Federatia AHA
Don’t WASTE, go TASTE
Vatra Dornei (Romania)
Type: Youth Exchange
Topic: Food Waste📆 Dates: 4 - 12 September, 2026
☀️ Activity days: 05.09.2026 - 11.09.2026
4th Arrival Day and 12th Departure Day🐝 No. of participants: 6 participants per country
Countries:🇷🇴Romania, 🇧🇬Bulgaria,🇹🇷Turkiye,🇱🇹Lithuania, 🇪🇪Estonia & 🇵🇱Poland
About the project
Project Objectives
• O1 — Educate 36 young people on how to avoid food waste and use food more efficiently.
• O2 — Empower 12 young people with fewer opportunities through socialising, intercultural work and unfamiliar environments.
• O3 — Raise awareness among at least 50 people in the local community through a workshop designed and delivered by participants.
Food waste is one of the most overlooked environmental problems in Europe today. According to Eurostat, almost 60 million tonnes of food are thrown away every year in the EU — more than half of it from ordinary households — while over 37 million Europeans cannot afford a quality meal every second day.
"Don't WASTE, go TASTE" is a 12-month Erasmus+ project bringing together six youth organisations from Romania, Bulgaria, Türkiye, Poland, Lithuania and Estonia. At its heart is a 7-day youth exchange in Vatra Dornei, Romania, where 36 young people will learn — through non-formal education, cooking labs and intercultural exchange — how to reduce food waste, plan meals sustainably, and pass this knowledge on to their own communities.
Profile of the participant
✅ 18–30 years old
✅ With a basic level of English (able to communicate in an international group)
✅ Motivated to actively participate in all workshops, cooking sessions, and outdoor activities
✅ Interested in sustainable living, reducing food waste, and learning practical cooking and meal-planning skills
✅ Curious to discover how everyday habits can contribute to protecting the environment and fighting climate change
✅ Open to intercultural learning, teamwork, and sharing ideas with young people from different countries
✅ Willing to contribute to creating a digital recipe guide and to organise local follow-up awareness activities after the exchange💡 Each national group is encouraged to include young people with fewer opportunities.✨ Priority will be given to participants joining an Erasmus+ project for the first time.⚖️ A balanced representation of all genders is encouraged.
Reimbursement
| Country | * | Bus cost | EUR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Romania | green travel | - | 285 |
| Bulgaria | green travel | - | 417 |
| Turkiye | 309 EUR | 70 EUR | 239 |
| Poland | 309 EUR | 70 EUR | 239 |
| Lithuania | 309 EUR | 70 EUR | 239 |
| Estonia | 309 EUR | 70 EUR | 239 |
For your convenience and safe travel we have prepared a bus 🚌 to take all of you from Cluj airport to the Venue. This cost will be subtracted from the maximum distance band as seen in the table above.
IMPORTANT for reimbursement:
Keep all travel documents, tickets, itineraries (online or physicals)
Save all boarding passes (screenshot if needed)
Keep proof of payment
Once you have purchased your tickets and been added to the group, you will get access to the DRIVE!
Here’s what to do there:
1. Upload your flight ticket confirmation in your country’s folder.
- Create a separate folder with your own name inside your country folder (this makes it easier to identify).
- Please rename each document with a short description of what it is (or surprise us and upload them in chronological order ❤️).
2. Copy the Excel file into your country’s folder.
- Remember: there should be only one Excel file per country.
3. Start filling in your costs in the Excel file.
- Don’t worry about exchange rates — we’ll calculate that later.And if you’ve read all the way to the end of these instructions… 🎉 You are officially my HERO, and you shall be rewarded greatly! <3
Transport
Point of arrival in Romania-> Cluj Napoca Airport
You will arrive to Cluj-Napoca (or simply Cluj, as most Romanians prefer to call it) at the Avram Iancu Airport (CLJ). It is the only airport in the city and the biggest one in Transylvania.We have prepared a bus 🚌 to take all of you from Cluj airport to the Venue. The bus will leave at 21:00 on the arrival day (after all the participants arrive) and will bring you back to Cluj Airport at 10:00 on the departure day.
Venue
Casa Siady - Vatra Dornei
We chose a guesthouse in the outskirts of Vatra Dornei town that is close to nature, but also benefits fully from the comfort of modern life. Here are links to the website and Facebook page of the guesthouse
About the Venue
You will be staying in rooms of 2-4 people with twin beds or matrimonial beds.
Some rooms are designed as matrimonial, thus two persons might share one bed, but rest assured that the beds are big enough and each of you will have his/ her own blanket.
