Faced with the testimonies of students confined, alone and in distress in the face of the health crisis, rural people offer voluntarily, via social networks, parentheses in the countryside. Time for a breath of fresh air. A solidarity woofing which has already attracted 300 members in Occitania.
–
The group “The student and the breath of air Occitanie” has only 2 weeks on Facebook but it is already a success: 300 members and around thirty stays offered.
The principle is simple: for a few days, rural people (farmers or owners of lodgings for example) volunteer to welcome students for a short stay. “These are walks, family meals, the students can participate in the farm if they wish, but that’s not the goal, it’s not woofing”, explains Loïc Thirion, he is a member of the collective and administrator of the Facebook group.
The idea is really that the students are welcomed and as activities are created, things are born between the students and the hosts.
A rural / student duo to show solidarity
The idea was born in the Doubs at the initiative of Vincent Laubert. Moved by articles recounting the difficulties of confined students, the cattle breeder offered food and shelter to 3 young people for a weekend. He posts his message on social networks and quickly finds a taker. The concept was born.
Since then, the idea has been developing all over France via Facebook groups. That of Occitanie is the second most active in France. In two weeks, 3 stays have already been made, 5 more are scheduled in the coming days.
Among the stays, that of Elvir, a student who spent a weekend with his friend in Cabestany, near Perpignan. They were able to visit the surroundings alongside Anne Le Gal. “It was a great experience because we fell in with a really very nice lady,” Elvir tells us.
We talked a lot and exchanged on a lot of subjects. It was really interesting and we never could have afforded it without the Bol d’Air page.
Building on this success, the collective now wishes to form an association and thus continue their action well beyond the health crisis.
–
