In the years leading up to our projects in 2019, our mentors and partners noticed a new interest in those youngsters. More vegetarians on board, more questions about fuel-usage and waste management, and more concerned faces when seeing how much plastic there actually is floating around in the water. It is clear that the generation that is our target-group, has a strong interest in the environment and is keen on learning what they can do to take care of planet Earth. That’s why we looked for a way to incorporate sustainability in our programs and how our cooperation with TOM started. In 2019, together, we created a learning experience even stronger and more meaningful than our exchanges were before. To answer the question of why the participants wanted to carry out the Exchange: They wanted to learn about environmental issues, preferably by experiencing them first-hand. They were curious about the state of the oceans, and wanted to see for themselves how bad plastic-pollution really is. Furthermore, were they very keen on a more adventurous way of spending their holidays, learning new things, exploring places they have never been before. Being independent and connecting with their peers from other countries is another thing that came up when we asked them what they were looking for in a Youth Exchange. They expressed an interest in other countries and cultures, and a change to practice skills not taught in school (leadership, teamwork, etc.). Offering the participants the chance and environment to develop themselves whilst learning about other cultures combined great with environmental issues such as sustainability and plastic-pollution. By applying this theme and giving the participants a lot of space to make the Exchange and with that their learning experience their own, we met their wishes to learn about environmental matters whilst being independent and practicing their leadership (which also seemed to become more important in recent years). Without losing the valuable lessons to be learned from gaining intercultural/national experience and joining a sail training ship. Which are other reasons participants have asked for a (new) Exchange on board a tall ship. They wanted the experience of being out on sea, realizing what it brings them with regards to their personal development. They wanted to interact with youngsters from different background, countries and cultures. Putting all these things together in to a Erasmus+ project makes it possible for them to experience it all in a way that is affordable and internationally recognized. Taking on board the lessons we learned in our 2019 Exchange and the projects we were building, we again wanted to give the youngster what they are asking for. Resulting in a Youth Exchange on board tall ship VALBORG, taking YOUNGSTERS FROM 3 EUROPEAN COUNTRIES out to sea, exploring the beautiful Finnish archipelago up north in the Baltic Sea. Although there was a value to the practical sailing skill participants acquired, the sail training is merely a means to the end of personal development and intercultural learning. We combined active activities and reflections on topics related to our general theme of sustainability with intercultural learning activities and sail training. These activities helped structure the things the participants are already learning from working together, and thus strengthen their learning experience. They were not only being told about certain aspects of a culture in the Country Presentations, but also experienced them 24/7. They did not just have a chat about (personal) leadership, but experienced it working within the hierarchy of the ships’ structure of command and being a ‘watchleader’ themselves. All this combined made sure that we meet the youngsters their wishes and satisfied their hunger for sail training, personal development and environmental knowledge.