Willemijn works as a grass roots sports club coach in Dordrecht, The Netherlands. Part of her job is about creating a positive sport climate where everyone can participate, and where the environment is safe for everyone. One of the club's projects is about supporting trainers and coaches of sport teams by teaching them mainly four techniques:

1. How to motivate and stimulate the sporters;
2. how to give individual attention to everyone in the team;
3. how to use structures to give the training and let the sporters choose what they want to learn, and  
4. how to play. 

Besides her work, Willemijn is a hockey player in Ladies 1 at a Hockey club where she also trains girls under 14. Over the years she trained many girls' teams, and she realised it is one of her biggest passions in life. Since a couple of months, she's also an ambassador of the European Week of Sport 2022. She wants to inspire young women in the sports world to do what they love and hopes her journey will inspire others to follow her example. 

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026

Now, writing these words down during the winter Estonia, it seems a bit weird that I spent two months of my life in Italy and that I ended up there by fate.

It all started in September, when I went to LGBTQ+ training in Andalusia, Spain with the Erasmus+ program. After a long, long time, I managed to escape abroad for a while, and since it was really such a refreshing, warm and sunny experience, I thought that maybe I should go somewhere for a longer time....

And that fantasy turned into one of the most intense adventures of my life so far. That Saturday afternoon at the airport in Seville, I talked about the travel plan with my very good friend from university, who naturally immediately sent me a link where I could apply to volunteer in an organization operating in Italy, where she was also at that moment with the same purpose. A few days later, I talked with my future boss, Sara, and pretty soon it was confirmed that Teele was going to Italy.

Since the air connections are very bad, after 24 hours of travel, two bus rides and a flight and an overnight stay on the airport floor, I finally reached Lecce, a beautiful baroque town in the Salento region of Puglia, exhausted. I remember it so well, despite the fact that I was barely awake when I arrived. The weather was so-so warm, the sun was shining and the palm trees were swaying in the warm wind - an idyll. Gathering the last bits of energy, I headed to the third floor of a small apartment building next to the main road, where I was greeted by my lovely girls – Stella from Greece, Silvia from Spain and Melissa from Germany. Our group of four was full of girl power, and despite the fact that we literally spent every waking moment together, we got along very well, and today we have even bought plane tickets to visit each other. If you spend time together so intensively, there are two possibilities - tensions grow over your head or people become very close, luckily the last one happened with us.

The organization Vulcanicamente, which coordinated our activities, is mainly engaged in community work. Our project was entitled "Connecting the community" and therefore we also practiced our community work in its most literal sense - we planned and carried out three workshops at a local primary school, participated in a cyclist protest, interviewed locals and created content for social media, participated in a global clean-up day and at the end of the volunteer service we moved to a nearby village and helped the organization administer Erasmus+ training. It is important to note here that our office was located seven kilometers from our hometown, where we traveled every weekday morning on yellow retro bikes specially tuned for us. Cycling became very close to our hearts, which is why we quickly learned that traffic is a struggle and a brave wolf's chest is full of bullets - in order to survive on a bicycle in the temperamental Italian traffic, you had to assert yourself and from time to time accept a few losses in the form of falls (overturned). but the helmet always saved the day.

Since our group was full of initiative, in addition to working hard, we also got to have fun and see around a lot. A four-day quick tour of Rome and a hardcore sightseeing trip to Naples, where we also explored the ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum, were included in this extremely great two months. In our free time, we got to know the surrounding towns in Salento, and of course, as a matter of course, we visited an insane amount of churches and cathedrals - I lost count in the first week, but I believe we entered nearly twenty different ones. Of course, getting to know and adapting to the culture was accompanied by excessive consumption of cappuccino, excessive use of wheat flour products, and blushing. Apart from you, we had Italian time, a phenomenon specific to southern Italy, and we had to learn the most beautiful language in the world with the help of Duolingo, we enjoyed the changeable, but rather warm weather typical of the Mediterranean, and we consumed five liters of olive oil in fifty-two days.

