On 30 June, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, in collaboration with more than twenty NGOs it supports, including Unity Foundation, organised the “Lëtz Cooperate” event on the Place Clairefontaine in Luxembourg City. This event was a unique opportunity to bring together different organisations around a common cause and to raise public awareness of the Sustainable Development Goals, in particular through interactive activity stands based around the 5 Ps: peace, partnerships, protecting the planet, people and prosperity for all.
The event welcomed primary and secondary school classes, as well as the general public, to take a tour of the stands, find out about the various projects run by NGOs around the world, and explore ways of getting involved in Luxembourg. All this was accompanied by food trucks and live music!
In addition, our network of youth “Actors of Change” were present to welcome visitors, explain the purpose of the event, guide them around the stands and collect their impressions and evaluations after the visit. A service they performed with dedication and motivation! They had been preparing for several weeks, with the help of members of the Unity Foundation, by identifying the services they could provide. Acting as ambassadors for the general public and on social networks, accompanying visiting classes and co-creating a poem about the day were some of the ideas they came up with and which they prepared in advance, in particular by practising conversations with passers-by.
Youths “Actors of Change” in conversation with the public.
What is the network “Actors of Change” and how does it work? Through Unity Foundation’s involvement in various secondary schools and organisations, young people have shown their interest in getting involved in our development education activities, leading to the formation of the network in 2022 and its expansion in May 2023 following our first gala.
The aims of this network are to develop together a deep understanding of the objectives and dimensions of education and development, and to increase members’ ability to express themselves and manage simple projects, so that they can run workshops in their neighbourhoods.
The youths preparing their “Lëtz Cooperate” presentations for visitors.
It was great to see them enjoying approaching passers-by at the event, introducing the event and engaging them in conversation! They also got to know the other NGOs and had enriching conversations about cooperation with various ministry representatives, including the Minister for Cooperation and Humanitarian Action, Franz Fayot, and Prime Minister Xavier Bettel.
What we take away from this afternoon is not only the joyful and dynamic atmosphere created by the event programme and all the NGOs present, but above all the courage and strength of young people when they have a goal and a clear vision of what they want to accomplish, and when they act together to achieve it.
The youths with the Minister for Cooperation and Humanitarian Action, Franz Fayot, and Prime Minister Xavier Bettel.
We would like to thank the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs for organising this event, all the NGOs involved for this great collaboration and our young “Actors of Change” for their tireless efforts throughout the day!
If you would like to find out more or join the network of young “Actors of Change”, please get in touch!