Home Our projectsNew opportunitiesThe project “New opportunities” is created based on the needs of the organizations involved in this partnership and their awareness of the current state of youth at European level, which points to the large differences in the quality of life of young people, the differences in trends of young people in Europe, the different backgrounds of their problems (economic, political, etc.), and great difference in the possibilities of solving them. Within the project a Contact-making seminar was implemented in Training Centre Pirovac from 7th to 13th of June 2021, in which 2 representatives of POD Association participated together with 14 participation from 7 other organizations active in the field of youth work from Czech Republic, Romania, Poland, Greece, Lithuania, Iceland and Croatia. The results of the project are a digital handbook with information about the organizations working with young people involved in the project and also elaborated concepts of project ideas from of the established partner teams. Digital-HandbookDownload... Community BuildingCo-funded: European Solidarity Corps, Volunteering Projects Period: 01.11.2020 – 31.09.2022 “Community Building” aims at building community cohesion and solidarity by empowering the members of the local community, mainly the youngsters, and engaging them in the process of building a community center in the city. We intend to involve 15 young people from Europe (10 cross-border volunteering and 5 in-border volunteering) in solidarity activities (in the form of volunteering), to involve the community, the citizens in activities of arrangement of the community center, through voluntary actions or donations for the process of transforming/renovating the space (donations materialized only in objects necessary for the arrangement), to arrange and inaugurate the center using the principle of community solidarity and participatory arts, to adapt it to the needs of the community. Afterwards we would like to have a group of 5 volunteers for 12 months to continue the work and to dynamize the space created, by answering the community’s needs in terms of cultural and educational activities for youth, but not exclusively, as we want to encourage intergenerational dialogue and solidarity. At the same time, the project aims to develop transversal skills for young volunteers, skills such as teamwork, sense of initiative, organizing events and communicating in a foreign language. Main objectives: 1. Involvement of 20 young people from European countries, 15 for 59 days and 5 for 12 months, in solidarity (volunteering) activities in a city from Tenerife. 2. Involvement of at least 10 young people with fewer opportunities in solidarity actions in an international context in a city from Tenerife. 3. Involvement of at least 10 (predominantly young) citizens from the community in setting up a community center for a period of 59 days through volunteering supporting the process. 4. Arrangement and inauguration of a community center in 59 days in a city from Tenerife using the principle of community solidarity and participatory arts and piloting the first activities together with the community. 5. Setting up a community center in which to develop activities for young people with fewer opportunities in order to make their social inclusion process more efficiently. 6. Involvement of 5 young people from European countries for 12 months in organizing activities in the newly built community center, engaging young people in non-formal education workshops regarding human rights, sustainable goals, personal development, youth participation and healthy alternatives of leisure activities for youth. 7. The development of transversal competences for 30 young people from Europe and Spain, focusing on: teamwork skills, initiative sense, event organization and communication in a foreign language. Main activities: The Building Up – For 59 days, 4th of May – 1st of July 2021, 15 volunteers from european countries and Tenerife will work together with the community to arrange a municipality building from Barranco Grande – Santa Cruz de Tenerife, turning it into a community center and to pilot the first activities together with the community. Community Boost – For 12 months, 1st of July 2021 – 30th of June 2022, five volunteers will integrate in the local community of Barranco Grande – Santa Cruz de Tenerife, and dynamize activities in the newly opened community center, engaging the general population, especially young people, in alternative free time activities and non-formal education workshops regarding topics like sustainable goals, human rights, personal development and youth participation.... REACTREsilience & Active Community Transformation Co-funded: European Union, Erasmus+ Program – Key Action 1, Mobility of young people Period: 01.08.2020 – 31.01.2022 The situation created by Coronavirus (COVID-19) is set to have a profound impact, with far-reaching implications for the way people live and work across Europe and the globe.In the light of everything that has happened with the COVID-19 pandemic in the last few months all over Europe and specially Spain, has put a lot of stress on young people, both from the psychological effects of the social isolation, but also the challenges associated with the financial crisis we are all heading towards, in which the youngsters are among the most vulnerable groups.All these require great capacity from the youngsters to manage their emotions and anxiety, but also to build their resilience in order to deal with the life, social and economic changes associated with COVID-19 crisis, which magnitude nobody can