Time for Tea is an educational activity which uses tea to give young people a voice. It encourages global learning, creative thinking and social action. It is simple, fun and accessible to people of any age, background or ability, anywhere in the world. Time for Tea is an initiative of Momentum World CIC. This is a 2 year project involving 3 Asian and 3 European partners with a coordinating partner in Momentum World of UK and is co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme of European Union.
Time for Tea project has already been executed in 18 countries, involving schools and youth groups as far afield as Armenia, Jordan, Romania or war-torn eastern Ukraine. It has shown that how a simple cup of tea can generate social, technical and educational innovation. We have gained unique insights into how tea is perceived by young people, and the potential for brand development across different cultures.
Why tea?
– Tea brings people together. It is enjoyed in different cultures all round the world.
– When busy people have a cup of tea, they stop and relax for a moment – the perfect time to listen and think.
– The medium of tea allows young people to initiate dialogue with decision makers in a way that is engaging and non-confrontational
The project involves 3 simple steps:
1. Prepare
• Plan your activities. Choose a group of young people to work with. Remember – it is their project: the leader should only advise and support.
• Explore the issues that matter to young people about the world, near or far.
• Decide which topic is most important: what do you want to say about it, and who you do want to listen?
2. Create
• Get some tea, and work together to design an imaginative packet for the tea plus your message. How creative can you be?
3. Communicate
• Deliver your tea and message to the person you want to listen. Ask them to drink the tea and think about your message. Hopefully they will answer or offer to meet you.
• Tell the story of your project, through video, photographs or other media. Send it to us, and we share it with the world on the website.
• We encourage links between schools, leading to further international project initiatives.
If interested, you as a youth worker can join this project. No specialist knowledge is required. Any teacher, youth worker or other motivated person can lead a Time for Tea project, with a group of any age, in or out of the classroom. Time for Tea is designed to allow maximum flexibility, so the approach, content, activities and timetable can be adapted to the needs and interests of each group. The project can support almost any subject on the formal education curriculum.