ECTP is a three month exchange programme that takes place in 25 countries across Europe and includes a camp in Brussels, Belgium at the end of the programme.

EFIL is the European Federation of AFS organisations in Europe. AFS Intercultural Programmes is an international network of non-profit volunteer organisations promoting intercultural learning through individual secondary school exchanges, mostly in the long-term (between three and twelve months). Since 2009 EFIL has been running a three-month intra-European immersive exchange programme (ECTP), which takes place from September to December each year, combining intercultural exchange with citizenship education contents.  

The target group for this annual European Citizenship Trimester Programme are young people aged 15-18 years from high schools across Europe. Participants are selected through EFIL’s members, namely AFS organisations in Europe. Recruiting and selection takes place through the wide network of volunteer youth workers from each AFS organisation. EFIL members also target participants with fewer opportunities, in particular those that live in remote areas and those with financial difficulties.

The needs identified by EFIL for this project were related to many young people having a low interest in community engagement. Specifically, it was highlighted that young people in general have insufficient ability to take into account an intercultural perspective when perceiving the socio-political reality around them. Added to this, most young people lack the motivation and awareness to apply their gained intercultural competences in their communities.

The aims of the activity

• Gain a wider concept of Europe
• Appreciate European diversity
• Recognize the importance of Active Citizenship
• Be motivated to be an Active Citizen
• Provide the opportunity to implement Active Citizenship throughout and after the exchange

ECTP is an AFS exchange programme and based on the AFS educational goals. ECTP puts a special focus on getting to know different European cultures with their similarities and differences. It also strongly promotes active citizenship through the ‘change-making’ method, inspired by cooperation with Ashoka Youth Venture.

The exchange programme provides young people with an immersion into another culture for three months. The programme has a focus on intercultural learning with an additional focus on active European citizenship. At the end of the exchange experience, before returning to their home country, all participants meet at the ECTP Camp in Brussels to share their experience, attend workshops on active citizenship and visit the EU institutions.

During the trimester exchange young people attend at least three camps. They attend one camp upon arrival in the host country, one 2 or 3 weeks after arrival, and a short one before departure to Brussels. At these camps they take part in non-formal education sessions aimed at developing intercultural competences by getting them to reflect on their exchange experience. At the camp in Brussels, on the first day participants attend workshops on different aspects of active citizenship, such as human rights, gender equality, volunteering, sustainable development, and voting, etc. They reflect on how these aspects are dealt with in their home and host country, and learn how European institutions tackle them. On the second day, they visit the European Parliament to get a hands on feeling of what European institutions do with regards to the important matters they have explored on the first day of camp. On the third and last day participants learn about methods and skills for initiating a local personal project of their own to implement back home.

  Innovation and Impact

ECTP is a unique programme because it is the only long-term youth exchange programme for young people aged 15-18 years which focuses on empowering young people to be active citizens. Throughout their exchange experience, they reflect on the rights and duties of individuals in society. They also focus on the different ways of participation in the community and wider society of their own home country as well as the host country they are doing the exchange in. At the Brussels Camp, where all the young people who have taken part in the exchange programme meet, they exchange their views on the topic and learn how to initiate and take part in societal changes, through democratic institutions and personal projects.

The annual number of participants has been increasing from 100 to nearly 300 participants. Many of the participants to the programme then become volunteers for their AFS organisation. Also, participants bring back to their own communities, families, friends, schoolmates the learning from their exchange experience.