On 2 February 2020, when a group of school students from the Tilman-Riemenschneider-Gymnasium in Osterode were sitting in the plane from Dakar to Hamburg at the end of their project trip, no one guessed that after nine years of close cooperation, including regular visits, this would be the last in-person meeting for quite some time. And for 2021 too, real meetings between groups of students from the two continents seem a rather remote possibility.

The meetings, which are aligned with the topics of the 2030 Agenda, are the cornerstone of the multidimensional partnership between Osterode and Kaolack. What began with an exchange of emails between two teachers in March 2012 has since become an acknowledged good practice example for cooperation between equal partners. The so-called Osterode model comprises three pillars: As well as the school partnership, since 2018 the two municipalities have maintained a friendship that has now turned into a climate partnership. And finally, the Elhadj Diouf Foundation is working to promote education, bring people together and create prospects – with a special focus on youth.

In late March 2020 the Tilman-Riemenschneider-Gymnasium and the Lycée Valdiodio Ndiaye already launched a campaign entitled 'We're staying at home and being creative!' The students wrote poems and short stories, drew cartoons and designed puzzles.

In November 2020 it was then time to begin the virtual video project, the film 'A day in the world'. Equipped with one smartphone and one tablet each, the purchase of which was funded by the Educational Exchange Service, the students from a French class in Osterode and from the German Club at the Lycée in Kaolack filmed typical aspects of their daily lives, with a special focus on what they have in common. Amongst other things they documented their hobbies, day-to-day life in their school, daily prayers and the preparation of traditional meals. The individual items of footage were edited into a film, which will be presented in the course of 2021.

The travel restrictions resulting from the coronavirus pandemic need not mean that exchange with partners in the Global South is placed entirely on hold. For school partnerships too, which really are based on in-person meetings, there are interesting digital and creative alternatives. The key requirements for this are dedication, enthusiasm, teachers to moderate the process, creative youngsters and a minimum of technical facilities including an internet connection and devices.