Our pilot project „Correspondence with young and elderly pen pals” has started on Feburary 22th 2018. In the course of 5 weeks, high school students from Ruse, Bulgaria exchange views with senior citizens from Ulm and Oberursel in Germany and from Lodz in Poland. The aim of this project is to foster intergenerational exchange, and for the students to make active use of their German language skills.
The 8th Newsletter (December 2017) of the “Danube-Networkers for Europe (DANET) e.V.” is now online!
To the newsletter: https://en.danube-networkers.eu/newsletters/8/
The Danube-Networkers have created an advent calendar where you can find information about Christmas traditions and about some delicious recipes in the Danube countries made by Danube-Networkers participantsin the frame of the action “Christmas packages 2017” and some new contributions and nice videos about Christmas traditions.
Have a look:
The project’s objective is the creation of an online Method-Toolbox which can be used in European education programs and actions in the context of adult and especially older adult education. Central task will be the development of criteria for the analysis of projects and methods with the focus on good practices in the areas of fostering critical thinking, European consciousness and solidarity and the reduction of prejudices.
The Method-Toolbox should help to improve and extend the supply of high quality learning opportunities tailored to the needs of different target groups and individual learners.
Partner organizations from Germany, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria are members of the educational networks Danube-Networkers, the international association DANET e.V., the FEDERUNI Network of Italian Universities of the Third Age and in Bulgaria the Platform Agora. All partners are experienced in national and international work with different target groups, especially older learners.
Bread Connects. Give a sign of friendship along the Danube!
From 7th to 16th October 2017 the Danube-Networkers are carrying out a Danube Bread Baking Week with this motto. During this week, many actions concerning bread baking and bread sharing will take place in all Danube countries. People of all ages, ethnic origins and social backgrounds are invited to participate and through their actions to make concrete contributions to fostering of a peaceful and solidary community both in the Danube Region and in Europe. All participating groups will send a photo related to their actions to info@ileu.net, until the 31st October. It will be inserted in the website bread-connects.tastes-of-danube.eu. By this way, a large transnational virtual ribbon of friendship will be created! Join us!
More information: http://bread-connects.tastes-of-danube.eu/bakingweek/
Background: The pilot project Open Doors for Danube Countries for All (ODDA) builds on experiences from the previous work and projects of the network Danube Networkers. Mutual knowledge and understanding amongst people in the Danube countries and positive climate between European neighbours is one of the prerequisites to the successful implementation of the Danube Strategy and its European ideas. The project should help to reduce prejudices and fears, to introduce and establish new role behaviours and forms of civic engagement. Experiences from previous cross-national projects have shown that many people are reserved when it comes to programs that include international meetings or travel to the West or the East. This applies especially to people with low education, but also to people, who have large knowledge about their own culture. This reserve comes from the lack of knowledge of languages – the other national languages or English, the lack of experience with the cultures of the Danube neighbours and the resulting fear of getting into difficult situations.
The reason for this is the long division of the West and the East Europe and the different social systems. The consequences of this division are especially marked in the transdanubian sphere. Cross-national meetings foster motivation to find out more about the ‘world’ of the other, lead to questions and experience of alternatives for dealing with new situations and foster the feeling for common European democratic values.
The reason for this is the long East-West divide in Europe and the different social systems.
More Information will follow soon.
The project is financed by:
The very successful, intergenerational and intercultural Danube Project „Tastes of Danube: Bread. Wine. Herbs“ will be continued. The follow-up project „Tastes of Danube-Bread Connects“ is based on the findings and experiences in the project „Tastes of Danube-Bread.Wine.Herbs“.
