Community Urban Farming Lifestyles – CUFL

A personal report of the volunteer experience written by the participants of the project.  

By the participants of the project: Federica Baggio, Elisa Bruscato, Marion Druet, Maria Ivagnes, Angelika Kapica, Kaidi Qu, Elena Osmeni, Giada Ramirez, Richard Schamchtenberg, Martina Tempo. 

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Ten handsome volunteers from all over Europe gathered together in Trento to contribute to the realization of a flourishing urban garden for the local community. The name of the project is Community Urban Farming Lifestyles (in short, CUFL); it’s part of the Erasmus + European Solidarity Corps volunteering projects that unites four European countries in the cause of promoting sustainability and healthy living habits to young people.

“In the last two weeks, we have all learned incredibly much. From visiting the Banco Alimentare, a local organization fighting against poverty and food waste here in Trento, to listening to enriching presentations about green communication and participating in seminars about future sustainable cities, there was so much to learn and discover, leaving a lasting impact on all of us.”

But not only were they educating themselves, but they also took matters into their own hands: 

“Working in the garden was fulfilling in a way that is hard to explain. No matter if it rained or the sun was out, we painted benches, removed the weeds, dug the lines you can see over here, and planted seedlings that will hopefully be harvested in the near future.”

The cultural exchanges, the educational workshops, and the gardening contributed to creating memories that will remain in their minds long, also after they have gone home.

“After two weeks of digging holes and eating pizza together, a group of strangers became a group of friends.”

During the project, the ten volunteers have always appreciated the hard work of all the people involved in the making: 

“Last but not least, we would like to say thank you to every person that was involved in bringing this wonderful project to life and giving us the opportunity to have such memorable experiences.”