After almost 3 years of leading the training and the MedTOWN Community of Practice (CoP), Red de Transicion, the experts for the training of trainers, organised its 2nd Training in Seville from 29/11 to 2/12/2022. This event was the first in person gathering among the local trainers, the project coordinators and the local experts that implement the project in each territory in Greece, Jordan, Palestine, Portugal, Spain and Tunisia. Participants spent together 4 days of intense and powerful interactive sessions with diverse and inspiring people across the Mediterranean.

The local trainers and experts had the chance to learn from each other, identify challenges, develop recommendations, visit transformative projects in the city of Seville and watch and reflect upon virtual visit tours that were prepared by themselves. They also spent time working on new project ideas and above all, connected in many ways and enjoyed their time together as a Mediterranean community.

The Red de Transicion team facilitated a safe space for connection and sharing of personal and collective experience, open to both CoP members and the wider circles of Social and Solidarity Economy actors and professionals from Social Services.

Across cultures and experiences, the main ingredient was trust, and a common purpose. New friendships were made, people listened to one another’s challenges, disappointments, frustrations and also inspirations, hopes and strengths. Gifts were exchanged from the local projects, and the spirit of sharing many stories from many amazing people was apparent during the whole duration of the workshops.

This way, through the project MedTOWN we fed one another’s motivation to keep working towards our purpose to see a Mediterranean region with more equality, less poverty and more opportunities in the field of social and solidarity economy.

As one participant shared in the last session: “in our daily work sometimes we can focus on our frustrations and difficulties, and when we meet, suddenly we can also see the potential, the human potential in all what we do”.