17 September - 28 September 2022
Critical thinking
Izvoare, Romania
➼ To increase critical thinking competencies of young participants from RO, LV, BG, MK and the CZ as a powerful tool for better integration to the society, smoother transition from education to work, and higher social inclusion.
➼ With this project we want to improve critical thinking competences of young participants from partner countries, raise their awareness about benefits of critical thinking and fields it may be used and facilitate safe non-formal learning. context participants can share their thoughts and brainstorm on dissemination ideas of project results in their local communities.
Sharp Mind is a youth exchange designed in three phases. Besides these, expect new friendships, cultural exchange, overcoming fears, and developing yourself in a multicultural non-formal way.
Find more about youth exchanges here.
days 1-3
The group will be introduced into a series of non-formal activites aimed to boost the team spirit and get to know each other, designed by specialised facilitators using interactive workshops. You will also get to discover more about the Erasmus+ programme and the Youthpass Certification.
days 4-9
During the second phase, activities will have the focus on the topic. Using interactive non-formal learning methods you will find out more about how to raise your awareness regarding the benefits of critical thinking and how to improve your competencies in analyzing the information you recive. Trust us, is going to be fun 🙂
day 10
The last days of our project will be dedicated to our communities. Together we will design a dissemination plan and work on the promotional video and website of our project to share back with the community the results. We will also present to the community the result of our work.
The youth exchange will take place in Izvoare, a small town that lies in the heart of Transylvania. It is surrounded by the beautiful Transylvanian mountains and provides a breathtaking view of nature. The accommodation is one hour walk to the Zetea dam and lake. It represents the perfect place to connect with nature and enjoy the beautiful surroundings of the place.
For the accommodation, we will face the facility of “Pension Irgo”, which provides modern looking but at the same time traditional decorations, free time spaces and a conference room. It is a place surrounded by nature and beautiful landscapes.
Accommodation will be arranged in rooms for 5 people each, gender separated. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be served at the same location every day, plus the coffee breaks. Each room has its own bathroom. Please bring your own towels, as the accommodation won’t provide those.
Being located in an isolated area, the venue won’t provide internet. However, if you have roaming you will be able to make calls or use the internet. The good news is that in Romania you can get a SIM card with 60GB of mobile data for as low as 6 EUR. Please check out here.
You can buy the SIM card in any Orange Shop in Romania and ask there for help with the activation. You don't need an ID card to buy it and you don't need to connect a credit card to it in order to pay. Once you leave Romania the SIM card will be deactivated automatically because you won’t top it up anymore.
Each group is expected to organize a dissemination activity once they return to their communities. The purpose of this activity is to spread the results of the project among other people. By deciding to take part in this project, the participants are assuming the responsibility of organizing the dissemination activity in their community. More detailed information about this will be provided during a dedicated session, in one of the activity days.
The participants are required by the Erasmus+ program to have valid travel insurance that covers liability to third parties, lost or stolen luggage and heath for the whole period of the project including the travel days. Supplementary, we also recommend our participants get a European health insurance card. You are free to choose your insurance.
Note: The travel insurance is mandatory, and without it, we cannot accept the participation in the project.
How to buy insurance?
Just search on google "travel insurance" and get the one which you like the most. Prices are around 10 EUR per insurance.
✰ Weather conditions: In the area of Izvoare, the average temperature in September is between 10 °C and 25 °C. Please check accuweather.com for more updated information about the weather.
✰ Dress code: Please bring casual comfortable sportswear, slippers or sneakers for indoor and comfortable shoes for outdoor activities, we suggest you bring hiking boots. According to the meteorological release, we do not expect rain during our mobility, but you never know, so you could pack a waterproof jacket just in case.
✰Intercultural evenings: Each country is expected to prepare a short program to present their culture and eventually bring some typical local drinks and snacks. The intercultural evening is the time when participants have the opportunity to get to know each other’s culture better in an informal context. We encourage the participants to be as creative as possible in presenting their culture, to use theatre, dances or live and interactive presentations. We do not provide a video projector for this event and any kind of promotional video or PowerPoint presentation will be presented exclusively in spare time.
✰ Meals: we will provide you with three meals/day and two coffee breaks. The meals will take into account all the participant's dietary aspects such as allergies, intolerance, and preferences. If you have any special requirements regarding food (allergies, intolerances, vegetarian, vegan, etc.) you are obliged to mention them in the application form. Otherwise, we might not be able to accommodate your requirements.
All the participants are required to have valid travel insurance for the whole period of the project including the travel days. The insurance must cover:
Third-party liability
Lost or stolen baggage
Accident and serious illness
We cannot accept participants without travel insurance. Supplementary, we also recommend our participants get the European health insurance card.
To minimize the risk of covid-19 infections we will hold as many activities as possible outside. The whole accommodation unit will be rented only for the purpose of our project, without foreign guests. Our budget does not cover the potential cost of covid-19 tests or other quarantine costs. We highly recommend you get a covid-19 vaccine to minimize even more any risk connected to the pandemic situation.
Please check with your Embassy whether or not you are required to have a negative covid test result to enter Romania and to go back to your country without restrictions. If necessary, we will help you to get tested in a centre before departure from the project.
We cannot refund the cost of cancelled flights, therefore it is your responsibility to contact the airline for a refund in case of cancelled/ delayed flights.
