Allianssi Youth Exchanges newsletter

in English

🌼 April Newsletter: spring is here at last 🐝

Another month, another edition of the Allianssi Youth Exchanges newsletter in English!  🤸‍♀️ 

Content of this month's newsletter in a nutshell: 

   🐰  Infosession on Intercultural developmental possibilities for Ukrainian Youth  - April 16th 

   🌼  Climate justice workshop - April 19th

   🐰  Deeds of Hope  – April session on Friday, April 24th 

   🌼  Apply for ESC volunteering teams - Concrete Deeds for the Baltic Sea!

   🐰  Youth Climate Meeting in Tampere - May 6th 

   🌼  Apply for a youth exchange in Finland, Greece or France!  

   🐰  Call for group leaders

   🌼  Upcoming events

💙💛 Infosession Friday: Intercultural Development Opportunities for Ukrainian Youth in Finland and Europe 🤍💙

Allianssi nuorisovaihto in cooperation with the Ukrainian Centre is hosting an info session for Ukrainians about mobility projects in Finland and abroad!

You will learn about:

• international volunteering work camps

• the European Solidarity Corps (ESC) programme and how to participate;

• Erasmus+ training courses and youth exchanges, etc.

These programmes provide opportunities to travel, develop skills, work in an international environment, and contribute to society both in Finland and abroad!

At the end of the session, there will be time for questions and discussion.

🌍Event language: English

📆Date: Thursday, April 16th

🕕Time: 17:00–18:30

 📍 Location: Ukrainian Center, Asemapäällikönkatu 1, 00520 Helsinki (1st floor) OR online on Zoom (📝register here: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/W4FA2_onQX6yOjLUE2xlaQ )

📝Registration (in Ukrainian): https://forms.gle/PSz7vGixRM1qPGcK6 

⚡ Climate justice workshop with DebtForClimate ⛅

Organised as part of the EYA European Youth in Action: Policymakers for Climate Justice project, we will collect thoughts, ideas and proposals that will be put together as recommendations to the EU policy makers as part of the EYA project. A great chance to get your voice heard on a European level! 🗣️

The workshop will explore economic, climate, and environmental justice through an interactive game and group discussions. After a brief intro, we will use a game to show how debt and colonial histories shape which countries can invest in climate action. Participants play as different countries, each given coins to spend on "just transition" elements based on their economic realities.

The goal is to explain the colonialist nature of current financial systems in an easy-to-understand way and to discuss solidarity and global inequality. The game has been tested at other climate camps, including in Åland in August 2025 during Regeneration 2030 Week.

🌍 Event language: English

📆 Date: Sunday, April 19th

🕕 Time: 14:00–16:00

 📍  Location: Allianssi-talo (Asemapäällikönkatu 1, 00520 Helsinki). Allianssi-talo is wheelchair accessible and has accessible toilets.

🎯 For whom​: anyone between 15 and 30 years old

 💰 Free  - register on our website here!

Vegan snacks and refreshments will be provided. 🥗

🤝 Evening of solidarity and friendship: Deeds of Hope & the Ukrainian Association 💛

For our April edition of Deeds of Hope, we invite you to spend an evening exploring Ukrainian culture, learning together and expressing solidarity through shared activities! 👭 

The evening will begin with a presentation by the Ukrainian Association in Finland, offering insights into their work and the Ukrainian community in Finland.We will then take part in an interactive Kahoot quiz📲, featuring questions about Ukraine, Finland and Europe — a fun and engaging way for both international participants and Ukrainians to connect and learn together.🎀

In the second part of the event, participants will join a creative workshop, crafting postcards with messages of support and solidarity for Ukraine, which will later be exhibited at the Ukrainian Center.🌅Throughout the evening, we will also share a traditional Ukrainian meal — a vegan version of borsch 🍲 — prepared together as a moment of community and connection.

Come learn, create and share in a meaningful evening of culture and solidarity! 💙💛

The event will be organized as part of the European Youth Week 2026, organised by the European Commission every second year to celebrate and promote youth engagement, participation and active citizenship all over Europe and beyond. 

Practical Info
📆 Date: Friday,  April 24th
🕕 Time: 18:00 - 21:00

 📍   Location: Allianssi-talo, Asemapäällikönkatu 1 00520 Helsinki.  Allianssi-talo is wheelchair accessible and has accessible toilets.
💰 Cost: Free! But registration is required—sign up here.
🌍 Language: The event is in English, but no worries if you’re not fluent. Finnish-speaking volunteers will be around to help.
🗣️ Tapahtuma järjestetään englanniksi, mutta pärjäät tapahtumassa myös ilman kummempaa kielitaitoa.

📝Registration form

🎟️ The event is free of charge, but registration is required for organizational purposes. Please register 1 day before the event at the latest. You can find more information about the event and the registration form at this link.

Deeds of Hope 🌼 is a European Solidarity Corps (ESC) solidarity project. It's created by youth, run by volunteers, and co-funded by the European Union.
It consists of a series of monthly events where we meet to share knowledge about activism and social engagement, explore the impact of Helsinki’s changemakers, and learn how to become part of movements for change.
We’ll get our hands dirty in practical workshops, where each month’s featured movement or organization shares hands-on skills and knowledge gained from their experience in activism.

We also offer free plant-based meals 🌱, cooked by our volunteers with primarily seasonal and locally produced ingredients.

Do you want to join our volunteer crew, too? 🤸‍♀️ Send us an email youth@alli.fi to get on board! 

We don’t ask for any specific requirements — just the motivation to contribute to a meaningful project, even through small acts that make a difference.

