Dear all,
I have a question for you. Actually two…
If we apply for a project from an organisation in Madrid but want to implement the activity (YE) in an ecovillage in Andalucia, southern spain, does it make any sense to add the ecovillage as a partner organization? Or is it better to just leave it as the venue of the activity only?
Another doubt is, considering Spanish National agency is divided in regions, will we have less chances of having the project approved if we apply for a project in Madrid but implement it in Andalucía? Would it make more sense to apply directly from the organisation in Andalucia even if it is a newcomer organisation with no experience in YEs?
first question: I did the same with my first YE in Zegg. I applied with ecobasa organisation and it took place in Zegg. Ecobasa was the hosting org. and was selecting the participants. Zegg we just mentioned in the apllication text where we explained the venue. I don’t think that it is a plus to apply with the venue instead of the other org. To add the ecovillage as a partner does not make sense for me.
second question: I don’t know where the chnace in Spain is higher! But I know that they like new organisations
I think that the best applicant organisation is the one that has more experience in youth work, indipendently from where it’s based. When I say youth work, I don’t mean Erasmus+. If you have an organisation that does youth work on a local level but has no previous projects approved, that 's better than an oranisation with 10 project approved but that doesn’t mention youth work in its description (it could be a matter of writing a better description, then ).
That said, it could be a good idea to have the hosting ecovillage as a partner to show that it will give a significant contribution to the project and not only host it in the way any hotel or camping site could do. Especially if you’re planning some activities in the programme that interact with the venue. Now that there is a specific question about environmental sustainability, this is also a good chance to describe how their sustainable practices will be turned into educational activities during your YE, and this argument could be stronger if you have the hosting ecovillage as a partner.
And about the regional division of funds in Spain, sorry but this never happened to me. Better ask the NA
).