Collaboration made easy – tackling sensitive issues through constructive dialogue

Destructive wars worldwide, drastic climate change, widespread social issues and above all the pressing problematics of Artificial Intelligence. It is nearly undeniable that the times we are currently living in are no easy ones. 

Even though the Corona pandemic has been surpassed for a few years now. It remains crucial to note that in reality little has become better concerning life chances and opportunities in general. Especially the young generation faces severe problems that go far beyond current global trade or even armed conflicts. 

In fact, rather the contrary can be detected. It becomes increasingly harder for post graduates to find a job and mental health issues have rarely been that high. Therefore, in such times where political as well as social unstability and the loss of an objective reality due to misinformation and AI become more frequent, it stays essential for young people like us to get together, speak out about problems we recognize and exchange ideas in an international consensus.

From the experiences both of our groups from Munich and Germany definitely proved to us that it is not only refreshing but also immensely informative to hear from a different country’s stances and views. As a matter of fact, we discovered that we have plenty in common and also much to learn from eachother. 

The fourth group of the trait d`union project consisted of Julius, Luci, Matvii, and Martina. We decided to create a podcast discussing climate change and whether young people could make a difference in the world, citing current events and sharing our own reflections.

We split into two groups, one consisting of Julius and Luci and the other of Martina and Matvii. After recording the audio and video for the podcast, we divided up certain tasks, such as creating a cover and editing the video. There were various challenges, such as the audio quality, which was sometimes lacking, as well as the connection quality; but despite this, the result turned out well and will remain a significant turning point in our stances towards international communication, as it really is key.

By Julius Podszun (Munich), Lucia Bechmann (Munich), Matvii Tymchenko (Assisi) and Martina Concetti (Assisi)