From 27 to 30 May 2026, IANAP hosted the Magna Grecia project at its premises in Thessaloniki, welcoming young participants from Greece and Italy for four days of creative exchange, cultural exploration and collaborative learning. Magna Grecia is a youth exchange programme inspired by the shared Greek heritage of eight municipalities in Basilicata. The wider project, “Magna Graecia: From Pythagoras to a New Euro‑Mediterranean Citizenship,” aims to highlight the cultural, social and economic richness of the region and to strengthen Euro‑Mediterranean cooperation through youth participation, creativity and community engagement.
The initiative includes two artistic and co‑creation residencies – one in Basilicata and one in Thessaloniki. Together with the Italian coordinator EXO, IANAP implemented a series of interactive activities that brought together 20 young participants from both countries.
27 May | Dictionary of In‑Possible Words
The programme opened with the activity “Dictionary of In‑Possible Words,” a HumanLab co‑creation practice that encouraged participants to reflect on identity, values and local development. Standing together in a circle, they selected meaningful words from their own languages and cultures and shared their choices with the group. Working in small teams, they then combined their words to create new concepts that expressed their collective identity and aspirations. The activity set a creative and collaborative basis for the upcoming days, encouraging openness, imagination and intercultural dialogue.
28 May | Discovering Thessaloniki
The second day began with a guided city tour giving participants the chance to dive into Thessaloniki’s layered history and multicultural past. Later, the group visited two local organisations that presented their work in community support and social engagement. The day concluded with a new co‑creation session, where participants once again created In‑Possible Words – this time inspired by their impressions of Thessaloniki and the experiences of the day.
29 May | The Island of Utopia
On the third day, participants imagined and designed “The Island of Utopia”, a creative exercise in which they collaboratively defined the rules, values and core themes that would shape an ideal community. Through this process, they reflected on what they consider essential for a fair and inclusive society. The activity became a moment of collective visioning encouraging participants to think critically about the foundations of a community they would want to build and belong to.
30 May | The Questions We Didn’t Ask Ourselves
The final day focused on reflection. Through the activity “The Questions We Didn’t Ask Ourselves”, participants revisited the experiences of the previous days and identified the questions, insights and ideas that will guide them into the next phase of the project. This session also prepared the group for their upcoming visit to Basilicata at the end of the month, where the second residency will take place.
The four days in Thessaloniki highlighted how creativity, dialogue and shared cultural heritage can bring young people together in meaningful ways.
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