I dare to say that the experience of voluntary work enriched my life and developed my character, helped me to better understand myself and gave me many beautiful, funny and nice memories. In addition to everything mentioned above, I also consider it an added value that I can now casually mention during the conversation that, oh by the way, I lived in Italy for two months (most of the time irrelevant information, but that's about it). There are many opportunities to see the outside world, and I dare to recommend all young people to use these opportunities, if you have a little initiative and desire, then everything is possible. For me, after years of studying and working at university, it was refreshing to go away for a while, explore the world a little and see life from a different angle. And of course, I recommend everyone to visit Italy at least once in their life - I will definitely go back there many more times.

Ciao!

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026

I took part in the Erasmus+ exchange program and spent a semester studying in Italy this spring. I’d been wanting to do it ever since I got into university, since it was highly recommended to us by the academic community. I am glad I made that choice – it was a memorable experience that helped me grow not only as a student, but also generally as a person.

First of all, having to spend months in a foreign country and study there is challenging, especially in the beginning. It takes a while to get used to the new places, new classmates, new lecturers, new education system and so on. Personally, the biggest challenge for me as a student was getting used to the differences in the education system, especially the prevalence of oral exams in Italian schools and universities. I was only used to taking written exams, so the experience of taking oral exams was relatively new to me and made me quite anxious at first. However, it ended up becoming a chance to evaluate and improve my skills, particularly my public speaking skills. These skills will continue to be necessary throughout my life and career, which is why I feel grateful for the opportunity to work on them. Moreover, even though getting used to living in a different city and a different country was stressful to some extent, the people around me at the time were kind, friendly and helpful, therefore it did not take a long while for me to start feeling comfortable. Lastly, getting to study with people from different backgrounds, different countries, different cultures was one of the best parts about the whole experience, because it was enriching to hear all the different points of view during class discussions.

Participation in the Erasmus+ exchange program definitely made me step out of my comfort zone, and as a result I became a more independent, skilled, and culturally enriched person. Overall, I would say that cultural enrichment – learning to see the world from a different point of view – is the main thing that makes these programs so unique and worth participating in.

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026

We, Jan (14) & Paul (17), are cousins and participated in the Youth Exchange “Outdoor+” in Hollenfels (Luxembourg) from 22 to 27 July 2022. Both of us enjoyed it very much.

As we had never taken part in a camp before, especially not abroad, we were very nervous when heading off and, for a moment, even wanted to stay at home. Now, in retrospect, we are very happy that we decided to go and think of it as a great and enriching experience that we can recommend to others.

We arrived with no concrete expectations and were, from the first minute on, super cared for. Julia and Steve, our supervisors, were great. They made us feel really well taken care of. With Steve, we also had a lot of fun.

As the camp offered such a vast variety of different activities, both of us would visit the Outdoor+ Camp again any time. The activity we liked the most was called “Capture the flag”. Besides taking part in the funny activities, we also had a great learning experience. Each participating country had to present themselves, which enabled us to expand our knowledge on other cultures and also led us to reflect more on our own culture and country of origin. However, we did not only become more aware about other cultures, but, through this experience, also improved our English a lot.

The accommodation was more than adequate and the food, in general, was pretty good. However, as both of us love meat, we would’ve preferred more meals with meat. If we were to make a suggestion for improvement, we would also wish for more breaks between the activities.

Saying goodbye to the camp was hard for everyone. Therefore, we are still in frequent contact with the young participants from the other countries.

Jan & Paul

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026

Silène is currently studying public construction at an engineering school. Her mission is to redevelop urban areas to improve everyone's daily life. She is very proud of her experience to have joined a team of workers made up only of men in their fifties for a whole summer and being the only girl working there. For her, Europe is an inspiring place that values and builds the future on sustainable development. 