foresee for now, being an on-going and never-lived situation.As an organization which works with youth and seeks developing their skills both for life and for the job-market, we need to help them in creating contexts for growth, thus REACT aims at building resilience in young Europeans through meaningful participation. Research has shown that resilience is built also through meaningful participation of youth – “a youth participation, which seeks to empower and engage young people in issues relevant for them. Participation may take on a variety of forms, but includes the contribution of ideas, opinions and feedback to an organization and participation in a range of activities.” (“Building resilience in young people through meaningful participation”, by Kylie Mosely, Philippa Collin, Jane M Burns, Jonathan Nicholas) Expected results: 38 youngsters from 6 European countries with an enhanced set of competences;A 7 days youth exchange in which 38 youngsters and 7 group leaders from 6 European countries will be involved in a learning experience using non-formal education methodology, based on the exchange of ideas and experiences;120 youngsters from the 6 countries involved in the project will attend informative workshops on the learning and participation opportunities for youth at European level;Minimum 6 project applications submitted to the ESC Program for local solidarity projects, with the support of the partners in the project, and using the ideas generated during the exchange. Main activities: REACT seeks to help young European build resilience in two ways: Organizing an youth exchange with them and for them in which 38 young participants from 6 European countries will share knowledge and experience in order to have a better understanding of what resilience is and why is important to increase it. They will learn about ways to become more resilient, will be empower and supported to take initiative and actively participate in their communities through their own solidarity projects, through the European Solidarity Corps grants.Prepare and submit minimum 6 solidarity projects in the months following the YE, with the support of the sending organizations and inform 120 young Europeans of opportunities of participation at European level through the Erasmus+ and the ESC Programs. Partners: Parcours le monde – Sud Est, Frace ORIEL ETS, Italy YOUTH ALMA, Romania NEOLEA GIA ANTALAGI KAI KATANOISI, Cyprus EXPERIMENTACULO ASSOCIACAO CULTURAL, Portugal... LEARNLearning Empowerment. Achieving Results Now Co-funded: European Union, Erasmus+ Program – Key Action 1, Mobility of young people Period: 01.05.2020 – 31.10.2021 The main objective of LEARN is to increase among the youngsters the knowledge of different learning styles, to improve their academic performance, to be more productive in their studies. The aim of the project is to facilitate the meeting between different groups of youngsters of different European cultures and countries, where to be involved in a process in which to get to know the different learning styles, to share their culture, experiences and ideas and to discover themselves as the creators of their own knowledge. This is fundamental for the long-life learning and which takes place in different contexts – formal, no-formal and informal. It involves the ability to initiate, organize and persevere in the learning process. Expected results: 37 youngsters of 4 European countries with an improved set of competences;An youth exchange of 7 days, with 37 youngsters and 5 groups leaders from 4 European countries, involved in a learning process with non-formal education methodology, based on exchanging ideas and experiences;100 youngsters from the 4 participant countries in the project involved in self-analysis of their learning processes, with the aim of increasing their self-awareness and learning performance.LEARN wants to provide the young participants a series of tools and skills that will be useful in their next university studies, as well as of vital importance for their future profession and as an active member in society. Learning how the knowledge is created once it enters in our brain from our environment is vital to one’s self-awareness and in successfully reaching the academic objectives. This means that all the participants will get to know and control their own learning processes to adjust them to the times and demands of the tasks and activities that lead to meaningful learning. The competence to learn to learn leads to an increasingly effective and autonomous learning. Main activity: The project proposes a cultural and learning exchange between various groups of youngsters from different parts of Europe: Romania, Italy, Portugal and Spain. Will involve 37 young people which are finishing their upper-secondary education and will soon start their university studies. During the European exchange we will treat carefully each of the ways people use to consciously create knowledge and in this manner generate meaningful learning, based on self-reflection and exchange of ideas and experiences. Partners: ASOCIATIA TINERILOR IESENI, Romania Associazione Culturale Mastronauta, Italy ASSOCIAÇÃO NOVO MUNDO AZUL, Portugal... European Islands BridgesCo-funded: European Union, Erasmus+ Program – Key Action 1, Mobility of youth workersPeriod: 01.05.2020 – 31.10.2021Place: Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, Spain “European Islands Bridges” wants to create a network to share information from the working methodology of associations from European islands: daily practice, as well as about the youngsters with their needs and the tendencies they follow. This project wants