Cyclist.ie is part of an incredibly exciting European Commission funded Erasmus+ project with themes of cycling promotion, social inclusion, intergenerational relationships and climate action – as we announced back in October 2022 after receiving the news of our application’s success.  

Cyclist.ie has already taken part in two successful “Learning, Teaching and Training” (LTT) trips with the other project partners so far in 2023, with stories posted on these here for our LTT in Corella in Spain and here for our LTT held in Waterford.

The next LTT will take place in Azambuja in Portugal from Thu 12 to Tue 17 October 2023 with a wonderfully diverse programme of activities planned by the local partner organisation, Agrupamento de Escolas de Azambuja, and Cyclist.ie is looking for ambassadors to represent us on the trip. Broadly we are looking to form a small team (of around 4 or 5 persons) which will bring some new faces and some consistency to the project, and we invite active members of Cyclist.ie to apply to attend. The full costs of travel, accommodation, meals and activities are covered under the project fund. 

We are asking you to send us a one page letter (say, 400 words max) explaining why you would like to apply to represent Cyclist.ie at this international LTT. We particularly welcome applications from (i) members of Cyclist.ie groups that have not yet taken part in the LTTs to date, and (ii) those in the 18-30 cohort (since Erasmus+ projects have a particular focus on younger adults). 

Please send your letter to our National Cycling Coordinator at [email protected] by latest Monday 04 Sept 2023 (11.59pm!). Applications will be assessed by a team comprising members of the Cyclist.ie Executive Committee (plus, possibly, members of the Board of DCC CLG / Cyclist.ie). The criteria for assessing applications are set out in Appendix I below – these should guide you as you prepare your letter of application. The plan is for applications to be assessed and for successful candidates to be contacted in early September with a view to booking travel arrangements at the soonest possible date so as to keep costs down.  

If you have any questions on any of the above, please email [email protected] by latest Mon 28 August and we will respond to all queries ASAP after this date.    

Many thanks.
The Cyclist.ie Executive Committee

Appendix I – Criteria for Assessing Applications for Partaking in the LTT trip to Azambuja in Portugal as an Ambassador for Cyclist.ie  

	Criterion	Details	Marks
1	Member of a Cyclist.ie Member Group	The current list of groups is here. Please confirm that you are a member of your local cycling advocacy group – and include a copy of a short email from your group Chairperson or Coordinator confirming that (i) you are a member of that group and (ii) your Chair / Coordinator supports your application for being an ambassador for Cyclist.ie on the LTT.	Mandatory
2	Active in your local group	Please describe in your letter of application what you have been active in within your own cycle campaigning / advocacy group, particularly over the last year. Extra marks for those who have been on the organising / Executive Committee of the local group and/or of Cyclist.ie.	35
3	Enthusiasm, experience working with younger groups and broader skills!	The Erasmus+ trips are very much convivial gatherings of diverse people, brought together under common themes. If you are especially sociable / easy to get along with, or perhaps you play an instrument or sing a song or do a dance, or have experience working with younger groups (maybe in outdoor settings), please let us know in your application! These softer ‘people skills’ are valued a lot in this project where it’s all about nurturing exchange between diverse groups.	35
4	Younger adults	Erasmus+ focuses particularly on the youth and younger adults (see here), so we are especially keen that within the Cyclist.ie delegation we have at least some members who are under 30 years of age. Let us know if you are under 30 (but also 18 years or over) – while noting that people of all ages are very welcome to apply! We are aiming to have a group of a mixture of ages representing us.	10
5	Language Skills	There are partners on the project from Spain, Portugal and Poland so it would be advantageous if you have (even basic) conversational Spanish, Portuguese or Polish. Please let us know in your application.	10
6	Organised / Can help out with some basic admin	Besides the trips themselves, there is an amount of admin support work to help to manage the project well – plus a need to post lively / informative web articles and blog posts. Let us know in your letter of application if you are prepared to help out with this and/or if you have experience writing articles of various types. You will receive guidance and training on this as needed / appropriate.	10
	Additional Criterion to be used in assessing all applications collectively, after the initial individual assessment has been completed
7	Diversity	For this project, we are keen for the Cyclist.ie delegation to be diverse in every sense of the term. We are especially keen to have a good spread of active members of our network from all around the country, both urban and rural, with a good gender balance and mix of backgrounds. Do please tell us a bit about yourself in your application!