Children & Youth WG
Children and young people, the future citizens of Larnaka and Europe, have been a major focus in the cultural strategy and programme building process since the very beginning. Similarly, as in the “Equality and Inclusion WG”, sub – groups have evolved in the course of the process. These sub-groups are the following:
Young Co-Creators WG
This WG is made up of teenagers of 13 to 15 years old, who will be 18 to 20 in 2030. In cooperation with other candidate, former and future ECoCs we are building a European network of future change makers through this group. Through monthly meetings we are exploring different aspects of a caring city and connect this WG with all the others, as well as with local cultural organisations and initiatives. Once every two months there is an online meeting between this WG from Larnaka and the similar WG that operate in different European cities. Finally, once a year representative from all national WG meet in a summer campus that takes place in different city every time. In summer 2024, the campus took place in Bielsko Biala in Poland, hosted by Bielsko Biala 2029.
Art for Children and Young People WG
This WG brings together art educators, schoolteachers and parents. It is the main WG that connects Larnaka 2030 to primary and secondary education, as well as to local arts education institutions. Thus, a number of initiatives have sprung out of this WG.
A major initiative is the so-called CARE Festival that has become a new institution for the local cultural life. In CARE Festival 2024, together with 16 local dance schools we have created the public promenade performance Let’s start a conversation, featuring about 200 young female dancers in the public space, as a response to a world that is governed by aged, nationalist men that lead us to war, catastrophe and death.
The Festival had also a focus on the situation of children refugees of war, organising discussion with the Ukrainian, Lebanese and Palestinian communities of Larnaka and inviting artists from Palestine such as the Musicians Without Borders and the National Theatre of Palestine. Moreover, through this WG games such as the Green Snake and Ladders – a game we have created to promote caring behaviours for the environment – has visited a big number of primary schools.
Also, through Love Letters project, children were encouraged to write love letters about their city. In addition, inspired by Larnaka 2030’s promenade performance in Skala Turkish Neighbourhood Princess Zehra, the Lyceum of Agiou Georgiou and the Music School of Larnaka, created and presented in the city centre the promenade performance Peace Steps.
Higher Education WG
This WG is formed by Higher Education Institutes of the city, namely the University of Central Lancsair (UCLan), the American University of Cyprus and the Alexander College that focuses on Arts and Design, providing courses in Graphic Design, Interior Design, Photography and Fashion Design.
With the MA in Landscape Architecture of the American University of Cyprus we cooperate in Larnaka BioDesign Festival as well as in the Land Programme. With Alexander College we cooperate on many different projects that relate to design within the framework of the Design Centre. Finally, with UCLan we have a multi level cooperation. They participate in our BoD and they are our main Academic Sponsor. One of the projects we are building together is Larnakarts, an online platform and directory into the cultural ecosystem of Larnaka.