This project featured three youth exchanges, empowering  24 young people from Germany, Russia and Belarus to become more active in the development of their cities’ public places. The participants had a chance to employ creative and artistic self-expressing approaches while developing and implementing local projects during different stages of the exchange. They were guided by professional trainers specialising in the fields of public art, performance, urbanism as well as other related fields.

PART 1. Exchange in Berlin, Germany. 
During the first stage of the project in Berlin, young people could share and discuss their needs and ideas while implementing a small project of their own – an exhibition displaying the creative outcomes of the youth exchange at the GlogauAIR Gallery in Berlin-Neukölln.

PART 2. Exchange in Saint Petersburg.
In the course of the second stage held in St. Petersburg, participants successfully organized another project – “GarbeachParties”, which involved the creation of an art installation made from trash collected at a public city beach. In this way, the participants aimed to attract attention to and initiate an open discussion concerning the problems of urban pollution.

PART 3. Exchange in Minsk, Belarus.
During the third stage taking place in Minsk, young people cooperated with the Minsk Urban Plattform, developing a renovation concept plan of an old abandoned marketplace in the Molodechno district of Minsk. In the end, participants were able to introduce the developed concept to the public for an open discussion and present it to local authorities.

The exchange project was implemented in close cooperation with NGO “New Faces” (Belarus) and “Russian-German Meeting Center in Saint Petersburg” (Russia) within the ERASMUS + program.

Participant´s feedback.
“On our last day of the project we discussed further opportunities within Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps program. We also shared other exchange experiences and opportunities with each other. We then went to the lake and sat in the circle for evaluation and reflection. Afterwards we sat in the sun together one last time. It was a very special project. There are wonderful memories that we will never forget. All of us developed new skills and found some new friends. Now in the last part we designed the future together through giving the concept for the market in Molodechno, Minsk. We are all excited for what’s next. We want to thank all supporters of the project!” – Tony Weniger.