to help associations from European islands to improve their cooperation and network at European level, with the aim of building a working stable platform with reliable partners, so in the future to create projects in a European collaboration, which answer real and common needs of institutional development and of working with and for the youngsters. Expected results: 22 youth workers from 10 European islands involved in a learning process based on non-formal education, with the aim of increasing their knowledge and abilities related to European cooperation and developing projects with the European Programs Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps;A contact-making seminar of 6 days organized in Tenerife, Spain, with the attendance of representatives of 11 youth associations from 10 European islands;Min. 4 transnational project ideas in the area of youth created during the seminar, based on common needs of the youngsters and associations from European Islands;110 youth workers of 10 European islands informed on the opportunities of the Erasmus+ Program, with the new elements of Erasmus+ 2021-2027, and of the European Solidarity Corps. Main activity: The project proposes a contact-making seminar to give a solution to the NGOs from European islands, which are searching to build European cooperation based on common needs, confidence and quality, both in results and in working methodology. The seminar will gather 22 representatives from 11 associations from European islands, with a balanced geographical distribution – outermost regions (Azores, Canary Islands and Caribe), the south and the north of Europe. The participants will the legal representatives of the organizations, project and program coordinators, the ones that design and implement the activities and projects with and for the youngsters in the associations. Partners: POLITISTIKI ANAZITISI LESVOU AMKE, Greece MONOPATIA ALLILEGIIS, Greece ASSOCIAZIONE INTERCULTURALE NUR, Italy ASSOCIACAO JUVENIL DA ILHA TERCEIRA, Portugal Caribbean Youth and Sport Foundation, Sint Maarten D’ANTILLES ET D’AILLEURS, France Mannréttindaskrifstofa Íslands, Iceland PRISMS, Malta Asociación Cultural Entrenando Cerebritos, Spain NEOLEA GIA ANTALAGI KAI KATANOISI, Cyprus... 2021 ... emPOWERing the informalCo-Funded by Erasmus+ Program – Key Action 2 – Strategic Partnership – Youth Duration: April 2019 – October 2021 Objectives: I. To increase the capacity and professionalism of youth workers in managing informal groups by understanding, adapting and implementing of existing EU tools for assessment and development of youth work competence and management competences. II. Mapping existing legal framework and practices that focus on informal groups through research and analysis of the evolution of informal groups as a social movement, aiming to making suggestions at national and international level on how policies can be improved to favor the growth of informal groups and the impact they have upon youngsters and the community they are based in. III. To promote to the public and private sector the missions of informal groups in the youth field and their skills and knowledge acquired by the young people in informal and nonformal contexts, and to favor their implication in the support of youth towards their first and/or stable employment. IV. To create working synergies in the process of promoting a more active participation in society based on collaboration, accepting and encouraging diversity and equal opportunities of young people, promoting active citizenship and a non-discriminatory behavior. Activities: In order to reach the objectives mentioned, the project proposes several activities among which we mention a few: Ob 1. Creating tool that has as a starting point the Council of Europe Youth Work Portfolio and comes in support of youth workers to manage and involve informal groups in the youth field Ob 2. Creating a tool with examples of activities and non formal education and social intervention methods that help youth workers and informal groups to implement activities in their communities Ob 3. Developing a Toolkit with non formal education methods to engage and empower informal groups of people to become active citizens Ob 4. Developing www.theinformals.com – an online platform for informal groups from all the countries involved. Ob 5. Conducting one Research done on defining the informal groups of young people and also in identifying the existing legal framework that focuses on informal groups. Ob 6. Involving 70 young people in activities planned in each partner community with the aim of promotion active citizenship, social inclusion, equal rights and non-discrimination 7. Organizing 11 multiplier events in order to promote and disseminate the results and resources build inside the project. Ob 7. Organizing 1 Youth Mobility for informal groups and 1 Mobility for Youth Workers. Other partners: Coordinator: FITT – Timiș County Youth Foundation, Romania Municipiul Timișoara/Timișoara Municipality – Romania Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona – Spain Green European Foundation – Luxembourg Cascais Capital Europeia da Juventude 2018 – Portugal Experimentaculo Associacao Cultural – Portugal Szubjektiv Ertekekek Alapitvany – Hungary... Home... Employability Skills ImprovedCo-funded: European Union, Erasmus+ Program – Key Action 1, Mobility of youth workers Period: 01.05.2019 – 31.03.2020 Place: Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, Spain Context: According to the most recent Eurostat data, the rate of young people aged 16-29 years at risk of poverty or social exclusion in the EU was 28% in 2017. One of the major