Heritage and Adventure – Reinventing Minority Youth Camps

Activity Type: KA153 - Mobility of Youth Workers (Training Course)
Host Organization: Forcamp (Romania)
Venue: Farkas-lak Tourist House (Toplita, Romania - Harghita County)
Dates: 6 days + 2 travel days in Summer 2027]
Number of Participants: 30 youth workers/educators (including the trainers)
Target Group: Youth workers, educators, teachers, and camp leaders working with Hungarian minority youth in diaspora/isolated communities.

Project Summary (Description)
The Forcamp Association is looking for partner organizations for an upcoming Erasmus+ KA153 Youth Workers Mobility.

In diaspora and minority communities, youth camps and after-school activities are the strongest pillars for preserving cultural identity and the mother tongue. However, keeping the 21st-century generation motivated is a rising challenge, leading to early school leaving and community detachment.

This 6-day intensive, non-formal training course aims to empower 30 youth workers and educators with experiential education (élménypedagógia) methodologies. Hosted in the inspiring, nature-bound environment of the Farkas-lak Tourist House, the training will focus heavily on how to design, organize, and facilitate high-impact youth camps and adventure-based projects.

Expected Impact
By the end of the project, partner organizations will gain qualified youth workers capable of organizing more engaging, experiential, and inclusive camps.

Partner Profile
We are looking for NGOs, schools, or informal groups from Erasmus+ programme and partner countries (especially focusing on the Carpathian Basin / Central and Eastern Europe) that:

Work directly with hungarian minority/diaspora youth.

Want to upgrade their camp-organizing skills using non-formal education.

Can send 5-7 motivated youth workers/teachers to the training and support the dissemination of results.

6-Day Activity Timetable (Non-Formal Training)

Day 1: Connection & Grounding
Morning: Ice-breaking games, name-learning activities, and setting up the "Group Agreement" (rules of safety and respect).

Afternoon: Introduction of the venue (Farkas-lak), the Forcamp Association, and the partner organizations (NGO marketplace).

Evening: Intercultural Night (Focusing on the unique local realities of different diaspora communities).

Day 2: The Core of Experiential Education
Morning: What is experiential education? Understanding the Kolb’s Learning Cycle through practical, low-budget indoor games.

Afternoon: Trust-building and communication matrix. Outdoor challenges around the tourist house to experience the "comfort zone" concept.

Evening: Reflection groups: How to process an experience so it becomes a learning outcome?

Day 3: Camp Architecture & Safety
Morning: "The anatomy of a successful youth camp" – structure, daily rhythm, and group dynamics in a multi-day camp setting.

Afternoon: Risk management (physical and emotional safety) in outdoor and adventure-based projects. First-aid and crisis scenarios in non-formal spaces.

Day 4: Heritage & Adventure in Action
Morning: Gamification of cultural heritage. How to turn history, language preservation, and local roots into an exciting adventure game (e.g., city-bound, treasure hunts).

Afternoon: "Low-cost, high-impact" – Crafting experiential tools from natural resources available around a tourist house.

Day 5: Green Camps – Experiential Environmental Education

Morning: Eco-pedagogy in Action
Understanding the "Leave No Trace" principles in outdoor youth camps.
Sensory nature walks and experiential games designed to build a deeper, emotional connection between minority youth and the local ecosystem around Farkas-lak.

Afternoon: Sustainable Camp Design
How to organize a "Zero-Waste Day" within a traditional youth camp.

Upcycling workshops: creating camp tools, games, or art from natural and recycled materials.
Teaching climate awareness and sustainability through cooperative challenges instead of frontal lectures (avoiding "eco-anxiety").

Evening: Nightwalk or stargazing exercise: Deepening the human-nature connection.Campfire discussion on environmental responsibility in local diaspora communities.

Day 6: Sustainability & Closing
Morning: Erasmus+ Youthpass competencies self-assessment. Planning follow-up/dissemination activities in the home countries.
Afternoon: Final evaluation of the 6-day training. Closing ceremony and distribution of certificates.