La Maison de l’Europe Le Mans – Sarthe
La Maison de l’Europe Le Mans-Sarthe, hereinafter referred to as the House of Europe of Le Mans, also a Europe Direct Information Centre, is an association with no political or religious affiliation. In our day-to-day life, our purpose is to raise awareness and inform the inhabitants of the French department of Sarthe about European citizenship and thus contribute to building a Europe of citizens. The House of Europe is a friendly place, ideal for discovering, meeting, experiencing and exchanging on Europe!
The purpose of this House of Europe is to promote an active citizen involvement and to contribute to bringing closer European citizens in order to have a better understanding of other cultures.
The House of Europe is a member of the French Federation of European Houses. We are also an Information point for the Franco-German Youth Office (FGYO/DJFW) and a Europe Direct Information Centre, directly certified by the European Commission.
Here is an overview of our main activities:
- Information and documentation for all audiences
As an information centre, we provide our visitors with information on the European Union and its politics but also on other European countries. Our centre puts at your disposal a wide range of documents, books, brochures and board games about Europe.
- Teaching activities
We organise educational workshops on Europe on a nearly daily basis in schools, leisure centers, twinning committees and social centres. We also organise workshops and fun activities within our premises to enable primary and secondary school pupils to discover Europe.
- Festive and cultural events
Every year, the association organises festive events for the general public. We organise debates and citizen dialogues, exhibitions within our premises or outside, we take part in festivals, etc. These actions always aim at raising awareness about European values and discovering European countries and their culture. Every two years, we celebrate Europe Day in the city centre of Le Mans.
- Mobility programs
The House of Europe is a sending structure for the European Solidarity Corps program (ESC). Since October 2016, we have recruited and accommodated ESC volunteers too, who were volunteering in vocational schools (Maison Rurale Familial, Lycée Joseph Roussel) or for the city hall of Rouillon (sept. 2020). We inform and encourage young people to take part in European mobility programs, such as the Erasmus+ ones, to only name a few. We recently developed a partnership with a consortium of 8 vocational schools near Le Mans: Mov’Europe. We have been raising awareness about mobility programs and encouraging students from underprivileged and rural backgrounds to do a 3 or 4-week internship, as part of their curriculum, and thus gain work experience in an another European country. As an Information Point for the Franco-German Youth Office, we advise young people on Franco-German mobility programs too.