Building Walls -Breaking Walls

The anniversary book is here!

10 years of intercultural dry stone wall building with young people from Switzerland, Israel, Palestine, Ireland and Northern Ireland.

What becomes possible when people who hardly ever meet in their home countries meet in the seclusion of the Swiss mountains? What skills and insights do they gain?
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In the book, it is primarily the young adults themselves who have their say. They disclose their experiences and tell how working with the stones affects them. The dry stone walls built remain as a strong testimony to their collaboration over centuries.

Building walls, building bridges.
Intercultural learning through nature work and encounter.

In the project Building Walls - Breaking Walls (BWBW) you get the chance to meet young adults from Israel, Palestine, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Switzerland and to overcome cultural, religious and political walls together with them.

Youth Exchange

It is important to the association that young people not only participate in the projects, but also help shape and determine them. Therefore, one young* adult per location is responsible for project coordination or group leadership. This ensures that the needs of the young people are met and that voluntary engagement is directly exemplified.

Intercultural learning

Our projects bring together people from different cultural and religious backgrounds. By always treating each other with respect and working together to break down stereotypes between cultures, we meet on a level where everyone is free to be who they are as people. In this way, we contribute to peaceful understanding between people of different cultures and work against exclusion, prejudice and racism.

Nature experience

By working in and with nature, we promote people's awareness of their natural environment and work together for our cultural landscape. We show that nature and the cultural landscape are valuable and worth protecting and that we all bear responsibility for them.

Voluntary commitment

Participants in our projects are introduced to volunteering. They learn to give something back to the natural environment and local population of the project site. Therefore, for example, dry stone walls are renovated on the basis of voluntary work and the young people learn what such valuable work means. They are encouraged to get involved in their own causes in their country of origin.

We have an impact

Learn more about us

Voices from the community

"The Building Walls - Breaking Walls project has thought me a lot about solidarity and friendship with other people from various countries."

Alex from Ireland

"The things that I like the most about this project would be the friendships being built, to learn about different cultures, different ways of life and my highlight of the project was sleeping in the desert under the stars."

"The things that I like the most about this project would be the friendships being built, to learn about different cultures, different ways of life and my highlight of the project was sleeping in the desert under the stars."

Daryl from Northern Ireland

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Upcoming projects

Six times a year in three different countries

The project takes place every year in Israel, Ireland and Switzerland. In addition to the three Swiss locations in Jura, Ticino and Graubünden, a new location was added in 2021!