Collectif Parasites

Collectif Parasites is a french non-formal education, media/audiovisual and cultural association. An hour and a half away from Lille, between the cities of Valenciennes, Cambrai and Maubeuge, we are based in the small city of Landrecies, in the middle of a beautiful rural area called Avesnois.
The association was created in 2011 by a groupe of very young adults, freshly out of high school, to support their music eco-festival. It has since evolved to become an important actor in the civic, cultural and ecological transition of the territory.

Our activities are divided into 4 categories:

• Cultural activities : organization of eco-events (our biggest one being the Paradisiac Field music festival), animation and programming of a local cinema
• Audiovisual : Filmmaking, editing, media and information education directed towards local youth
• Support for local solidary initiatives and associative projets : we are involved in numerous networks that aim to promote and help the development of new ideas and innovative projets in our region
• "Pépinière" : experimental activities brought to us by our volunteers - making our own local apple juice, beer, dry toilets, food trucks...

Some of our staff and volunteers have already had the opportunity to participate in different Erasmus projects and loved the experience; our association is now able to organize its' own ! Consequently, with over 10 years of experience, we are now looking to open ourselves to european exchanges. In 2022, we coordinated our first KA2, and are preparing to participate in new projects.
We consider the ecological crisis to be one of the most important issues of the 21st century, and wish to share and further our knowledge on what we can do to create a more sustainable and resilient cultural sector. Furthermore, the association is looking to develop activities aimed towards youth (12-25). We would like to share the extent of the opportunities that come with involvement and participation in local communities with the younger generations that surround us. Our next step : a european youth project !