No participant can arrive later than the arrival day or depart earlier than the day of departure. Skipping activity days is also prohibited. We actively support you during the process of buying the tickets.
Arrival: 17 September 2022.
Departure: 28 September 2022.
Before buying or booking any travel ticket please consult with us and obtain our written approval so you make sure you will be reimbursed.
The participant has to be on the project for the whole duration and has to attend all the sessions in order to be eligible for reimbursement.
If you need extra information, we are happy to offer our assistance to choose the best travel, you can reach us at info@ingensrisus.ro or via Telegram.
Each participant will be reimbursed up to a maximum limit, based on justificative documents (plane ticket, boarding passes, or train/bus ticket).
Examples of ineligible transportation: personal car/gas ticket, priority boarding, seat reservation, additional luggage bought after the flight, business class tickets, plane tickets on longer routes, plane tickets with stops for one night or more, taxi, rented cars, private transport companies, travel starting or ending in a different country than the sending organization’s country, etc.
The sums that are not used by one participant will not be transferred to other participants who exceeded the travel budget/person.
All the travel tickets, inclusively the ones for return must be bought before the project starts (date to be set). We will not accept any tickets bought after this date.
For electronic ticket/receipt/invoice, the document has to be delivered in PDF format. If it’s on a website, it has to be saved as PDF or printed into PDF(CTRL+P). Screenshots or forwarded emails are not accepted, exception making only boarding passes.
The participant has to consult with us before buying the ticket and obtain our written confirmation that we agree on the chosen transportation means and route before buying any travel tickets. We will only reimburse approved tickets.
Note: reimbursement will be done in EURO, regardless of the currency indicated on your ticket and receipt/invoice. If the ticket is bought in local currency, we will calculate your travel costs in EURO based on the exchange rates required by the Erasmus+ programme, usually the date when the contract was signed. Each country will be reimbursed in a maximum of 30 days after we obtain all the necessary transport documents from all the participants from that specific country and after the realization of the dissemination activities.
For each country, we will make one bank transfer to the bank account of the partner organisation. The partner organisation will further divide the money among participants in cash or by bank transfer.
In order to be reimbursed each participant has to have the following:
For plane tickets:
-Electronic ticket or invoice in PDF format. Usually, this is the confirmation e-mail you receive from the website where you make the booking. Make sure it has your name, the dates of travel, the route and the price on it.
-Keep your boarding pass, we need it ☺. All the boarding passes are in the original or electronic in PDF version. This is the smaller document that you receive when you do the check-in. When you are doing the check-in online usually it comes as a PDF in your mailbox or on the phone app of the airline. The boarding pass is the document that has your seat number on it and it is scanned at the gate.
For bus or train tickets bought online:
-Electronic ticket or invoice in PDF format. Usually, this is the confirmation e-mail you receive from the website where you make the booking. Make sure it has your name, the dates of travel, the route and the price on it.
For bus or train tickets bought with cash:
-Ticket or invoice containing the dates, route and price in the original.
All the participants will have to provide the organizer with proof of the travel insurance and proof of the dissemination activities implemented by them.
Dissemination of the project results
Each group is expected to organize a dissemination activity once they return to their communities. The purpose of this activity is to spread the results of the project among other people. By deciding to take part in this project, the participants are assuming the responsibility of organizing the dissemination activity in their community. More detailed information about this will be provided during a dedicated session, on one of the activity days.
After you apply, a member of our team will get in touch with you to help and support booking your tickets. The process goes as follows:
1. You will show us what tickets you want to buy.
2. Our team members will approve the tickets or help you find better options at better prices and times.
3. You will buy your travel tickets up to the amount listed in the table below.
4. All the tickets bought online will be sent to us by e-mail in PDF format. If you buy the tickets from the train station please send us pictures and give us the original ticket during the project. All the tickets must be bought before the project starts.
Tickets bought online and sent in other formats than PDF or bought after 17 September cannot be reimbursed.
5. You will be reimbursed for your travel once the project has ended after signing a reimbursement agreement.
Please send your tickets to info@ingensrisus.ro
Romania
• 8 participants and 3 group leaders
• Maximum amount to be reimbursed is 180 EURO/person
Czech Republic
• 8 participants and 3 group leader
• Maximum amount to be reimbursed is 275 EURO/person
Macedonia
• 8 participants and 2 group leaders
• Maximum amount to be reimbursed is 275 EURO/person
Latvia
• 8 participants and 2 group leader
• Maximum amount to be reimbursed is 275 EURO/person
Bulgaria
• 8 participants and 2 group leader
• Maximum amount to be reimbursed is 180 EURO/person
Have a look at this promotional movie made by the participants of a similar project about games and get a bit of the feeling of how is it like to be part of one 🙂
Requirements
1. Be aged between 15 and 30 years old.
2. Be a resident in one of the countries listed in the table above.
3. Have an interest into the topic of critical thinking.
4. Be present for the whole duration of the program and commit to be involved into the DEOR plan.
5. Be willing to get an insurance as described above.
6. Fill in the application form available below.
We will take care of the rest 🙂
NOTE: The English level of the participants is not a criteria of selection, but a great opportunity for themselves to develop it, benefiting of help and support during all days of the project.