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026

Hi, my name is María, I am from Spain and I am 25 years old. Between October 2020 and May 2021, I did a European Solidarity Corps volunteering project in Rennes, France. When I was asked to write this testimonial, I thought I would tell you about a typical day of a volunteer. However, I realised that I did not have a "typical day" because each day of my volunteering was completely different, both in terms of work and personal life.

My volunteering project took place in the Lycée Professionnel Louis Guilloux, a school specialised in, among other things, the hotel and catering industry, bakery and pastry-making, reception, commerce or fashion. During the school year, I had the opportunity to run Spanish language workshops, environmental awareness activities and a video project to create a video for the school. I really liked the freedom of being able to propose my missions while always having a follow-up and a framework from my coordinator. This allowed me to develop to the fullest and to get involved as much as possible, because I only did projects that I wanted to do. I also really appreciated the hospitality and kindness of the entire team. From the first day, I felt very comfortable in the school and everyone (school life, teachers and students) was available to give me a hand with anything I needed.

On the other hand, I will not deny that during the volunteering I needed a lot of patience as it was during the COVID pandemic. Sometimes volunteering requires flexibility, a lot of adaptation and above all large doses of optimism. However, I was never alone on this journey. I was lucky enough to meet other volunteers and people related to volunteering (e.g. seminar leaders) who inspired, accompanied and learned a lot during my experience. All my exchanges were very rich and today I still have very good friends, which for me is the most rewarding part of volunteering.

The most important people were my roommates, who were also international volunteers. We lived 6 in a very big and beautiful house where several languages and cultures are mixed at the same time. During our cohabitation we did a lot of parties, travelling and also we decided to celebrate all our traditions and to discover the food of all our countries. Today, we all stayed in France to study or work and we still see each other from time to time in our different cities of residence (Paris, Lyon, Strasbourg...!).

A year and a half later, looking back, I am aware of the great impact this experience had on my personal and professional development. When you do a European volunteering, the 24 hours of the day revolve around this experience, you live in a house with other volunteers, most of your friends and acquaintances are in the same situation as you are and you are far away from your family and comfort zone, because you went abroad to live this experience. This means that, for a few months, everything turns around volunteering and thanks to the seminars, my coordinator and the network I developed, I had the necessary framework to ask myself the right questions and try to find the answers.

Furthermore, thanks to my volunteering experience in France, I was able to improve my French and develop my network, which then allowed me to find a job in the volunteering sector. After the end of my volunteering, I joined an association in Paris as a Project Manager, which allowed me to keep discovering this country.

So, my advice to all of you who are hesitating to do the European volunteering is the following: Do it and make the most of every day! It will most likely be one of the best years of your life!

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026

My adventure started in October 2021 when I decided to apply at DiscoverEU, together with other three friends. None of us expected that this year in January we would be announced that we were among the lucky winners who received a free travel pass. At that moment, joy and impatience made their presence felt and I already started thinking about which countries I would like to visit and what I would like to experience on this trip.

After many months of thinking and replanning, in the end there were only three of us and we decided to visit Hungary, Austria, Italy and Croatia. In these countries I saw both beautiful landscapes and buildings with a fascinating architecture.

My biggest fear about this trip was with the accommodations because I had heard that other young travelers had their reservations canceled a few days before. However, we didn't have any problems and we enjoyed every stay. For those who are going to travel with a group of friends, I would recommend renting an apartment, especially if they have a tight budget so they can have a kitchen where they can cook something.

On this trip I learned that you could communicate very easily with other people even if you don't speak the same language. Most of the people I met knew English, and with those who didn't know it very well, we understood each other either through signs or using Google Translate. Also, in each country we found Romanians settled there, who were happy to help us with information.

