Committed to Europe
Our Project Coordinator Manuel Rodriguez is one of the members chosen to support the project: Future Lives with Oceans and Waters.
A program that will last two years and that has begun with a face-to-face meeting at the Radboud University of Nijmegen (Netherlands), entity in charge of its coordination.
This project is part of the firm commitment of Volies to establish partnerships for a better Europe. We are part of reference entities in Europe such as Volonteurope and the Centre for European Volunteering (CEV), from which we learn and to which we contribute our experience. We have coordinated programs for the European Commission and the United Nations.
And since 2019 we participate in European projects, together with other organizations with which we share values, contributing to the common project of a social, diverse, inclusive, supportive, united and innovative Europe.
Water as a common thread
The FLOW project aims to increase understanding of the connection young people have with the oceans, seas and waters.
The ocean, which covers more than two-thirds of the earth’s surface, is essential to our survival. Restoring the health of our oceans and other waters in general, must be a top priority, in line with the objectives of the European Green Pact.
In this context the EU-funded FLOW project will empower the young generation to co-create effective, target group oriented and feasible projects for social interaction and engagement with our seas and waters.
To achieve these objectives the project will design a new approach based on co-creation of future policies that mitigate the risk of naively generalizing and amplifying statements made by young people amidst, and in spite of, vested interests.
Co-creation and young talent: FLOW's two pillars
At the core of this European project are the promotion of co-ownership, co-responsibility and co-implementation of the young generation for the joint creation of effective, target-group oriented and feasible projects for management packages that include social interaction and commitment to the sea and waters. Thus contributing to the mission of "Restoring our oceans by 2030".
The innovative project design brings together young people from all over Europe with an excellent interdisciplinary research team.
- The research will be built along a chain of direct cooperation with young people through FLOW’s youth advisory board.
- The European network of youth-focused NGOs.
- Experiential futures workshops with young people from seven regions across Europe.
- And co-creation between youth and other stakeholders.
FLOW aims to go beyond the instrumental treatment of knowledge about the young generation through a novel transdisciplinary research approach: “inFLOW lens” that will study their expectations, engagements and relationships between humans and nature with seas and waters.
Bringing policy makers, researchers and other stakeholders together with young people and involving them in the co-creation of results that will help shape future policies.
We are at a critical moment to adapt to the future consequences of climate change. And with this project we will be able to understand how to improve our relationship with water, a fundamental element for our survival.