At the heart of the project „Tastes of Danube: Bread Connects“ is the promotion of awareness raising for the common cultural roots in the Danube Region and in Europe and the strengthening of the Danube community by working on the subject of bread. Through various activities, citizens of all age groups, ethnic groups and social situations will be invited to experience bread as a common immaterial cultural heritage, which is reflected in many facets of local level. Through doing things together at local and transnational level, the aim is to demonstrate the possibilities offered by the cultural heritage of intergenerational and intercultural dialogue, social cohesion and economic development in the Danube Region and in Europe.
http://bread-connects.tastes-of-danube.eu/
Jointly organised by Slovenian Third Age University and the local Cultural Centre,the 4th International Festival of Knowledge and Culture in lLter Life took place in Šmarje pri Jelšah, a Slovenian country town. Through the day the audience followed the programme staging results of exploratory learning of older people that shape local identity and support the development of cultural tourism all over Slovenia, but also in Croatia and Austria the two neighbouring countries. Old tales of the region were collected and acted out, EU projects proved to have brought new educational and cultural topics into older adult education. The results of My story, 18 summers, RefugeesIn , Silver Code, P3AE were presented. Šmarje pri Jelšah is known for its baroque church etc. Study tours were organised. Was presented also Bread in the past and present, a sociological, economic, political and cultural study of bread, a publication originally prepared by a group of U3A’s students of journalism for the DANET’s project Tastes of the Danube.
The 7th Newsletter (March 2017) of the “Danube-Networkers for Europe (DANET) e.V.” is now online!
To the newsletter: https://en.danube-networkers.eu/newsletters/7/
Ana Kovačič, a thirteen year old girl called on us. She appeared profoundly interested in the project. She was shown around the exhibition Bread in the Past and Present which has recently been opened to the public at Slovenian Third Age University. She said that she was more attracted by the topic of wine than that of bread. Suddenly she went to her rucksack ,pulling out a picture. Allegedly she had never made a painting before.The colours of the picture remind us of some 19th century paintings. We think Ana is very gifted and we gladly accepted her as a member of our project.
Ljubljana, 8th November 2016
Association DANET extended a call for projects to various organisations along the Danube. The call yielded results. Slovenian Third Age University contributed its web publication of the study Bread in the past and present and a catalogue of paintings featuring bread. Moreover, recently there was official opening of the exhibition The story of Bread displaying selected paintings and drawings produced by Slovenian Third Age University students and their mentors.
Upon the opening of the exhibition and a short lecture,Tatjana Rodošek, winner of a photo competittion launched in Ulm was awarded for her photo of a little boy getting enthusiastic over a loaf of bread. “It’s mine, it’s mine he cried” said Tatjana.
The ILEU office in Ulm started in November 2016 the action “Christmas Packages along the Danube” and invites all interested partners to take part to it. Packages in the size of a shoe box will be prepared and sent to other partners from three different Danube countries. They should contain Christmas cookies (sweet bread) and recipes, descriptions of Christmas customs and information about the own group (who we are) in the native language and in English.
The 6th Newsletter (October 2016) of the “Danube-Networkers for Europe (DANET) e.V.” is now online with the following topics: DANET board meeting in Ulm on the 9th of July 2016, International Conference “Tastes of Danube. Let’s taste it”, messages from Danube countries, tasting the Danube tradition and further more…
To the newsletter: https://en.danube-networkers.eu/newsletters/6/
In May 2016 the University in Reims hold the world conference on “History and Development of the UTA in the world” and hosted participants from the AIUTA International Association. The conference was combined with the AIUTA98th Governing Board meeting and AIUTA General Assembly. During the last year AIUTA approved the application for the membership from National University of the Third Age in Sofia, Bulgaria, From U3A in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Tomsk State University U3A, Russia and A Coruna Senior University in Spain.
The AIUTA 99th Governing Board meeting and International Conference was organised from 10th to 12th October 2016 in Osaka. The theme of the conference was “U3As Linking the World – Active & Healthy Ageing & Intergenerational Cooperation”.
