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Between 28 September and 3 October, 23 very cool young (or at least young-at-heart) youth workers joined us for six days of learning, teaching, experimenting and diving deeper into the world of facilitation and programme design.

Throughout the training, we explored a wide range of topics and, even more importantly, experienced them in practice. We experimented with drama-based educational methods, the Coffee Chain game, value-based activities and many other interactive tools. But Learning in Action was not just about collecting new games for our facilitator toolboxes. We also explored the theories, terminology and professional concepts behind these methods, with the supporting materials available to participants in digital form as well.

But what actually makes someone a better facilitator?

This was one of the central questions of Learning in Action. We worked with different methods, explored the importance of setting up and using a learning space, discussed group dynamics and the role of the facilitator, and looked at how programmes can be designed to genuinely support participants’ learning processes.

And then came the moment when Learning in Action became quite literally learning in action.

On the second-to-last day, we divided into smaller teams and designed and implemented four different workshops for A.T.A.’s newly arrived ESC volunteers and for each other. Suddenly, we were no longer working with imaginary groups, hypothetical situations and perfectly functioning plans we were working with real people in real situations.

And that is exactly why we learned so much.

We discovered that no matter how brilliant a facilitator’s plan may look on paper, sometimes the group needs something completely different. We have to observe, react and adapt. As Max reminded us through a well-known idea from evolutionary thinking: it is not necessarily the strongest or the smartest who succeeds, but the one who can best adapt to change. Maybe facilitation is not so different after all.

We learned about facilitation and about each other:

Individual and group reflection also played an important role throughout the training. We stopped, looked back at what had happened, asked questions of ourselves and each other, and tried to become more conscious of what we were taking away from each day.

At the same time, something happened that is much harder to capture in a methodological handbook: we learned from and about each other.

We shared ideas, experiences and cultures. We inspired one another, had meaningful conversations, built connections and even started imagining future plans and collaborations together.

After six days, we left with new knowledge, methods, ideas and plenty of hopes for what might come next. Learning in Action may officially be over, but hopefully, the learning is not.

Each of us carries a little spark from what happened in Cristuru Secuiesc. And who knows? Perhaps some of the ideas planted here will eventually grow into a new workshop, a collaboration, a project, or a completely unexpected and beautiful experience.