Copyright © 2022 - Our Location: Kemalpaşa Mah. Medeniyet Bulvarı No:11/102 , 54050 Serdivan / Sakarya (Adapazarı) Contact Phone Number: +90 264 211 04 81 Our e-mail Address: karasukargenc@gmail.com
About The Project
“Small Touches for Our Planet”, (STOP), is an Erasmus+ Capacity Building Project in field of youth, co-funded by the European Union.
STOP is the need to develop social awareness about climate change that threatens our future and to take responsibility for each individual. In this regard, local environmental events, disaster news on the national, and world agenda have given us sufficient motivation. It is essential for our planet to start a total struggle from the individual to the whole.
Our world has been warmed by about 1 degree since 1900, which is accepted as the industrial revolution. This is because the carbon emission, which was 280 ppm before the industrial revolution, increased to 410ppm as of 2018. This may be perceived as a simple number at first glance, but the point is that this 1 degree causes unexpected environmental disasters all over the world.
Therefore, we, as from 5 different countries, Turkey, Greece, Togo, India and Uruguay, located on different continents, aim to contribute to the process by carrying out studies that will reduce individual carbon footprint and greenhouse gas emissions. This will be a small contribution to the studies around us first, then to the climate policies of our countries, then to the European and World climate policies, and eventually to the future of our planet.
Our project goals;
- To create synergies by giving social messages about climate change,
- To raise awareness about carbon and water footprints,
- Discussing behaviors and practices that damage the cycle of nature,
- To investigate and spread the effects of climate change on nature and ecosystem,
- To research and exhibit the natural events of the last 20 years, directly related to climate change.
Our project will carry out the follow-up activities to achieve this determined goal:
- Regional classification of the factors that cause the atmosphere to warm up, to produce training modules on the behavior patterns to be developed and the results that can be achieved (related to carbon, water, energy and recycling).
- Training course: On the causes of climate change, methods of struggle and individual commitments.
- Youth Exchange: Ways to combat climate change (includes trainings, seminars, verification activities, outdoor activities and workshops. 18-25 age range from each country)
- Climate change seminar at the local of each partner
- Social media campaigns
- Creating a 5-volume climate guide (Climate and Gas Emission, Climate and Water, Climate and Energy, Climate and Recycling, Climate and Forest)
The project consortium
The Coordinator:
Karasu Youth Art and Sport Club Association (KARGENC CLUB) from Turkey
KARGENC CLUB was established in 2010 in Sakarya as a Youth and Sports Association by volunteer teachers and started to the international studies with youth projects and progressed towards sports and environmental projects with the increasing capacity of our association. The association consists of high school and university students, coaches, teachers and academicians.
The aim of the organization is to attract attention on climate change and have an active role to fight with climate change, to raise awareness about the size and expected consequences of climate change for everyone in our province, to encourage the participation of young people in the decision-making processes, and to encourage both young people and adults to have a physically active life with different sport activities.
As organization, we carry out environmental cleaning activities on health walks in our region. For trekking activities, we support the programs of Sakarya Metropolitan Municipality in addition to the trekking activities we do in Acarlar Longozu in Karasu. In addition, by coming together with young people, we arrange Sapanca Lake cleaning activities. Besides, we have some actions and awareness studies for environmental issues and climate changes as we are the last generation who should take precautions for our planet. Regarding this current situations, we have ESC volunteers who organize climate change awareness activities at the schools. By coming together with the students studying at secondary and high school students, they give some training about environment and climate change. These raising awareness activities about climate have big importance in order to make the youngers have a step for environment.
The partners:
Hellas for Us from Greece:
Hellas for Us has been founded in 2015 with mission to contribute to the global preservation of the environment and sustainability through the reflection and implementation of innovative educational projects, for a better life together and to ensure the sustainability of humanity and its planet! The organization is based in Kozani, a city that produces the 80% of electricity in Greece from coal and suffers from climate change and air pollution. The organization strives to promote environmental and social values among the young community, by organizing and participating in Erasmus+ projects and summer camps in the field of environment, community-based economy, climate change and development of rural areas in our country and abroad. The members of the organization are mostly specialist who are working with youth and children, united around the idea of promoting European awareness and sustainability via non-formal education activities. The organization has 8 decision makers who are civil and mechanical engineers, lawyers and teachers in local schools and more than 10.000 members who are participating in the actions planned by the organization.
