THE VALUE FAIR 2018 - How non formal education can contribute to a better living together

In our societies, we are facing mistrust among citizens, resulting in discrimination and rejection of “the others”. This harms our living together. This first edition of VALUE FAIR aims to support actors of youth field in sharing, understanding and identifying the social changes our Non-Formal Education (NFE) work intends to reach. It focuses on how the values dignity, respect, empathy, solidary and integrity are approached, translated, promoted and transmitted through Non Formal Education. The Value Fair will not focus on ‘tools’ and ‘methods’, but will have focus on the “why” and “what for” of our work. OBJECTIVES • To give values a central place in our agenda and daily life; • To understand the positive supportive role of Non-Formal Education (NFE) in the current reality marked by growing rejection phenomena and hate behaviors; • To question and reflect how Non-Formal Education (NFE) can increase tolerance and a better living together; • To highlight the current challenges related to refugees / migration and inclusion; • To exchange understandings and practices of values; • To explore how to maximize the impact of Non-Formal Education (NFE) on individual/organizational/community level • To stimulate concrete networking in order to create qualitative future international projects, also within the Erasmus+ / Youth in Action Programme PRINCIPLES & FOCUS • Visibility of Non-Formal Education (NFE): strong involvement of local, regional and national media in order to increase the visibility of the event. • Local impact and involvement: several events during the VALUE FAIR are open to/involve the local community, this to enhance mutual learning (based upon the current good practice in the rural villages Vila da Marmeleira and Arrouquelas) and to enlarge the impact as such. Profile of participants to be selected: have concrete practical experience with NFE and a genuine interest for networking. Participants should be at least 18 years old and be able to work and communicate in English. This event will take place in the city Cascais and combined with the European Youth Capital 2018. Considered ‘the’ place in Portugal where contrasts meet so clearly: ‘(very) rich and (very) poor’, ‘past and future’, ‘history and dreams’, ‘tourism and immigration’, different local stakeholders of Cascais are involved in the organisation of this VALUE FAIR. For this event, we have an international team of experienced trainers/facilitators and representatives from National Agencies of Erasmus +. We have chosen 2 examples of good practices in rural areas, based upon their experience in the field. The association H2O from Arrouquelas has proven over the past 20 years to be a high qualitative and active promoter of the Youth in Action Programme, and this in several aspects (Youth Exchanges, European Voluntary Service, Mobility of Youth Workers), while ‘The Rural Centre of Non Formal Education’ in Vila da Marmeleira that started in 2013, has gained international recognition and awards throughout their insistent use of Non-Formal Education (NFE) for community building, using Erasmus + as one of their major tools. Local involvement and impact has been a priority in each of their actions. They have transformed NFE in a local stimulator for inclusion and employability.