I also learned that you don't need a fixed plan, things will go well even if you don't follow the itinerary. Before this departure, I felt that nothing will turn out well if we don't have every detail clearly planned, but now I would recommend anyone to leave a few things unplanned, because when you decide to do something on the spot, that's when the adventure begins. For example, when we were in Budapest, I went to a bar in a corner of the city at 11 PM, where there we found out that there was a great atmosphere, good music and nice people.

I would recommend anyone to apply at DiscoverEU and to experience a train trip through Europe, it's something unique. Through a trip like this you will discover that you can handle any situation, and unexpected and uncertain things can become an adventure that you will always remember.

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026

It was my sister who, having already done an ESC volunteering program in Finland, encouraged me to do the same. Ideally, I wanted to find a project mixing culture, History, tourism, as well as a good dose of foreign languages, but most of the projects I could find were focused on children and teenagers, which wasn't really my cup of tea. But one evening, by a stroke of luck, I logged on to the European Solidarity Corps website, and there, right at the top of the list, was the rare gem I had been waiting for. A one-year project in Germany, at the Mendelssohn House Museum, located in Leipzig, a city I knew nothing about, from which I did not expect much, but which made me fall completely under its spell. And so I set off on October 8th, 2021.

For those who don't know Felix Mendelssohn, he is one of the most famous romantic composers of the 19th century, considered by many to be the Mozart of his time. The museum where I worked pays tribute to the man and his work, and is special in that it is located in the house where Mendelssohn lived with his family in Leipzig for the last two years of his life. It is the last surviving home of the musician, and it is an extremely beautiful, authentic and touching place, where one expects the great composer to walk in at any time.

Within the museum, I had a lot of different and various tasks to accomplish: welcoming visitors, selling tickets and souvenirs, doing guided tours in several languages for groups of students, journalists or individuals, supporting the smooth running of the concerts held each week, actively participating in the organisation of special events (weddings, Children's Day, Museum Night, etc.), but also transcribing and translating historical documents in preparation of the upcoming opening of a new exhibition. As you can see, all my passions and interests were thus combined in my volunteering project, and one could really believe that it had been tailor-made for me.

For 10 months, my ESC project allowed me to fully develop myself - both professionally and in my private life - and it was one of the happiest years of my life. I was able to get to know myself better, to define more precisely my desires for the future, and to fall even more in love with a country that I already knew but that still had so much to show me and to teach me. I made friends with people from all over Europe, and our group created a small, rich and multicoloured European community in the heart of Leipzig. I developed a special bond with my colleagues at the museum who all welcomed me with open arms, and like any self-respecting year of ESC, I was also able to travel, of course throughout Germany, in particular to Berlin, Hamburg, Bremen, Munich, Erfurt, Halle, Weimar, Dresden, etc. but also to Denmark and Hungary.

Today I just want to go back to Leipzig, and I can only warmly encourage any young person wishing to experience a European adventure, develop their knowledge and skills, make friends and travel, to embark on the ESC adventure!

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026

Boglárka Ecsedi is a student researcher, science communicator and an advocate for women in STEM from Hungary. She has contributed to high-impact software developments and research projects in medical AI, image recognition, and deep learning. Currently, she is pursuing a Computer Science undergraduate degree at Georgia Tech University in Atlanta, USA with the help of the prestigious ‘Stipendium Peregrinum’ Scholarship of the Hungarian government and works as an intern in the area of Machine Learning at Intel Corporation. 

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026

Lia was born in Belgium and is a communicator for the performing arts, specialized in classical music. From a young age on she's been passionate about the art world. Lia wants to make an impact and show people from all backgrounds that performing arts are for everyone. One of her main missions is to get young people on board and to make them discover how the art world can be life changing. By bringing for instance classical music concerts lead by world class young musicians to Belgian hospitals, nursing homes, prisons and orphanages in the framework of the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel’s Community projects, Lia wants to work with an audience that doesn't have an easy access to live music. Her aim is to include as many young people as possible in her projects as they represent the future audience and participants in art projects.

Updated on Tuesday, 17/02/2026