ON AIR & C. is the latest Youth Exchange organized by Entropia about inclusion through digital radio

Radio as a tool for youth activism, inclusion, cultural and linguistic exchange, promotion of mobility and European values. On Air & C. is the latest Youth Exchange organized by the Cultural Association Entropia as part of the Erasmus+ program. After almost two years of forced pause due to the pandemic, the association has returned to one of the activities that have become an integral part of the mission of recent years. From the 1st until the 10th of September, 30 young people from different European countries were trained and confronted on the theme of communication, focusing on radio as a traditional tool of expression. Facilitated by the staff of the Association,the participants were engaged in activities within a training course, conducted by using non-formal methods that led to the creation of podcasts in different languages.

The project, of which Entropia was the leader, involved four other associations in Europe: Young Folks from Latvia, Master Peace from Romania, Youth Empowerment Group from Malta and Keliauk ir tobulek from Lithuania. Belonging to an international and diverse group allowed the more and the less experienced to work side by side, utilizing previous skills and acquiring new ones. A much-needed and long-awaited return to sociability, according to the participants, which made the project a very intense experience as reflected in some of the participants' statements (released anonymously when evaluating the activities). "I learned a lot from a professional and technical point of view, e.g. how to create a podcast, but also from a human point of view," wrote one of the participants. "After the lockdown and isolation these months," said another, "I was a bit scared by the confrontation with new people, especially in a different language, but now I'm really happy to have participated. I'm going away with a big bag of emotions that I missed." “I had never participated in an international exchange project before, I didn't really know what to expect and I was a bit lost at first. Now I don't want to leave and I think this has been the best experience of my life," was the comment of another.

The group produced several podcasts, some in English and some multilingual, to explain what a Youth Exchange project of the Erasmus+ program and specifically the On Air project is, to talk about youth activism and participation, but also about the main challenges that young people have to face nowadays. The European programs of mobility and non-formal learning are still not known enough among girls and boys in Calabria, but they are very useful to bring them and the whole region closer to the Europe of change, the Europe of youth and cooperation. To listen to the podcasts of On Air & C. click here.