AT A GLANCE
WELCOME – Water: Element Linking Cities, Opportunity for Merging Europe – is a project aiming at promoting reflection, debate and action around the element WATER, focusing on its sustainable management in order to improve citizens’ and communities’ well-being in their everyday life.
Through the workshops, implemented with different methods, citizens will acquire new knowledge and will raise their awareness about their role in the community and in Europe and about the topic addressed, producing thus a very positive impact not only at the individual but also at the community and European level.
WELCOME involves partners from six different countries already in relation with each others through existing town twinning agreements: 3 old EU members, 2 new ones and a pre-accession country.
WELCOME is granted by European Commission in the framework of the Europe for Citizens Programme, Action 1 , Measure 1.2 and last 18 months.
OBJECTIVES
The project aims at promoting reflection, debate and action around the element WATER, focusing on its sustainable management in order to improve citizens’ and communities’ well-being in their everyday life. WELCOME aims at promoting citizens participation in the construction of a tighter-knit, democratic, world-oriented and united Europe, focusing on WATER as a linking element to develop active citizenship and sense of ownership of the EU, whilst enhancing tolerance, solidarity and mutual understanding.
The action seeks to have a multiplier effect in Europe, leading to the setting up of a thematic network of twinned towns around WATER.
In specific terms WELCOME aims at developing thematic and long-lasting cooperation between towns, focusing on water as a linking theme. It foresees a process leading to the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding and a joint action plan in the framework of the twinning agreements. It aims at “multiplying” the relations among the involved towns, revitalizing the existing twinning agreements and creating new ones.The action seeks to have a multiplier effect in Europe, leading to the setting up of a thematic network of twinned towns around WATER.
ACTIVITIES
The project foresees the organization of 3 main international events in Italy, Hungary and Croatia involving different target groups as local authorities, CSOs, youth groups, schools, universities and representatives from the economic and political contest sharing best practices on a common theme. The events will focus on 3 different dimensions of WATER:
- First International Event – Sacile, Brugnera, Porcia – Italy : WATER, a CULTURAL VALUE – connected aspects are tourism, sport, culture, etc.
- Second International Event – Berettyòùjfalu – Hungary : WATER, an ECONOMIC AGENT – connected productive aspects are fishing, energy, consumption, health, etc.
- Third International Event – Novigrad-Cittanova – Croatia : WATER, a TERRITORIAL PARTNER – connected aspects are citizenship, sense of belonging to the territory, territory’s shaping and safeguard.
The main objective of the events is to increase the awareness of the need of a sustainable use of WATER in all its dimensions. Moreover they will be an opportunity for drafting and finally sign a Memorandum of Understanding as action plan for future cooperation on common themes.