Program of the conference focused on many different topics with the presentations of Mr. François Vellas on behalf of AIUTA, Mrs. Rhonda Weston on behalf of Asia Pacific Aliance, Mrs. Akiko Tsukatani on behalf of Age Concern Japan and Japan’s U3A Federation, Mrs. Wang Younong & Mrs. Zhong Haoling, China Association of the Universities for the Aged, Mrs. Nadežda Hrapkova, Comenius University, Bratislava, Slovakia, Mr. Hans Kristjan Gudmundsson, U3A Reykjavik; Mrs. Nelly del Forno, U3A Lignano Sabbiadoro Italy;, Mr. Armoogum Parsuramen, U3A Mauritius; Mr. Carlos Santos, Azores University, Portugal and many others. Panel discussion have had the panellists from France, Australia, Mauritius and Slovakia with the facilitator Rhonda Weston (Australia) on“U3A co-operation world-wide“. The organisers from Osaka U3A and Asia Pacific Alliance offered the participants after the conference trip to Kyoto and meeting with the elderly students.
Next AIUTA events:
The 100th AIUTA GB meeting in Bratislava (Slovakia) May 2017; 101st AIUTA GB meeting La Mesa Bogotá (Colombia) November 2017; 102nd AIUTA GB in Barcelona (Spain) June 2018; 103rd AIUTA GB Port Louis (Mauritius) October 2018. Additional proposals for the presentations of AIUTA have been agreed by the president prof. François Vellas for the fair of Seniors Art Expo and Senior Tourism 2016 – 2018. The 100th AIUTA GB meeting is going to be held in Bratislava (Slovakia) at Comenius University on 18th May 2017. The meeting will be combined with the conference on theme “Equal opportunities for learning of the elderly” on 19th May 2017 and cultural trip on 20th May 2017.
PhDr. Nadežda Hrapková, PhD.
AIUTA Deputy Treasurer
In May 2016 the University of Reims hold the world conference on “History and Development of the U3As in the world” and hosted participants from the AIUTA International Association. The conference was combined with the AIUTA98th Governing Board meeting and AIUTA General Assembly. During the last year AIUTA approved the application for the membership of the National Third Age University, Sofia, of U3A based in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Tomsk State University U3A, Russia and A Coruna Senior University in Spain.
The AIUTA 99th Governing Board meeting and International Conference was organised from 10th to 12th October 2016 in Osaka. The theme of the conference was “U3As Linking the World – Active & Healthy Ageing & Intergenerational Cooperation”.
The conference programme was focused on a greta number of different topics with the presentations given by Prof. François Vellas on behalf of AIUTA, Mrs. Rhonda Weston on behalf of Asia Pacific Aliance, Mrs. Akiko Tsukatani delivered a presentation on behalf of Age Concern Japan and Japan’s U3A Federation, Mrs. Wang Younong & Mrs. Zhong Haoling, China Association of the Universities for the Aged, Mrs. Nadežda Hrapkova, Comenius University, Bratislava, Slovakia, Mr. Hans Kristjan Gudmundsson, U3A Reykjavik; Mrs. Nelly del Forno, U3A Lignano Sabbiadoro Italy;, Mr. Armoogum Parsuramen, U3A Mauritius; Mr. Carlos Santos, Azores University, Portugal and many others. Panel discussion have had the panellists from France, Australia, Mauritius and Slovakia with the facilitator Rhonda Weston (Australia) on“U3A co-operation world-wide“. The organisers from Osaka U3A and Asia Pacific Alliance offered the participants after the conference trip to Kyoto and meeting with the elderly students.
Next AIUTA events:
The 100th AIUTA GB meeting in Bratislava (Slovakia) will take place in May 2017; 101st AIUTA GB meeting is planned to be in La Mesa Bogotá (Colombia) November 2017; 102nd AIUTA GB in Barcelona (Spain) June 2018; 103rd AIUTA GB Port Louis (Mauritius) October 2018. Additional proposals for the presentations of AIUTA have been agreed by the president Prof. François Vellas for the fair of Seniors Art Expo and Senior Tourism 2016 – 2018. The 100th AIUTA GB meeting is going to be held in Bratislava (Slovakia) at Comenius University on 18th May 2017. The meeting will be combined with the conference on theme “Equal opportunities for learning of the elderly” on 19th May 2017 and cultural trip on 20th May 2017.
Nadežda Hrapková, PhD.