DAR Development Association was set up in April 2013, in Titu a 10.000 inhabitants town located Dambovita county, at 50 km of Bucharest, the capital of Romania. We planned to be an organisation supporting young people in their personal and professional development by developing non-formal methods and contexts for gaining transversal competences. The major themes of our projects are relatad to rural development, as follows:
- Basic entrepreneurial skills: financial, management, marketing
- Ecology and healthy life style
- Discrimination and characteristics of the rural and small towns life for young people.
We are promoting volunteering and each of our projects highlights this topic.
We are cooperating with high schools from the region and implemented in the period 2019-2021 a programme financed by the European Bank referring to transversal skills like: communication, leadership, team development, time management.
Since 2016, developing cultural and editorial projects became our main activity, the projects are at the confluence between history, and arts and promoting Romanian cultural heritage. We had more than 40 national and international projects, mainly financed by the Romanian Ministry of Culture and other state authorities. We have as partner numerous cultural institutions like: museums, The National Archives of Romania, The South –East Studies institute of the Romanian Academy, a.s.o.
Our permanent team:
Mrs. Alexandra Brutaru, is the iniatiator and the president of the association, she worked for 17 years in the financial sector in management positions which included delivering professional training in financing and business. Mrs . Brutaru also graduated Art History in 2021 and is preparing a PHd in this field seting a life long interest for history and art into a profession. .
Mrs Brutaru is diplomat-ed trainer for adults and project manager. Since 2010 she established her own consulting company which advises on European funds’ opportunities for private companies, public institutions and non-governmental organizations. DAR Business DEVELOPMENT addresses mainly the following areas: research, development and innovation, education, environment, sustainable development and public services.
Since 2013 when the association was founded, Mrs. Brutaru was involved in writing and implementing all the projects in the cultural field as well as a team member in youth projects.
Presently, Mrs. Brutaru is the coordinator of the Cultural Centre in Potlogi, Dambovita county.
Mrs Brutaru speaks English, French at professional level, German and Italian at conversational level
alexandrabrutaru@gmail.com
Mr. Cristian Brutaru is the Director of the editorial group that was established as a department of the association in 2014. The activity referrers mainly to publications and visibility materials in the sphere of the activity of the association: art albums, historical studies, preparation and printing of photo documentary exhibitions along with all their promotions materials.
Mr. Brutaru is handling all administrative and logistic issues related to the functioning of the association. cristianbrutaru@gmail.com
Cultural prOjeCts
The association runs a wide range of cultural projects including photo documentary and art exhibitions, conferences, organises concerts and theatre performances, a.s.o..
We developed long term partnerships with the National Archives of Romania and institurions involved in historical studies as well as with museums all over the country, and we will name the most significant in our activity: Iași, Dambovița, Constanța, Arad. We cooperate with reaserch institutions in the field of history and cultural heritage.
We extended cooperation with numerous visual artists, proposing a wide range of artistic expressions from contemporary painting, sculpture to textile art, a.s.o., and we have a longlasting partnership with the National Art University Bucharest.
We have a special interest and an ongoing project referring to the Cultural Heritage of the Brancovanian Epoch, related to the ruller of Wallachia who marked the beginning of the XVIII-century, Constantin Brancoveanu.
We have an ongoing project that promote Romanian crafts and folklore reinterpretations as a step to contributing to the multicultural patchwork of Europe.
Alexandra Brînzac is a psychologist, she graduated the Faculty of Psychology at the University of Bucharest and a Master in Psycho diagnosis and Unifying Experiential Psychotherapy. Over 8 years of experience in non-formal education, participating in over 20 youth exchanges and training courses and a 3 moths volunteering experience in Uganda, increased her capacity to communicate and work effectively in a team with people coming from different ethnic and social backgrounds. Alexandra has developed a deep passion for ecopsychology and naturebased practices. For the past 4 years, she has facilitated international workshops and projects aimed at helping people reconnect with nature, self and others, while exploring the emotional responses evoked by the climate and ecological crisis. Inspired by Joanna Macy’s The Work That Reconnects methodology, from practices based on Nature and ecopsychology, Alexandra creates learning and growth spaces that cultivate emotional resilience, promoting conscious steps and actions for a sustainable, harmonious and equitable future. instagram:alexandra.brinzac.terrapist
In 2025 for the first time we are implementing a project for adults on a subject that is important for us: nature and well being. The project „Nature’s Embrace: A Journey to Mental Well-Being”, which will end in April 2026 was prepared with the Polish partner Deinde SPO from Lublin.
