4 days, 16 participants, 9 different countries, and one focus, sustainable development. This describes the week that two of SEEDS members spent in France with our colleague organization Solidarités Jeunesses.

With the objective of tackling the important issue of sustainable development we focused on 5 different pillars surrounding it: environment, economic, cultural, governance, and social. Each pillar was given half a day of activities ranging from discussion, debate role plays, trips to nearby farms, and even watching a short play. At the end of each day we worked together to build a Wikipedia site sharing our experiences which will be available soon for the public to view.

This was a great experience and with individuals from several different countries it provided a wide range of ideas and perspectives to discuss. It was interesting to learn how different countries are taking part in sustainable development and to taught us new ideas to bring back to our own countries.

We were able to really enjoy our surroundings and take in the beautiful springtime nature during our free time. From walking the streets of Paris to walking the nature in Paris suburbs it was a great experience and a lovely time spent in France.

Kaelene Spence