefits, but also the challenges and difficulties behind it. “When we see a beautiful community garden, we don’t know all the challenges it had to face to finally flourish in every way”. The training in Bordeaux introduced the realities of a community development activity, including unsuccessful community gardens, the difficulties of obtaining land and committed volunteers, and the hard work of a door-to-door community approach. GGC participants had a realistic experience of a community development process, which laid the foundation for the development of the Growing Green Community framework. In addition to external activities, the collaborative methodology of “learning from, with and about” was implemented. Where each project partner had the opportunity to present their professional expertise and innovative ways of collaborating to achieve the goals of the GGC. The active participation of young people in the process of mapping the needs of the GGC will be analyzed in the next phase of the project. The knowledge generated during the GGC training activities in Bordeaux was in connection with the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 2 (Zero Hunger), 3 (Good Health and Well-Being), 11.7 (Provide Access to Safe and Inclusive Green and Public Spaces), 12.3 (Halve Global Capita Food Waste), 13 (Climate Action) and 17.16 (Enhance the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development). The NGO Crossing Borders, which is a major implementer of project activities that meet the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations in Denmark and globally, is leading the Erasmus+ project Growing Green Communities. Blog Author: Mesiara, Giselle

Written By: Giselle Mesiara The main objective of the BRAND project is to raise awareness among young people about fast fashion and its effects on the environment as well as provide youth workers with all the materials and tools necessary to inform, influence and train young people towards more ecologically friendly fashion choices to create a greener and sustainable fashion future. Why are sustainable fashion initiatives the need of the hour? Recommended read: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/01/fashion-industry-carbon-unsustainable-environment-pollution/ BRAND Project Meeting in Copenhagen On the 11th and 12th of May 2023, Crossing Borders (CB) hosted one of the transnational project meetings of the Erasmus+ BRAND Sustainable Fashion project in Copenhagen. The 6 partner organizations gathered at CB’s facilities to discuss and plan the final stages of the ECO-FASHION Toolkit and the upcoming project results. The CB team organized a dual sustainability event to host the BRAND project partners. On the sunny afternoon of May 11th, the project partners and other CB guests walked along the Sustainable Fashion Migrant Tour route to discover the hidden gems of the many thrift, upcycling, vintage, and second-hand stores in the vibrant neighbourhood of Nørrebro. The route was designed by CB BRAND project collaborators to present different forms of sustainable fashion businesses in Copenhagen through a migrant perspective, inspired by the CB Migrant Tour project.  After the tour, participants attended a Food for Thought Sustainability event with Karen Blincoe, an expert on the subject, who invited BRAND Coordinator Lena Gruber to speak about the BRAND project for an audience of 30 people. Lena mentioned the BRAND project objectives of increasing awareness about sustainable fashion consumption among young people and sustaining future generations. Food for Thought is a monthly social event organized by CB as the name suggests bringing important themes of our modern society for reflection. It also includes the incredible experience of a community dinner in Copenhagen, where participants have the opportunity to talk about the topic and interact with different people and of course enjoy a fabulous vegetarian dinner prepared with love by immigrant women in Denmark. Stay tuned for BRAND Sustainable Fashion Results The first project result, the ECO-FASHION Toolkit, will be released soon! It will provide a dynamic and interactive experience designed for young people and youth workers. Follow BRAND on social media for more details about the BRAND Sustainable Fashion project and access to the Eco-Fashion toolkit. Instagram: @youth4sustainablefashion Facebook: www.facebook.com/BRANDboost4sustainablefashion/ Website: www.brand.erasmus.site

11 Crossing Borders from 10 different nationalities departed from Copenhagen Central Station on the 12th of May to experience 3 sunny days of team building activities in the calm and relaxed atmosphere of Samsø Island, DK. Samsø became Denmark’s first sustainable energy island, due to its commitment to become independent of fossil fuels by 2030. The island is known as Denmark’s Vegetable Garden due to its large production of potatoes and other vegetables. Crossing Borders team members had the opportunity to visit many amazing places on the island guided by Garba Diallo, including the Energy Academy, which serves as a meeting place for discussions on sustainable development between residents and visitors interested in green energy. We then visited Samsø’s Nordby village, bought some local products, had ice cream by the pond and relaxed for a while. In the afternoon, some of us went to the Labyrinten and it was fun to answer tricky questions about the world and get lost, but in the end, we managed to end at the right place and get out of the maze. The bike group biked to Issehoved hills and down to the sea and took memorable photos. Crossing Borders team building was experienced in all senses, from organizing the trip, sharing household chores, small conversations in pairs or deep sustainability discussions and other discussions in group, sharing personal stories around bonfire and favourite music and experiencing the sensations that it brings to others, dancing with Turkish music and playing fun games at the bonfire. Everything was simple, genuine and fun.

