European Fire Celebrations

Background to the Project

Until recently, people generally associated learning with the education they received at school and university. Today, Europe is undergoing a major transformation to become a world-leading knowledge based society. This means that knowledge, and the innovation it sparks, are the EU’s most valuable assets. The Lifelong Learning Programme (LLP) supports individuals at all stages of their lives to pursue stimulating opportunities for learning across Europe.

Over the last two years Cyrenians Cymru have received European funding through the Grundtvig Lifelong Learning programme. This funding allowed us to work with learning facilities in three other European countries (Denmark, Spain and Turkey), offering exchange visits for learners to the respective countries to share multicultural practises. The main objective of the partnership is to introduce adult learners to the different ways in which fire is used to celebrate events in different countries across the EU, and encourage participation in creative and traditional activities.

The first event to take place will be here in Swansea with fourteen representatives from Denmark, Spain and Turkey spending a week at Dragon Arts. Exchange visits will then take place over a two year period; to Tuejar near Valencia in Spain in March 2009; Aalborg in Denmark in June 2009 and Izmir in Turkey in October 2010.

The visit to Wales will involve a variety of activities for both the visitors and the members of Dragon Arts to participate in including a Welsh Food Evening, Craft Workshops, a Bonfire Night Event and trips to local places of interest.