Asociatia Clubul Sportiv ARAO

Asociatia Clubul Sportiv ARAO is a non-profit organization based in Miercurea Ciuc, Harghita County. Founded from the common passion for sports and nature among its members, ARAO was born with the desire to create an environment conducive to the development of skills among young people through outdoor activities. Our mission is to use grassroots sports and outdoor activities to improve the physical and mental well-being of individuals and to promote solidarity among people from diverse backgrounds, providing conducive contexts for engaging in health-beneficial physical activities. Located in Harghita County, ARAO is surrounded by breathtaking natural wonders, including the Ciuc and Harghita Mountains, the volcanic crater lake "Lacul Sfanta Ana," the mountain lake "Lacul Rosu," and the narrow canyon "Cheile Bicazului." These picturesque landscapes provide the perfect backdrop for a wide range of outdoor activities, from invigorating hikes and thrilling via ferrata climbs to cycling, swimming, and kayaking adventures. Harghita County is also distinguished by its multicultural diversity, with both Romanian and Hungarian communities living harmoniously. In fact, it boasts the highest percentage of Hungarians in Romania. While the local communities have coexisted peacefully, occasional cultural conflicts have arisen. ARAO's mission is to foster unity and understanding among the local population by bringing people from both cultures together through sports and outdoor activities. Our organization's objectives include: 1) Promotion of Non-Formal Education: We are dedicated to promoting outdoor physical activities and mass sports as methods of non-formal education, developing socio-emotional skills among young people. 2) Contribution to Physical and Mental Well-Being: We support the physical and mental health of young people by promoting physical activities that are beneficial to health. 3) Inclusion and Accessibility: We encourage health-beneficial physical activity and mass sports for all, promoting an inclusive and accessible environment for everyone. 4) Intercultural Understanding: We use sports to build bridges between cultures and generations, promoting diversity and intercultural dialogue. 5) Awareness of the Benefits of Outdoor Time: We promote greater awareness of the benefits of spending time in nature for physical and mental health. Our principles include: I. Non-Formal Education II. Social Inclusion III. Promote Volunteering IV. Active Lifestyle V. Inspiration and Continuous Learning trough Grassroots Sports In addition to these endeavors, the ARAO team is dedicated to promoting non-formal education through sports, organizing intercultural activities, supporting volunteering initiatives, and serving as enthusiastic advocates for an active lifestyle as a pathway to well-being. Together, we aim to break down barriers, create unity, and embrace the wonders of winter grassroots sports and outdoor exploration. Asociatia Clubul Sportiv ARAO is a young organisation, with members who are active practitioners of sports and their sound expertise varies from sports coaching to project management. ARAO actively promotes an active lifestyle and leisure sports through various activities, including: - Organizing Via-Ferrata events in Romania and beyond; - Leading kayak expeditions on rivers in Romania and Europe; - Providing educational experiences about nature through camping trips in the mountains; - Guiding awe-inspiring hikes in the Harghita Mountains; - Raising awareness about the grassroots sports positive effects on inclusion and integration; - Using outdoor team-building activities that bring people closer. We aim to create a favourable context to organise sports competitions and outdoor festivals that promote sports. In this way, we aim to reach a wide range of people, from experienced sportsmen to amateurs, to youth to the elderly in order to facilitate the exchange of experiences and encourage sports for all. The club members gained valuable experience in organizing projects within the Erasmus+ framework by participating in various consortiums implementing initiatives in the fields of Youth (KA1) and Sport (SSCP). These projects involved international mobilities and the development of outputs, equipping ARAO members with the expertise needed to develop and implement transnational projects. In the summer of 2022, the ARAO club successfully carried out its first youth exchange, bringing together 48 young participants. This exchange offered an opportunity for participants to practice and gain awareness of how mountain biking, archery, and hiking can serve as effective non-formal learning environments for fostering teamwork, intercultural learning, and responsibility. Following this, in spring 2023, we organized another youth exchange focused on hiking, where young people from four countries—Romania (RO), Hungary (HU), the Czech Republic (CZ), and Portugal (PT)—learned about safety and prevention measures in hiking. Looking ahead, our organization became accredited in the field of Youth in 2025, enabling us to further expand our national and transnational collaborations, continuing to exchange expertise and promote its objectives to a broader audience.