🌍 Join our ESC volunteering teams and help make Concrete Deeds for the Baltic Sea! 🌊

In 2026, we will celebrate the year of climate justice both nationally and within the network of our international umbrella organization, the Alliance of European Voluntary Service Organisations!

We are organizing 10 ESC volunteer teams in the countries surrounding the Baltic Sea. If you would like to contribute to the Baltic Sea, please find more information here! 

You can now apply to join the following teams:

💃 Baltic Sea World Village ESC Volunteering Team in Helsinki, Finland 5.-20.5.2026! 🌮

The volunteers will learn about the Baltic Sea, the measures taken to protect it and what is needed to be done. They will join Europe Day activities sharing information on Europan programs and Baltic Sea, take part in litter clean ups and other environmental actions.  The volunteers will work several days with the World Village festival organised by Fingo ry, a large sustainable event open for all raising global challenges and solutions, increasing people’s understanding and providing concrete ways to take action to create change.

Apply on our website at the latest by 19.4. -> ESC team World Village

🌊Baltic Sea Nõva ESC volunteering team on the coast of Estonia 7.-22.5.2026! 🌱

The group of volunteers will help with practical activities such as cleaning the beaches and the Baltic seashore, maintenance of a small harbour, tidying up a municipal park and the local school area as well as planting trees. In addition to this, the volunteers will contribute to the local community by helping elderly people with renovation and gardening.
Apply on our website at the latest by 19.4. -> ESC Team Nõva Estonia

We are looking for motivated volunteers, 18 to 30 years old who reside in one of the eligible countries. ✨
 

The activities are part of the ESC project CoDeSea co-funded by the European Union. 

European Solidarity Corps (ESC) projects are volunteering opportunities for 18 to 30 year olds, funded by the European Union. Participants are provided with travel grant, accommodation, food allowance, insurance and pocket money during the project. 💙

Detailed guide on how to find other workcamps and volunteering teams and how to apply can be found on our social media or on our website nuorisovaihto.fi (click on Vapaaehtoisleirien hakukone (E-Vet) at the top of the page).

🌞 Join us for a Youth Climate Meeting in Tampere

on May 6th! 💫

Come learn and make an impact for climate justice! 💪

This May, Tampere is hosting the Youth Climate Summit. The programme of the day will consist workshops on climate justice, greenwashing, biodiversity and energy transition. It also includes a free vegan lunch and coffee service. 🥙 We will provide support for travel costs if you travel to the event from elsewhere in Finland.

Everyone interested in the climate theme is welcome to the all-day event - you do not need any previous experience or knowledge of the topics.

🌞 Youth climate meeting 🌞

📆 When : May 6, 2026, 9:30 - 16:00

 📍  Where : Monitoimitalo 13 - Pellavatehtaankatu 4, 33100 Tampere

🎯 For whom : Everyone aged 15-30

 💰 Free - register by April 22nd. Registration is binding. 

🤳 Read more and register here!

☘️ EYE Green Deal Challenges - youth exchanges 23.7. - 30.7.2026 ​🐞

The aim of the EYE-youth exchanges is to inspire young people to take action for a more responsible Europe in Finland, Greece and France. All youth exchanges will be organised at the same time and will be linked together through a mega game where participants will use challenges to find ecologically sustainable solutions. ♻ 

​The participants will travel 100% by land. 🚂 The trips will be planned together with the national group in online planning meetings, and the group will travel together. The travel to and from the youth exchanges will take 2-3 days. 

Right now, we are especially looking for participants for the youth exchange in Finland. You will get to know local sustainable businesses and get to explore the Finnish countryside in Loimaa and Mustajärvi campsite. You will also have the chance to explore the city of Turku! ✨

We are also looking for group leaders with previous international experience for all youth exchanges. Youth exchanges are Erasmus+ funded and travel reimbursements, accommodation and meals are covered during the project. 👑

Read more and apply to Finland, Greece or France by 26.4.2026 here: https://www.nuorisovaihto.fi/ohjelmat/koulutukset-ja-nuorisovaihdot/eye-nuorisovaihdot/

🌻 Become a group leader! 📣

Are you interested in internationalism at home? Apply to be a group leader for our international volunteer camps in different parts of Finland this summer! 🦋

The camps last 2-3 weeks and bring together international volunteers from different parts of the world to work on community service projects together with the local community. During spring and summer 2026, we organise around 10 workcamps and volunteering teams across Finland. 

As a group leader, you are one of the camp participants, but your tasks also include communicating between the group and the camp host, camp communication, and ensuring that everything goes according to plan and that the volunteers actively participate in the project. As a group leader, you do not lead the camp, but you make sure that practical matters are taken care of and that everyone feels safe. Especially at the beginning of the camp, an important task is to help the campers get to know each other and Finland. 💫

Does this sound like you? Then we can't wait to hear from you! You can find more information about all the available camps and the application form on our website. Hurry up, there are only a few spots left! 🌞

A full-day training will be organized for the selected group guides in Helsinki on May 22nd. 

🎀 Upcoming events 🎀

Here's a short overview of what's coming up next with Allianssi Youth Exchanges:

• Deeds of Hope continues in May. Our activism solidarity project will continue its monthly events with all the important information about the next collaboration published on our website and social media closer to the event! Don't miss it!

• Campleader training - are you interested in becoming a camp leader? The training for 2026 group leaders is coming up on May 22nd. Save the date! 📆

• The first (and second) of our ESC volunteering teams of 2026 begins soon! The ESC team World Village volunteering begins on May 5th. Want to be a part of the action? Apply ASAP on our website and join the team 🤝 

As always, follow our social media and our website 🤳 to stay up to date on current events!

See you in May! 🌷