https://usercontent.one/wp/crossingborders.dk/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Ukrainian-youth-visit.mp4?media=1733222032 On March 1st , we were both honoured and grateful to host the delegation from our Ukrainian partner, Klitschko Foundation, at Crossing Borders in Copenhagen. What would turn out to be an exceptional warm and emotional visit started with the presentation of the Great Debate Camp winners, which took place last November in the western part of Ukraine. At the camp, youth participants inspired us with their stories, and also shared their strong motivation and determination to be part of the Democracy Hub project. That is a formidable demonstration of Klitschko’s determined efforts in empowering youth to be the change they want to see in their own lives. On the basis of that, we were looking forward to welcoming the youth group, showing them around the city, and at Crossing Borders’ own headquarters, where we ended up spending an exciting evening together. During the visit, we had a session of the Fabo Learning Lab where our participants got the opportunity to engage with and be part of the global learning platform. After the session had left everyone both a little wiser and hungry for more engagement, we all went to the Danish Institute for Parties and Democracy (DIPD). Here, Director of DIPD Lisbeth Pilegaard gave us a warm welcome and then a great chance to discuss democratic values and its vital importance in society. None of us wanted to miss out on commemorating this day, so we took lots of group photos during this special visit. Late in the afternoon, we went back to Crossing Borders’ offices and invited all our guests to participate in CB’s monthly event, Food for Thought. This evening was spent in the company of award-winning Afro-American musician, professor and storyteller, Norman Fearrington. The many and often surprising stories about a long life spent as a musician for the likes of Tina Turner, Ray Charles, Santana, John Coltrane and David Bowie came to a halt when all of Food for Thought’s participants introduced themselves and it turned out that Ukraine was heavily represented in the crowd. Norman stopped his storytelling for a time and visibly moved started to talk about the invasion in Ukraine and how much the devastating situation was on his mind. He praised the Ukrainian youth for not giving up hope and for continuing their quest for education, travel, and friendship amid this terrible time. It was a moving moment for all at the event and a reminder to not take anything for granted. Norman’s heartfelt speech to the youth group visiting us was an unforgettable moment. At the end of the visit, many hugs were exchanged between CB’s project coordinators, volunteers, and the youth group. Presents were awkwardly given, and friendships forged. It was indeed a successful and educational visit. Anna, Inna, Mariia, Yelyzaveta , Vitalii and Olena and all the Democracy Hubs participants have inspired us and made us proud.  The special partnership with Klitschko Foundation has created a solid foundation for further and a longer-term collaboration, and we are glad that we can contribute to Ukrainian youth fighting for their dreams. We are thankful to our partners, the Klitschko Foundation and the New Democracy Fund for making this project possible. Video Credits: Crossing Borders & Klitschko Foundation

Anti-racism and Civic Courage Training (ACCT) is a transnational project focusing on the decrease of discrimination, including multi-dimensional discrimination and racism, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance. The partners also aim at combating discrimination, hate crime & hate speech across the EU.  On January 25 and 26 2023, partners from Berlin, Hamburg, Copenhagen, Álora, Sofia and Bratnik came together in Berlin for the kick- off meeting of ACCT.    During this meeting, the consortium had the opportunity to get to know each other better and set the priorities of action for the project life, next 24 months. ACCT envisions to prevent as well as fight intolerance, racism, xenophobia and discrimination expressed in the forms of antisemitism, anti-Muslim hatred, anti-roma discrimination and other forms of prejudice in rural communities across the EU.    To achieve this, ACCT unites people from diverse backgrounds such as civil society organisations, activists and community leaders, for Civic Courage trainings. These trainings are designed to establish a safe space of contact among groups that are directly and negatively affected by different types of discrimination and people that are not affected directly. The latter are trained to reduce prejudice and bias against marginalised groups in the communities they live in, as well as practising everyday civic courage. At the same time, participants facing discriminatory practices and incidents in rural communities will be empowered spaces for inclusion created together.     Over the coming months, the consortium will work towards the designing and testing of the trainings before starting to offer them to the communities.     ACCT is an EU-funded project engaging with the priority of the CERV Call “Fighting against intolerance, racism, xenophobia, discrimination, hate speech and hate crimes”.     The consortium for ACCT consists of:  Comparative Research Network (Berlin, Germany)  Perspekt Initiative (Hamburg, Germany)  Crossing Borders (Copenhagen, Denmark)  Imagina (Álora, Spain)  Stowarzyszenie “Dla Ziemi” (Bratnik, Poland)  Association on Refugees & Migrants- Bulgaria (Sofia, Bulgaria)     Want to know more? Get in touch:   Maxine Cottreau, Project Coordinator, Comparative Research Network e.V.  E-Mail: maxine.cottreau@crnonline.de  Phone : +33662271499  Web: www.crnonline.de             Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.      edit post Blog Food for Change March 6, 2023 Facebook Twitter Google+ Linked In Pinterest edit post Blog A Week in the Life as a Project Assistant. In Estonia (Where else?) March 1, 2023 Facebook Twitter Google+ Linked In Pinterest edit post Blog Our recent journey on Democracy February 15, 2023 Facebook Twitter Google+ Linked In Pinterest edit post Blog Food for Thought ‘I tell my story, therefore I am’. January 24, 2023 Facebook Twitter Google+ Linked In Pinterest