Entropia Cultural Association, founded in 1997, promotes cultural exchange and active citizenship…

Entropia Cultural Association, founded in 1997, promotes cultural exchange and active citizenship through several activities. It has already developed awareness campaigns on issues of social interest (work, environment, drugs, peace, migrants, etc.) with the aim of stimulating reflection and debate among young people, their critical sense and their education as active and conscious citizens. Since 2004 the association has been managing DAM, a space of around 200 square meters located in the Campus of the University of Calabria and equipped with different environments: movie/theater, study room, computer room, meeting room. A project of Universal Civil Service is ongoing (and others like ‘Live Campus’, ‘From Student to Citizen’ have taken place in lasts years); ‘Studenti senza frontiere/ NoBorder Students’, Universal Civil Service, is addressed to Campus community and its main aims are the inclusion of international students and the promotion of internationalization in the campus and among Italian students. To perceive those aims Entropia provides long lasting programs with weekly meeting, such as language exchanges and jam session, to promote socialization, language, and cultural exchange, as well as single events related to particular themes or occurrences, constantly providing support for the international community. The DAM works both as a cultural center and as a service center and every day hosts many Italian and foreign students, who find welcoming, information and orientation services realized through a constant front-office activity; take part in theater, writing and photography workshops, and the many evening initiatives, such as debates, book presentations, exhibitions, seminars, film festivals, concerts, theatrical performances, jam sessions, parties. The space is also a meeting corner for dozens of local artists, musicians and actors, who use the rehearsal room, participate in the initiatives, propose projects and activities in collaboration with the Association. Moreover Entropia edits the University newspaper “Fatti Al Cubo”, published online and occasionally printed. In recent years, due to the presence of some international students on the staff, the interest of the Association for intercultural activities has grown. International parties, international jam sessions, international movies festival. For the past four years, Entropia has been promoting international youth exchanges within the European Erasmus + Program, KA1: many topics were discussed during the exchanges, from active citizenship to youth unemployment, the integration of migrants, and the rural economy. Seven different projects, involved in intercultural activities more than 100 participants from 9 european countries (Italy, Romania, Lithuania, Croatia, Poland, Greece, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Spain). All these experiences have allowed the Association to get in touch with the world of international projects, to appreciate its richness in cultural terms, to perceive the difficulties of integration, to plan initiatives aimed at involvement, to monitor the results.