AUDELE from Uruguay:
AUDELE is a non profit association funded in December 2005, and approved by the Ministery of Education and Culture from Uruguay as an Education and Cultural Association. The main objectives of the organization are to promote an international spirit and intercultural experiences between Uruguayan citizens and people from the rest of the world by having intercultural experiences. They are working on sending Uruguayan students and volunteers abroad. Most of the people working in AUDELE are volunteers in Uruguay in different projects:
- Promote an international spirit and intercultural dialogue, through mobility projects, mainly between young people and adults.
- Develop learning and mobility transnational initiatives to students, young, adults and professionals, with the focus on innovation and development, trough the exchange of knowledge and the impulse of strategic collaboration between partners from all over the world.
- Organize training programs, and mobility opportunities for Uruguayans to go abroad and for participants and volunteers from other countries to come to Uruguay with the goal of helping to the programs of our organization and others, in projects of high social impact.
- Promote transversal competencies in the participants, through non formal education, with the goal of empowering and training in entrepreneurial, digital, creative capabilities, as well as new languages, through the intercultural dialogue and the participation in international projects.
Also we host volunteers in Uruguay who participate in different projects that we cooperate:
- Working with children and teenagers that are living in the streets doing: sports, music, camps, visits to schools and some of them also teach spanish.
- Rural areas, envairomental awarnes and farm development.
- Creating workshops to empower people mostly in rural areas.
Apart from that we are in charge of creating updating workshops in the areas of entrepreneurship, youth and rural communities empowerment and technical areas such as: sustaintability, rural enviorment, climate change.
Association des Volontaires pour l’Environnement Sain (AVES) from Togo:
A.V.E.S is a non-governmental organization created in 2001 by multidisciplinary groups of development actors who were met to think on the development issues in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in Togo. Its aim is to fight against poverty by fulfilling the Sustainable Development Goals axed on environment protection by ameliorating basic social services and promote economy and self-promotion improvement. Its mission is to promote emancipation, education and empowerment of their targets groups in healthy environment.
NGO A.V.E.S objectives and view of development argue:
- to accompany the formal and non-formal education by establishing and supporting vocational education in rural communities, training and teaching programmes that will improve the self-promotion on climate change mitigation, disasters risk reduction,
- to support agriculture and environment protection by identifying the skills and resources within the local groups and opportunities for self-employment,
- To reinforce the youth solidarity and cultural exchange by organizing short, middle and long term abroad voluntary services and international exchange events on climate actions, outdoors activities.
DISHA International Foundation Trust from India:
DISHA International Foundation Trust is educational based non-government non-profit organization located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India. Receipeient of ‘Youth Pass’ of European Commission for working in Erasmus Plus projects, also accredited by Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) A regional government body of Tourism for ‘Volunteer Tourism’. Recipient of the ‘Best Participation Award’ supporting Divisional Agriculture Office & District Collector Office for working on ‘Jal Yukt Shivar’ (rain water harvesting) campaigns in 29 villages for farmers in draught areas; by hands of Mr. Haribhau Badge, Speaker of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly. Organization is cooperating with all groups of people in community, but mostly is focused on work with youth, as India is country with high rate of young people. Organization is specialized in the field of capacity building, personality development, foreign languages, communication and soft skills, environmental and social responsibility awareness, cleanliness, health, food, hygiene and garbage policy and providing intercultural experience through hosting volunteers from all over the world, organizing events and seminars increasing general awareness, intercultural differences awareness, realizing individuality and individual responsibility, contributing to community work and social responsibility and active participation of community citizens.
Project Partners
“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 the EACEA can be held responsible for them.”
Small Touches for Our Planet Erasmus+ Project