During my time in Beja, I achieved so many personal professional goals while making friends from across the globe. I Managed numerous projects with Check-In for local youth – always achieving the aims of raising awareness of Check-IN and providing relevant learning opportunities for children and young people. I managed a sports day for 88 children celebrating International Day of Sports for Development and teaching children about the 2030 goals. I tailored each game to reflect the lessons from each of the 17 2023 Goals, which the children thoroughly enjoyed. With Check-IN, I also worked with JCE de Saint-Denis de la Réunion teaching the children about the EU through interactive and engaging games. I also assisted with the coordination of the FacEasy programme hosted by Check-IN for 26 young adults. I had the opportunity to meet so many amazing people and participate in the workshops, learning so much about workshop facilitation and mental health.
While working with refugee charity ESTAR, I managed the re-organisation of resources which resulted in an increase in shop sales and a better local awareness of the ESTAR charity shop. I created social media content to promote the organisation and came up with social media strategies. I facilitated the distribution and categorisation of shop stock, conducting market research to identify popular brands which would sell well.
When I wasn’t working, I travelled to Evora, Saville, Faro, Porto, Lisbon, Sintra and Cascais with friends to explore as much of Portugal (and a bit of Spain) as possible. I attended local events like Ovibeja and tried all the local food. I made long-lasting friendships and went to my first ever waterpark, which I loved!
Overall, my time in Beja was an amazing, educational and fun experience and I cant wait to go back and visit.