Fulfilling the objectives of this project will enable our association to get closer to other groups from our community, adults, seniors facing the stressful realities of the present. The project’s objectives are:
• Development of skills and competences on mindfulness, well-being, relaxations, mental health, fighting stress through nature related therapies for six partners staff.
• Creating 12 accessible and tailored training scenarios for adult learners on the topics of the project
• Integrating elements related to environmental conservation into the training programs.
• Increasing societal awareness of the importance of mental health and stress management through local trainings.
Mr. Vlad-Constantin Rusu, our NGO’s coordinator of Erasmus+ projects and primary contact person, consistently participates in initiatives aimed at raising awareness about relevant issues regarding youth development. Comprehending the project concepts, he strives to foster stronger connections among NGOs focusing on topics such as the environment, gender equality, mental health, and entrepreneurship. As a student at “Universitatea de Stiinta si Tehnologie Politehnica Bucuresti”, he remains actively engaged in Erasmus+ projects.
erasmus+ prOjeCts
Since 2023, we have a specialised department dealing with Erasmus + projects in which we began to get involved as partners and beneficiaries. In 2023 we had only 5 projects but in 2024 we were involved in more than 30 projects, more than 150 young people from our organisation participating in projects all around Europe, like, youth exchanges like, youth exchanges and youth worker trainings. Presently we are improving our project selection, participants selection and develop the dissemination activities. Also, feedback from participants and partners becomes increasingly valuable for improving experiences.
The projects in which we participated referred to many subjects out of which we mention: healthy life style, rural life, European citizenship and democracy, different arts, computer literacy, discrimination, women rights.
Besides the Erasmus + projects we organized camps and excursions, trainings where we promoted the principles of the youth NGO’s , team spirit and non-discrimination since the High-schools with which we are cooperating, are facing problems like school early drop out, discrimination of the rroma population and decreasing interest in school activities.
We promote differed performance and visual arts, photography and digital skills of young people in order to support them to better express themselves.
Other prOjeCts
“Sports4All: Lead the Change!”, ia a Erasmus+ project dedicated to building a more equitable future for sports! This initiative, coordinated by Sportrack (Portugal ), brings together the expertise of MBU Intelligence (Portugal ), EISKDH (Croatia), and DAR Development Association (Romania) to tackle gender disparities. “Sports 4 All: Lead the Change!” directly addresses critical needs within the sports sector. We’re committed to ensuring that all individuals, regardless of gender, have equal opportunities to excel – from the field to the boardroom. Our project aligns with core EU values of equality, inclusion, and respect and addresses the urgent need for more excellent sports leadership and participation diversity.
Fueled by the courage of the Spanish national team players who sparked the #SeAcabó movement, we aim to build on their momentum and fundamentally change the game.
Here’s how we plan to make a difference:
• Policy Impact: We’ll present concrete policy recommendations to governmental bodies to influence European directives, advocating for gender equality in sports at the highest levels.
• Inspiration & Empowerment: We’re creating an inspirational movie to motivate women to pursue their athletic dreams and leadership ambitions within the sports world.
• Leadership Development: We’ll develop and pilot a leadership training program to empower women in the European sports ecosystem. Building on the lessons learned from this project and the pilot training program, we aim to create a university-level course on leadership for gender equality in sports.
• Coaching for Equality: We’re creating a program to equip trainers with the tools and knowledge to promote gender equality within their coaching practices.
We believe “Sports4All” will have a transformative impact by increasing women’s participation in sports, fostering gender-balanced leadership, and promoting a safer, more inclusive sports environment for everyone.
