- Grrrrr.eu is a project by the “Cultural Space Greater Region”, uniting the administrations for cultural affairs of Luxembourg, Saarland, Rhineland-Palatinate, Lorraine and Wallonia, in order to bring together efforts to promote cultural operators and to coordinate a common strategy in terms of cultural policy for the entire Greater Region. The goal of the new portal Grrrrrr.eu is to establish a common platform for youth initiatives and to facilitate synergies and cooperation in fields such as youth, education, and culture. - The General Secretariat in Luxembourg is in charge of coordinating the project. We have been working with EVS volunteers for two years now. Volunteers work in pairs of two as well as with many other young people from the Greater Region. Objectives - The cultural platform www.grrrrr.eu was created in 2010. Its goal is to contribute towards young people developing a feeling of belonging to a common European space of living, of culture, and of education. It is based on the dedication of young volunteers from all parts of the Greater Region who get to meet each other in workshops of cultural journalism where they have a chance to learn together and share experiences, thereby promoting the idea of volunteerism. Hence, the project corresponds to the idea of opening up the platform to as many young people as possible, regardless of their background, to invite them to participate, thus ensuring that a wide range of interests is covered. We would like to offer our volunteer the opportunity to work together with these young people in an intercultural environment in order to generate enthusiasm for the European idea. This enthusiasm should then become visible in contributions on our website and in an active editorial team. It is our goal to teach our volunteers the basics of cross-border cooperation and we welcome their initiatives to apply these principles. - There are always two volunteers working in the Secretariat. Ideally, they should be interested in culture and internet-based communication. Volunteers of all ages and nationalities are welcome. It is possible to develop language skills but they are no prerequisite. Our volunteers should enjoy working in a team and be open towards other cultures. - The activities include cooperation with the team of volunteer journalists on the website www.grrrrr.eu. Regular editorial meetings ensure direct contact between the contributing writers. In order to promote intercultural exchange volunteers organize workshops. They choose events that provide the appropriate setting for a workshop. Different types of media and all kinds of journalistic styles are used to report on these events. They work together closely with the partners of the association, youth organizations, and professional journalists. They attend many cultural events, are on the lookout for inside tips, discover the Greater Region and present it to other young people. Volunteers raise awareness for crucial topics such as the memory of WWI which irreversibly shaped the region. They also organize concerts and other events in order to promote the European idea and to get young people involved in and excited about it. As part of their journalistic work, they also conduct interviews, initiate editorial meetings and get to meet celebrities. - Grrrrr.eu aims to raise awareness for cultural diversity among young people and hopes to contribute to the mobility of young people both within the Greater Region and Europe. It is of particular importance that young people make use of the opportunities within the Greater Region. - As the project will be initiated by and aimed at young people the focus will be on non-formal methods, promoting specific skills and general training of the target group. It is also our goal to contribute to the training of young people in terms of culture as well as journalism and web-based methods. The high number of active workshop participants and the special dynamics that developed as a result showed that the project is on the right track. Other indicators are the increasing degrees of interactivity and the popularity of the portal’s facebook pages and web pages. - As a European border region the Greater Region is at the heart of Europe and therefore ideally located to promote the idea of Europe without borders. Essentially, the Greater Region is already a concrete example of this idea and can thus serve as an illustration of what Europe stands for. The project does not only aim to create a sense of identity within the Greater Region but to help develop a European identity. The project also plays a vital role in the Greater Region’s cultural life. One of the main goals is to promote cross-border exchange and to help up set up cultural networks throughout the region. It is of special importance to get young people interested and involved in cultural events and to facilitate their access to arts and culture, especially in another region.