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With the AJD association, young people are embarking on training courses in maritime professions

Father Jaouen, a real seafarer, was convinced of the benefits of bringing people together to facilitate the reintegration of vulnerable persons. In 1951, he founded the association Amis de Jeudi Dimanche and very soon after, started to take vulnerable groups, particularly young people with learning and social difficulties, on sailing excursions. In 1998, a boat maintenance and renovation project in the French department of Finistère was added to the sailing project. It's an initiative that is still going strong and is now supported by the TotalEnergies Foundation.

Published on 28/11/2022

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On the Lannilis site, a dozen boats (small and medium-sized units) are available to the trainees. Young people aged 18 to 25 are welcomed there for six months as part of a pre-professionalization cycle for maritime professions: marine mechanic or carpenter, ship’s cook, sail and canvas worker, ship assistant, and so on. The objective is to help the trainees find their niche and direct them toward certified professional training.

For six months, the trainees, supervised by eight instructors, get to learn technical skills and how to work as part of a team. They get used to regular working hours, narrow down their choices according to their abilities, and build their self-confidence. Part of their training is also given over to sailing. The site welcomes around 80 young people each year.

The TotalEnergies Foundation has chosen to support the AJD project for three years, until 2025, as part of its Climate, Coastal Areas and Oceans initiative, which perfectly meets its ambition to help young people find their place in the world of work, in this case by getting them interested in coastal areas by promoting maritime professions.