GREEN CANVAS – Youth Creating Circular Futures through Art

GREEN CANVAS – Youth Creating Circular Futures through Art is an Erasmus+ KA152 Youth Exchange project that will bring together young people from Türkiye, Hungary, Belgium and two additional partner countries to explore ecological art, mixed arts, sustainability, circular economy and youth participation through non-formal learning methods. The main mobility activity is planned to take place in Budapest, Hungary, in 2027.

The project idea is based on the long-standing experience of Tavşanlı Youth Center in the field of fine arts and on the artistic works produced by young people over the years. Our Youth Center has significant experience in painting, watercolor, pastel, oil painting, ceramics, mixed-media techniques and ecological art practices in which waste and reusable materials are transformed into artistic works. Through GREEN CANVAS, we aim to transform this local experience into an international youth work process where young people from different countries can learn from one another and discover how art can be used to express environmental challenges and raise public awareness.

The project will not focus only on transferring theoretical knowledge about art or environmental issues. Instead, young people will be involved as active creators, peer learners, facilitators and decision-makers. Activities will be based on non-formal education and peer learning. Methods will include World Café, group work, creative workshops, visual storytelling, eco-art laboratories, art production with reused materials, painting and mixed-media techniques, intercultural learning activities, field-based learning, daily reflection circles and Youthpass reflection sessions.

Participants will explore topics such as waste generation, reuse, circular economy, responsible consumption, climate change, the relationship between urban life and nature, and sustainable lifestyles through artistic expression. Working in international mixed groups, they will create ecological artworks from reused and second-hand materials and transform environmental stories into visual works through watercolor, pastel, collage and other mixed-art techniques.

Budapest will not only serve as the venue of the mobility but also as an open learning environment. The programme will include study visits to institutions and initiatives related to contemporary art, sustainability, zero waste, environmental awareness and sustainable design. During these visits, young people will receive observation and research tasks and will compare local practices in Budapest with environmental challenges and artistic practices in their own countries.

At the end of the mobility, participants will jointly organise the GREEN CANVAS Pop-up Exhibition. The exhibition will present ecological artworks, mixed-media works and environmental messages developed by young people during the project. The exhibition will not be the final objective of the Youth Exchange itself, but rather a dissemination tool to make participants’ learning outcomes visible and to encourage dialogue with the local community.

Youth participation will be one of the core principles of the project. Participants will take part in online preparation meetings before the mobility, contribute to the design of activities, prepare examples and methods from their own countries, facilitate selected peer-learning sessions during the mobility and organise local dissemination activities after returning home.

The project is directly linked to the Erasmus+ horizontal priority Environment and Fight Against Climate Change. It will also address youth participation, intercultural learning, inclusion, European values and access to international mobility opportunities for young people with fewer opportunities.

Our current partnership includes:

Türkiye – Tavşanlı Youth Center: experience in fine arts, ecological art, mixed arts, non-formal learning and youth work,
Hungary – Youth Association: hosting in Budapest, local youth work experience and local connections,
Belgium – Culture and Arts Association: experience in culture, arts, creative expression and art-based youth work.

We are currently looking for 2 additional partner organisations to complete our consortium. We particularly welcome organisations with experience in one or more of the following fields: environmental sustainability, zero waste and circular economy, climate education, youth participation, inclusion and work with young people with fewer opportunities, culture and arts, or non-formal education.