This project aims at promoting young people’s awareness of the values of the common heritage of European citizens since ancient Greek and Roman times. Having this idea in mind, we propose some topics to work in your countries before this meeting. 

We think that this preliminary work is going to work as an ice breaker. 

As it is said in the project, the pupils in Caldas da Rainha will be working in multinational teams disclosing to their members the information they had gathered in each of their own countries. 

 

As you know, Caldas da Rainha has the oldest thermal hospital in the Western world using hot springs for therapeutic purposes; we thought that each school could do research work about a place in their own countries which also use hot springs for the same purpose. Many of these places have Roman origin and we thought that this can be a topic to start working on our common roots.

 

 

Portuguese navigators sailed to other continents but there were other travelers in your countries too

 

 

 

Topic four – Nationals from the Project partners’ countries, who throughout History have stood out in their professional fields assuming important roles in countries to which they migrated to and that take part in our Project.

 

Examples in Portugal:

 

Johann Friedrich Ludwig, born in Germany, emigrated to Italy, and later came to Portugal. He was the architect responsible for the construction of the Mafra Convent Palace that recently was declared UNESCO World Heritage 

 

Alvise (or Luís) Cadamosto, Venetian navigator who under orders from the Portuguese king was involved in the discovery of several islands of the Cape Vert Archipelago. 

 

Nicolau Nasoni, Italian architect who developed a very large part of his works in Portugal;

 

Magellan, Fernão, Portuguese navigator who became famous serving the king of Spain by completing the first circumnavigation of the globe.

 

Other examples will for sure exist in each of the partner countries, having contributed to the historical links of the several participant countries. Each group of pupils could do research in this subject trying to find the links between the different countries.

 

The purpose of this activity is to make clear to the pupils that from immemorial times the circulation of people, products and ideas was a European reality, having contributed to the development and strengthening of the its identity. An analogy should be made with contemporary times, to allow for the perception of the fact that the present migratory movements can be a meaningful advantage to Europe.