From 11 to 23 August 2026, 42 participants of Albanian origin came together for a journey across Kosovë and Albania. They arrived from 14 countries with different stories, accents and connections to their roots. They left as a community.

At the beginning of OriginAL Cohort 10, many participants knew one another only through names on a list or conversations in a group chat. Some had visited Kosovë or Albania many times. Others were discovering the places their families had spoken about for the first time.

OriginAL offered far more than a tour across cities. Each activity opened a new way to connect with Albanian history, culture and everyday life. Between museum visits, long bus rides, shared meals, difficult conversations, music and laughter, the participants also learned about one another.

The first connections in Prishtina

The journey began in Prishtina, where participants arrived, checked in and met the people with whom they would share the next two weeks.

Activities at RIT Kosovo helped them move beyond first introductions and begin building trust. The official opening brought together participants, alumni, institutional representatives, partners and supporters to welcome the tenth OriginAL cohort and mark another milestone for the program.

The group explored Prishtina through its streets, monuments and public spaces. From the NEWBORN and Heroinat monuments to Reporting House and the city centre, each stop revealed another part of Kosovë’s recent history and evolving identity.

At the “As Knej As Anej” exhibition, participants encountered stories that reflected the experience of living between places, cultures and definitions of home. For many young people raised in the diaspora, the theme felt deeply familiar.

Community activities added another dimension to their time in the capital. Through volunteering with TOKA, AMC/ Teshavesha and local partners, participants contributed their time and energy while meeting people who work every day to strengthen their communities.

Encountering history through people and places

OriginAL creates space for celebration, but it also asks participants to engage honestly with the past.

At the Jashari Family Memorial Complex in Prekaz, participants learned about and honoured the sacrifice of the Jashari family, whereas their visit to the Kosovë Security Force’s “Adem Jashari” Barracks helped them understand the historical connection behind its name and how that legacy continues to shape Kosovë today. 

Later, during the outdoor screening of Hive in Prizren, the group saw a powerful story of loss, sacrifice and resilience represented on screen.

Discovering Prizren, Gjakovë, Junik and Pejë

In Prizren, the pace shifted between cultural discovery and festival energy.

The participants started their morning with traditional burek at ITP Prizren, toured the innovation park and explored one of Kosovë’s most historic cities. They walked through the old centre, climbed to Prizren Fortress and experienced DokuFest, where streets, courtyards and public spaces became gathering points for cinema and conversation.

Gjakovë offered another encounter with local heritage. A walk through the city introduced the group to its architecture and traditions, including the famous Grand Bazaar and the historic Hadum Mosque.

In Junik, the visit to the local teqe introduced participants to another part of Kosovë’s spiritual and cultural history. 

A hike to Liqenat with Outdoor Kosovë gave everyone time away from the city. The climb demanded patience and mutual encouragement, but it rewarded the group with mountain views, fresh air and an experience that many would later remember as one of the program’s defining moments.

By this point, the participants no longer moved as individuals from different parts of the world. They waited for one another, shared water, exchanged jokes and celebrated every person who reached the top.

From the mountains to Shkodër

The road from Kosovë to Shkodër took the group through Fierza and across Lake Koman, where steep mountains and calm water created one of the most memorable travel days of the program.

Shkodër welcomed the cohort with its own mix of history, art and everyday city life. At Rozafa Castle, participants encountered the legends and historical layers connected to one of Albania’s best-known sites. The Marubi National Museum of Photography offered another way to understand the country, through photographs that preserved people, clothing, events and social life across generations.

A cultural tour, time by Lake Shkodër and a group bicycle ride allowed the participants to experience the city beyond its monuments. These quieter moments also gave friendships room to grow.

The strongest connections often formed between scheduled activities: during long conversations at breakfast, while walking back to the hotel or while sharing stories on the bus.

Experiencing Albania’s southern coast

The journey then continued south to Vlorë.

A boat trip to Sazan and Karaburun brought the group together for a full day at sea, while the beach offered time to rest after an intense program. The participants also visited the Monastery of Zvërnec and explored Vlorë, a city closely linked to Albania’s independence and national history.

These days balanced reflection with joy. Participants swam, danced, took photographs and enjoyed the freedom of being together without having to explain every part of their identity.

For diaspora youth, that feeling can be rare. Many grow up moving between cultures, languages and expectations. Within OriginAL, those differences did not require justification. They became the starting point for friendship.

Krujë, Tirana and the final days

On the way to Tirana, the cohort stopped in Krujë to visit the museum dedicated to Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu. The visit connected national history with questions about how historical figures, symbols and stories continue to shape Albanian identity today.

In Tirana, participants explored the city through sites that represented different periods of Albania’s past and present. Visits included cultural and historical institutions, the Pyramid of Tirana and the Ivanaj Foundation, giving the group further insight into the country’s history, civic life and continuing development.

As the program approached its conclusion, Albanian Night brought everyone together in traditional clothing from different Albanian regions. It became an evening of music, dancing, photographs and celebration. Each outfit carried a connection to a place, while the group created a celebration that belonged to everyone.

The closing ceremony and feedback session offered time to look back at everything the cohort had experienced. Participants reflected on the places they had visited, the histories they had encountered and the relationships they had formed.

More than a trip home

OriginAL does not offer one fixed definition of what it means to be Albanian.

Instead, it gives young people the space to ask questions, discover new parts of their heritage and build their own connection to it. A participant who speaks Albanian fluently and one who knows only a few words can still share the same desire to understand where their family comes from. Someone who visits every summer and someone arriving for the first time can both discover something new.

Cohort 10 showed that connection does not happen through one monument, one meal or one conversation. It grows through many small moments: learning someone’s family story, helping a friend during a hike, hearing a name pronounced at a memorial, dancing together at Albanian Night or realizing that another person understands an experience you have struggled to explain.

The 42 participants arrived with different relationships to Kosovë, Albania and their Albanian identity. During two weeks, they created a shared understanding.

They returned home with new friendships, stronger connections to their roots and memories that will continue long after the journey ended.

They also became part of a growing OriginAL community, one that now includes more than 320 young people brought together since 2022 by a common wish: to know where they come from, to understand one another and to remain connected.