We bet that everyone perceives the FCV logo in their own way. Why is that? The reason lies not in different monitors or lighting, but in cultural memory, which works as an invisible filter of reality. An Irish person immediately sees the luck of Saint Patrick, a German recalls ecological movements, a Greek feels the eternity of olive trees.
Anthropologists call this cultural encoding – the process by which colours become carriers of historical and emotional information. French encrypted in green the energy of revolutionary change and hope for renewal, some Scandinavians embedded the strength of primeval forests and the ideals of sustainable development, some Serbs read in it the spiritual renewal of Easter, Poles feel the pulse of spring awakening, Spaniards recognise the magic of forests. Czechs recall the youth of the Prague Spring, Estonians decode the symbol of regained freedom, Italians perceive the spirit of fertile plains. Croatians hear the sound of the Adriatic among oak groves, Slovenians see the harmony of Alpine meadows, while Lithuanians feel the power of restored statehood.
Erasmus+ programmes turned out to be the perfect environment to observe this phenomenon.
Young people from across the continent bring with them not just suitcases and documents – they carry invisible threads of heritage, woven into folk songs, legends, national symbols. Our simple green becomes a screen on which each person unconsciously projects their own version of Europe.
Romanians invest in green the image of Carpathian forests and ancient traditions, Bulgarians recall fertile valleys and Orthodox celebrations, Hungarians read the stories of the Danube plains. Portuguese feel the freshness of Atlantic winds, Austrians see Alpine pastures, Finns associate it with endless taiga and polar nights.
This cultural detective never fails. Every exchange participant becomes a bearer of a unique perception code, creating a multilayered reality around a single symbol. Instead of seeking a unified understanding, we get something far more interesting – a multicultural dialogue, where diversity becomes strength.
The green FCV logo turned out to be wiser than its creators. It does not unite through similarity but creates connection through recognition of differences. Thirty countries – thirty interpretations, but one goal: to understand Europe through the lens of one’s own experience and openness to others.And what if the simplest symbols around us were, in fact, the truest cultural compasses we use every day, without ever realising their real power?