“Young Pilgrims of Hope” is an Erasmus+ small-scale partnership in youth Key Action 2 project starting in spring 2024 and ending in late 2025, on the occasion of the 2025 “Pilgrims of Hope” Jubilee closure.
This project is intended as a path to approach and prepare for the 2025 Jubilee Year, aiming to unfold a reflection about pilgrimage routes and walking routes as a means to engage the youth to go back to the common European cultural roots, to experience cultural diversity within Europe, to discuss about European identity, citizenship and values.
Cultural routes demonstrate, by means of a journey through space and time, how the heritage of the different countries and cultures of Europe contributes to a shared and living cultural heritage. Within the broad field of cultural routes (48 paths are certified Council of Europe Cultural Routes to date), a specific kind of journey is represented by pilgrimage routes crossing Europe for centuries. A pilgrimage experience where the physical journey that is outward acts as a metaphor for the inner journey of transformation for the youth.
Young people are indeed a vehicle of dialogue among European countries across different cultures and religions. Through our project, starting from our cultural heritage and walking different pilgrimage routes, our participants will be able to:
– experience intercultural and interreligious dialogue;
– reflect about life-meaning and purpose in life, taking care about their own spiritual and mental wellbeing, in a holistic approach;
– learn about different European priorities: inclusion and diversity, environment and fight against climate change, participation in democratic life, common values and civic engagement.
The “Young Pilgrims of Hope” project was written and applied for by the Don Bosco Youth-Net Working Group on Volunteering as the natural continuation and implementation of the two-year project “The Future is Europe (2022/2023) and is aimed at young volunteers from all over Europe.
The concept of “Young Pilgrims of Hope” started by selecting three different Council of Europe Cultural Routes, which have been pilgrimage routes across Europe to Rome for many centuries: Camino de Santiago, Via Francigena and Romea Strata.
The aim is to engage young people in three main activities (4-day seminars), each one organized in part on the road as a walk along one small selected segment of the relevant pilgrimage route in Spain, France and Austria respectively, in order to offer a taste of the pilgrim experience in full.
One final activity will be held in Italy where all three cultural paths end, so that all participants who took part in the previous three sessions can finally meet together and share their experiences, while virtually finishing their own pilgrimage and inner journey in Rome on the occasion of the 2025 Jubilee Year.
Each activity is built around an online preparatory meeting, an in-person seminar and an online follow-up meeting for each topic:
– Cultural paths for intercultural dialogue: Santiago de Compostela, Spain (Camino de Santiago), 25-28.04.2024
– Cultural paths for inclusion: Calais, France (Via Francigena), 24-27.10.2024
– Cultural paths for the environment: Mariazell, Austria (Romea Strata), 24-27.04.2025
– Cultural paths for civic engagement: Roma, Italy, 04-07.09.2025
Expected project results include the strengthening of the European dimension youth work has to offer, in order to reach more young people through quality projects, to have a strong impact on civic engagement and participation of young people in democratic life, also through recognition of competencies gained during the experience, mentoring and general support during all the stages of the project. We aim to gather these quality standards in the form of guidebook, travel kit, videos and other media content to share.
Regarding the project partners
Don Bosco Youth-Net (DBYN), based in Heverlee (Belgium), is the lead partner and coordinator of this project. It is the network of European Salesian youth organisations. Its own working group on Volunteering has made this project possible.
Association Don Bosco Jeunes, based in Paris (France), is a non-profit association whose purpose is to organize and support socio-educational activities for young people, such as sporting and cultural events, Volunteering experiences, gatherings of young people, training of animators, and much more.
Bosco Base, based in Heverlee (Belgium), is a non-governmental organisation offering participation in youth-led events and youth participation activities, providing activities in the field of non-formal education, training of youth leaders and voluntary service.
Confe Don Bosco, based in Madrid (Spain), is a youth organisation that works to defend and promote children and young people, offering volunteering experiences, training opportunities and international camps.
Salesianer Don Boscos, based in Vienna (Austria), is a non-governmental organisation that works for and with young people from all over Austria to spend their spare time and develop projects that help to empower the youth and promote their ideas.
Salesiani per il Sociale (SxS), based in Rome (Italy) is a network of more than 100 organisations engaged in the protection and support of minors and young people throughout Italy.
Salesian Pastoral Youth Service, based in Balzan (Malta) accompanies young people to discover authentic life values through local and international volunteering and training activities.
Turismo Giovanile e Sociale, based in Rome (Italy) is a network of groups and associations actively promoting youth and social tourism all over Italy.
TGS Eurogroup, based in Mogliano V.to / Venice (Italy), combines youth training activities in its home country as well as abroad with a concept of active, social, and sustainable tourism.
