REACT PROJECT is funded by ALLIANZ FOUNDATION, within the Climate Cultures Call, and is implemented by Institute of Romani Culture in Albania (IRCA) in Albania and Associazione di Promozione Sociale Giallo Sassi in Italy.
REACT Project aims to strengthen the climate change resilience and transform the communities’ lives, by enhancing the youth through an international education program based on culture and art. This project will enable the emergence of fresh, youth-led activists, who will become youth as agents of change in their community and will promote climate change resilience, advocate solutions to local authorities, and will support the disadvantaged communities, like the Roma minority in Albania and Miglionico community in Italy, in making positive changes to their way of life and mitigate the effects of climate change.
The main activities of this project are:
• To create the Academy for Climate Ambassadors, with an international education training program based on culture and art, in which will be trained 40 youth, 20 youngsters from Albania and 20 youngsters from Italy, between the age of 13-30 year’s old, will be trained to become agents of change and learning about the impact of the climate change in the vulnerable communities, such as the Roma minority in Albania and the Miglionico community in Italy. During the Academy’s international education program, the youth activists will learn more about the theory and practice of green economy, circular economy, and how to use art and cultural games for climate change advocacy. 20 Italian youngsters and 1 representative from APS Giallo Sassi will travel to Albania and will participate to the 2-days training event of the Academy for Climate Ambassadors and 1 day of field advocacy in the community in Durres (Albania) together with Albanian youngsters. Also, 20 Albanian youngsters and 1 representative from IRCA will travel to Italy and will participate to the 2-days training event of the Academy for Climate Ambassadors and 1 day of field advocacy in the community in Miglionico (Italy) together with Italian youngsters.
• To organize a series of 16 open lectures in secondary schools and universities of the respective countries, entitled “Climate Talk”, where trained Climate Ambassadors, climate activist, university professors, and active citizens will discuss about the effects of climate change in their community and suggest solutions to support the disadvantaged communities to transform their living and deal with the climate change effects in their community.
• To organize a competition with secondary school and university students on climate change, with prizes for three best art works.
• To organize an exhibition of artworks in Matera (Italy) and in Tirana (Albania) on climate change created by the Climate Ambassadors and climate activists of the communities.
• To organize in their respective countries 3 days of community work to planting trees and greening the environment, raising awareness to not planting near the rivers, and to support the community with practical solutions to develop.
• To organize mediatic visibility presence through participation of 2 speakers (1 in Albania and 1 in Italy) in television programs and the writing of 10 (5 in Albania and 5 in Italy) news articles from journal writer about the promotion of the climate change resilience actions needed to be taken to support disadvantaged communities.
• To arrange 4 (2 in Albania and 2 in Italy) meetings with the local government representatives of the respective countries to advocate for the local government cooperation in implementing practical solutions for supporting the disadvantaged communities to combat the consequences of climate change.
• To produce a documentary on the consequences of climate change in Albania and in Italy.
• To organize a closing event at Reja (Cloud) installation in the center of Tirana (Albania) to gather youth, Climate Ambassadors trained by the project, climate activist, journalists, and active citizens to discuss about climate change effects and solutions to be implemented by all of us.
• To organize a closing event in Matera (Italy) to gather youth, Climate Ambassadors trained by the project, climate activist, journalists, and active citizens.
This project facilitates knowledge transfer and exchange of experience between Italians and Albanians in working with youngsters to develop climate changes to multicultural communities, disadvantaged groups, and enabling them to adapt their lives to climate changes.
REACT project is in response to the continued changing climatic landscape which requires a shift in the way disadvantaged communities live in Italy and in Albania.