Important to know:
1 towel will be provided (if you want more don't forget to pack)
Bathroom in every room / apartment
There is a mini-fridge
Hairdryer is available
Decent WI-FI
No access to laundry machine
There are no shops nearby, only a gas station in the proximity.
If you want to learn more about Romania and Vatra Dornei click here.
About Romania & romanians
Here are some useful words:
| English | Romanian | Phonetic transcription |
|---|---|---|
| Hello/Hi | Salut/ Bună | sa'lut/ bu'nə/ |
| Good day (formal) | Bună ziua | bu'nə 'ziwa |
| Good morning | Bună dimineața | bu'nə di.mi'ne̯at͡sə |
| Good night | Noapte bună | no'ap.te 'bu.nə |
| Goodbye | La revedere | la re.ve'de.re |
| Thank you (formal) | Mulțumesc | mul.t͡suˈmesk |
| Welcome | Cu plăcere | k(u) 'plə.t͡ʃe.re |
| How are you? | Ce faci? | t͡ʃe ˈfat͡ʃʲ |
| Yes | Da | |
| No | Nu | |
| Break | Pauză | |
| You are the best! | Ești foarte tare! | |
| Reimbursement? | Diseminare! |
Food & Local Cuisine
Here you can find some Romanian traditional foods, bare in mind we love meat 😅
Attention: We will be in the middle of the Romanian mountain countryside in a place that serves traditional Romanian food. For vegetarians / vegans might be hard to adapt because here most meals contain meat and cheese products.
We will surely have vegetarian / vegan options, but please come with an open mind because you may need to eat a lot of potatoes, bread and polenta.
Currency
We have Romanian Leu (RON) as currency in Romania. Please be aware about exchange rate as 1 EUR= 5,03 RON.
About Vatra Dornei
Vatra Dornei is a picturesque mountain town located in the Bucovina region of northern Romania, surrounded by the Eastern Carpathians. Known for its clean air, mineral springs, and stunning natural landscapes, it is a popular destination for outdoor activities such as hiking, cycling, and winter sports. Combining rich local traditions, welcoming hospitality, and easy access to nature, Vatra Dornei offers an ideal setting for learning, intercultural exchange, and personal development.
What to bring
Cultural Nights
During the project, we will have traditional evenings, and each evening will belong to a different country! 🌍✨
Please note: we don’t have a budget to reimburse the expenses for the things you bring — but we encourage you to be creative, fun, and resourceful! 💡
You can bring:
- Typical costumes, ornaments, posters, flyers, or other decorations
- Traditional food, sweets, and both alcoholic & non-alcoholic drinks
- Music, videos, photos, or anything that shows your culture
- And of course, you can sing, dance, or teach us a traditional game 🎶💃
We are counting on you to make these evenings as lively and interesting as possible — and we promise to support you in any way we can! ❤️
Clothes
Vatra Dornei is a mountainous place with colder weather. Please bring warm and very warm clothes & shoes
Something Fancy for Oscar Award Ceremony (anything fancy to wear on the red carpet)
Swimwear
One of our evenings will include a Romanian traditional wooden jacuzzi, and a pool with a small sauna! Swimming suit + slippers will be necessary! 🤿
Digital Divices
At least 1-2 Laptops per national team
[preferably No Tablets]
Pills & medicine
We will have available the emergency medical kit. However we encourage you to bring the remedies you are used to for most common situations such as fever, headaches, stomach aches and more specific needs, if it is the case.
Reusable Water Bottle
In the activity room you will have a Water dispenser so please bring a reusable bottle to fill it with water.
Health insurance
In Romania European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) holders are able to receive state-provided necessary healthcare during temporary stays. The insurance covers or reduces the cost of any state-provided medical treatment that becomes necessary.
EHIC is not an alternative to travel insurance, but it is possible to take out a private insurance policy in addition to EHIC. Remember to check whether your EHIC is still valid before traveling!
Passport &/ National ID
Meet the team
Project Manager
Cristi Florescu
Cristi - The calm force of the team. As president & project manager, he’s the leader who actually gets things done. A natural doer who loves bringing people together and turning ideas into reality.
Chef
Daniel Firu
Daniel – The best chef, with a culinary creativity and great experience as an Erasmus cook. He can cook anything with taste and beauty.
Facilitator
Adriana Bebelea
Adri – The heart and structure of the team. As project coordinator (and sometimes trainer), she mixes good vibes with clear direction. Loving, organized, and always ready to bring energy—whether it’s through sports or nerdy passions.
Creative professional & design sorcerer
Dani Oprea
Dani - Photos, videos , design, branding, and marketing—he makes ideas look cool.
Please read below what information we gather, why and for how long we will store them, as per the European Union's requirements
Working Space
Schedule
Reflection
Reimbursement