European Village is a Greek NGO established in Athens in 2006. It aims to spread ideas and support actions concerning social and collaborative economy and sustainable development, through vibrant and innovative ways of coordinating various autonomous projects, hopefully expanding the bonds in between the rural and the city.

The association empowers people through non-formal educational activities (learning by doing), sensitization campaigns/events and vocational trainings.

 

Throughout the years of its action, thousands of people have been networked, introduced to projects towards autonomous, sustainable living and sensitized on social and nutritional issues, in local and regional level as well as abroad. European Village is strengthening and facilitating procedures towards eco-sustainable solutions and strongly promotes solidarity actions that include socially or economically marginalized people, showing youth the path to build a fair society.

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Firstly involved in intercultural dialog, non formal education and exchange of experience and good practices in Europe through hosting and sending European volunteers and participating in international meetings (European training courses, Gruntvig, Social Forums…), European Village has progressively extended its activities in the fields of (a) social innovation; (b) living together, non-violent communication and intercultural dialog and (c) poverty alleviation, in order to meet the needs of people, still strongly impacted by the consequences of the 2008 global financial crisis, and by the current migrant crisis.

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At local level, the association enhances encounters across various generations, living conditions and backgrounds and fosters involvement in practical social actions. It promotes non-violent communication and action and provides space to allow free expression and encounters, taking benefit from the cooperative café it has been running since 2009 in an emblematic and popular borough of Athens, in which it organizes public events dealing with social current issues and free Do-It-Yourself workshops addressed to all target groups on a regular basis.

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This place, which strongly contributes to the local community life, specifically focuses on vulnerable people, among them an increasing number of migrants: activities for young people and children; support of families and isolated people in their administrative and educational procedures (housing access, education, healthcare, culture, Greek lessons); free or cheap meals to highly vulnerable people, fundraising for urgent social situations.

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In 2015, facing the migration crisis, it decided to strengthen intercultural mediation in Athens, Attica and Creta to allow and support any kind of marginalized population and to prevent the rising of social tensions due to the misunderstanding of the Stranger, of the Difference, in an uncomfortable social and economic context.

A new project of itinerant and social food truck was born in 2015 (Nomadiki Kouzina: www.facebook.com/nomadikikouzina), providing food and warmth in priority to homeless, jobless people, refugees and asylum seekers, NEETs and one-parent families.

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The organization is paying attention to the values that connect a person to a group and how this whole connection is evolving in terms of solidarity and broadmindedness. Non-Violent Communication (NVC) is one of the ways in which it is developing a non-violent stance and exploring an alternative way of dealing with social and personal life's changes. It has been in the core of the association’s activities in the past 5 years, through numerous talks, presentations and trainings, resulting in hundreds of people to get acquainted with this approach.

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In the fields of Youth and non-formal education, European Village has been an accredited EVS organization since 2007, receiving volunteers until 2010 and constantly sending EVS volunteers ever since (more than 100 so far), providing them strong support in their learnings. It has also participated in numerous European projects within the frame of Leonardo, Grüntvig, Youth in Action and Erasmus+, acquiring skills it carefully spreads in its network.

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At regional and national level, European Village advocates for a more inclusive and sustainable society. It builds (or supports) networks which implement projects in the fields of social solidarity, community building, energy self-sufficiency, fair trade and ethical consumption, etc. and takes an active part in some of them.

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All year long, its supports its partners in the organization of events in the areas of living together, solidarity and sharing. In the perspective of creating common space and activities based on shared values, it has been co-organizing since 2012 the Festival for Solidarity & Collaborative Economy (www.festival4sce.org/) which gathers each year thousands of citizens, social organizations and social entrepreneurs from all Europe, and participates in local and national Eco Festivals (www.oikogiorti.gr/).

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It eventually developed its network at a European level, by participating in European non-formal education and lifelong learning programs in order to gather knowledge that can be used locally to meet the needs of people and reach more autonomy.