factors for the social exclusion of young people is the constant increase of unemployment. Youth unemployment rates are generally much higher (15,3% in September 2018) even double than unemployment rates for all ages (6,7% in September 2018). Even more, many countries in the EU surpass the general trend – e.g. for September 2018 the rates were 34,3% in Spain, 16,2% in Romania or 36,6% in Greece (Source: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/). Employability skills are those skills necessary for getting, keeping and being successful in a job and life. Employability can be enhanced by strengthening soft skills/ life skills, that are the foundation for a career and they are frequently referenced as lacking in graduates and those already in employment. These skills are also important since employers have more choice of applicants and will favor those with well-rounded life/ soft skills. The most important of soft skills (as stated by employers) can be summed into interpersonal skills (e.g. team player), communication skills (e.g. good listener), critical thinking and problem solving skills, creative thinking, leadership. (Source: https://www.thebalancecareers.com/). Objectives: The main purpose of this project is to enhance the quality of activities led by youth organizations in Europe in order to increase soft skills for young people that will ultimately enhance youth employability. The project’s objectives are: O1 – enhance specific competences in working with young unemployed people for 22 youth workers from 11 different European countries in a 6 days thematic international training course; O2 – increase personal development perspectives for at least 110 young unemployed people from 11 countries in Europe over a period of 4 months; O3 – establish quality approaches in activities and projects related to developing employability skills for young people for 11 organisations in Europe. Activities: Training course, 10.12.2019 -17.12.2019, which will involve the 22 participants in a structured learning program aimed at improving skills, creating a multicultural learning environment for youth workers by using three main non-formal education methods: improvisation, storytelling and spoken-word. 14th of December 2019 – Show of Stories, in Castillo San Felipe from Puerto de la Cruz, public event which showcased the learning outcomes of the participants in the training course. The performance in English of improvisation exercises, storytelling and spoken-word. Photos from the Training Course, more on our Facebook page: Partners: Cyprus, S.E.A.L Cyprus Croatia, PRONI Centar za socijalno poducavanje Greece, ACC Navarchos Votsis Romania, Fundatia Judeteana Pentru Tineret Timis Belgium, Art of the Box Estonia, Without Borders MTÜ France, TAMBOUR BATTANT Italy, Associazione PrimOlio Portugal, ASSOCIAÇÃO NOVO MUNDO AZUL Slovakia, ADEL Slovakia... SPYCo-funded: European Union, Erasmus+ Program – Key Action 1, Mobility of youth workersPeriod: 01.01.2019 – 30.09.2019Place: Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, Spain Context: Participation in our communities is vital for development and social development and cohesion. Young people are engaged in political parties, youth organisations, local NGOs, faith-based organisations and many participate actively in an informal way, doing it within their communities or in the big online community. However, there is still a significant challenge we need to address when we are talking about engaging young people directly in local and small communities.Youth have traditionally been excluded from community organizations and civic roles, but now they can participate in local decision-making at multiple levels. Although they have some instruments to make their voice heard, it is important to enrich their potential through action – volunteering, active citizenship and youth participation. Objectives: To improve the level of key competences and skills of young people, including those with fewer opportunities, as well as to promote participation in democratic life in Europe, active citizenship, intercultural dialogue, social inclusion and solidarity; To develop competences of 11 youth workers on how to develop sustainable intervention programs through volunteering, solidarity, youth participation, active citizenship programs in small communities and rural areas; To guide 11 youth workers into making the difference between volunteering (formal and informal), active citizenship and youth participation in small communities and/or rural areas in 5 different EU countries; To guide participants into identifying their own suitable way of getting involved in democratic processes and community intervention actions when working with different types of beneficiaries such as young people in rural areas or young people from small communities, marginalized youth and people with fewer opportunities; To discover and understand similarities and differences between small communities in different cultures and how can tackle the most important challenges through international cooperation. Activities: Training course, 07.04.2019 -14.04.2019, which will involve the 11 participants in a structured learning program aimed at developing specific competences in working with young people to better address their needs, especially to involve them in sustainable intervention programs (Volunteering, Youth Participation, Active Citizenship Programs) Partners: Poland, Fundacja Centrum Aktywnosci Tworczej Croatia, PRONI Centar za socijalno poducavanje Greece, POLITISTIKI Czech Rep., EUROPEAN YOUTH CENTRE BRECLAV Photos from the training course, more on our Facebook page:...
