Erasmus+ Mobility in Istanbul: Active Yourope Adults Learn About Active Ageing

Between 6 and 10 April 2026, Asociația Active Yourope in Craiova organised an Erasmus+ group mobility for its adult learners, under the adult-education accreditation (KA121-ADU). The learning activity took place in Istanbul, Türkiye, in partnership with the host organisation Güre Sağlıklı ve Doğal Yaşam Derneği (Gure Healthy and Natural Life Association), and addressed one of the most relevant themes for our community of learners: active and healthy ageing.

The destination: Istanbul and the partnership with an organisation in Türkiye

The activity took place in Istanbul, and the host partner, Güre Sağlıklı ve Doğal Yaşam Derneği, is an organisation in Türkiye that specialises in promoting a healthy lifestyle, adapted movement for older adults and active participation in the community. The partnership gives adult learners from Craiova access to European best practices in active ageing and to direct dialogue with a local community dedicated to the health and well-being of senior citizens.

The central theme: active ageing, health and inclusion

The theme of the mobility responds to a real need identified among Asociația Active Yourope’s learners: the desire to stay active, healthy and socially connected as they grow older. The learning programme combines:

• education for health and everyday well-being;
• adapted movement and safe physical exercise for adults;
• social inclusion, a sense of belonging and intergenerational learning;
• non-formal education methods applied to the adult target group;
• personal reflection and the transfer of the experience into everyday life.

The learning programme: five days, five major themes

Day 1 - Discovering active ageing in the host community. A welcome session, the presentation of the host organisation and an interactive Active Ageing Scavenger Hunt, through which participants explore in teams how a European community supports senior adults.

Day 2 - Healthy living, movement and everyday well-being. The workshops Move Well, Age Well and Healthy Habits for Everyday Wellbeing introduce participants to adapted physical activities, healthy habits and routines that support active ageing, complemented by a field visit to a relevant community space.

Day 3 - Belonging, inclusion and intergenerational participation. Interactive activities on communication, empathy and the inclusion of adults with fewer opportunities, followed by an intergenerational outdoor activity with members of the local community.

Day 4 - Learning through non-formal education, culture and best practices. Workshops based on storytelling, cooperative tasks and the exchange of best practices between the sending and host organisations, complemented by a cultural visit dedicated to local heritage.

Day 5 - Reflection, transfer and dissemination. Consolidating the learning outcomes, planning how the experience will be transferred into the association’s activities, a final evaluation and the ceremony for awarding participation certificates.

Who the adult learners are

The participating group is made up of adult learners enrolled in the non-formal education activities run regularly at Asociația Active Yourope: programmes dedicated to active and healthy ageing, well-being, social participation and community involvement. The group consists mainly of senior learners aged between 65 and 80, but also adult learners between 40 and 60, actively involved in the association’s life. Among the participants are people with fewer opportunities, for whom the mobility is a significant European experience.

Learning outcomes and expected impact

By the end of the mobility, participants had:

• understood how active and healthy ageing is supported in a European context;
• gained applied knowledge about adapted movement, self-care and emotional well-being;
• developed intercultural communication, cooperation and teamwork skills;
• lived a concrete experience of inclusion and intergenerational participation;
• prepared, together, ideas for transferring and disseminating the experience among other adult learners in the association.

The impact goes beyond the mobility itself: the experience in Istanbul will be integrated into Asociația Active Yourope’s current activities and will help build an open, healthy and active learning community.