"The aim of the European Year of Cultural Heritage was to encourage more people to discover and engage with European cultural heritage and to reinforce the feeling of belonging to a common European space. The motto of the year was: ""Our heritage: where the past meets the future."" As the European Commission states, “cultural heritage influences our identity and our daily life. It is part of the towns and cities, natural landscapes and archaeological sites of Europe. It is not only found in literature, art and objects, but also in the crafts learned from our ancestors, the stories we tell our children, the food we enjoy in company, and the movies we watch and in which we we acknowledge ”. Our responsibility as citizens is to maintain and preserve our customs and our heritage so that subsequent generations can enjoy it and learn from it, therefore, the PROSOA RURAL project places special emphasis on transmitting to young people the need to know the environment in which you live , take care of it and keep alive the culture that our grandparents transmitted to us.The PROSOA RURAL project has had as its main objective to promote the promotion of social and civic competences in educational centers in rural areas to encourage an entrepreneurial spirit in young people focused on the generation of local development initiatives that meet the needs of the environment where they live, based on or inspiration, the conservation and promotion of Cultural Heritage and Traditions. On the one hand, promoting active participation in society among young people will help foster roots among young people and stop the population drain that causes the flight of young people from rural settings, (with the risk that this entails for disappearance). towns and therefore their cultural heritage). And on the other hand, the promotion of social entrepreneurship contributes to starting local development initiatives linked to cultural heritage and the environment where they live, even becoming possible entrepreneurial initiatives that end up in a business, which would promote the settlement in the municipalities rural areas, and therefore, the maintenance of the towns and their traditional customs.For this, the PROSOA RURAL project has developed educational materials that support educators in training centers in rural areas so that they can transmit these values ​​to young people. These materials have been compiled into a guide for educators where the main themes are the promotion of active participation and social entrepreneurship linked to the conservation of Cultural Heritage and Traditions at local, regional, national and European level. The Guide consists of two training modules, which include theoretical content that train trainers and that they can transmit to young people in rural areas, and 50 practical exercises so that trainers have useful and proven tools at their disposal that allow them to promote these skills among the youth population in rural areas. The Guide includes a compilation of Good Practices in the conservation and promotion of Cultural Heritage, which we consider as a source of inspiration for future initiatives.The materials have been tested by youth trainers and by the young people themselves in each of the participating countries, which has made it possible to adjust the contents to the real needs of the beneficiaries. In addition, a virtual conference was held in each of the countries to show the guide and the educational materials included in it, as well as the main results obtained from the piloting phase. These events have involved more than 200 people in Europe, which we hope will become a multiplier effect that allows the innovative materials of this project to be transmitted to a much larger number of educators and young people throughout Europe.We hope that these materials contribute to promoting youth entrepreneurship initiatives in European rural environments that generate new opportunities for growth and mitigate rural depopulation, helping to conserve European cultural heritage."

YOUTH-WORKNET promoted the exchange of good practices in the field of networking for young unemployed people.By participating in several European and national projects, the consortium partners noted that traditional job placement services tend to be ineffective compared to more innovative, informal and flexible solutions such as those based on networking and training support. In particular, the partners previously involved in two projects based on the Job Club methodology have recorded a much higher success rate in terms of employment and personal activation (for example, leaving the NEET condition) compared to that deriving from the support measure. institutional. This is why YOUTH-WORKNET has promoted the exchange of a series of networking-based practices to be transferred and implemented in different contexts with similar needs.Actively involving about 20 young people from each partner country, YOUTH-WORKNET produced a catalog of 20 successful practices from different countries, together with a critical analysis of their characteristics and operational description of transfer and implementation conditions. After a targeted training program, 25 young people and youth workers are able to manage and evaluate the exchange program, as well as to promote the personal, social and career development of their colleagues - thus becoming experienced youthworkers.During the exchange phase, numerous practices were exchanged, but in particular the training week was interesting and had an impact on the local level that was so important that it also aroused interest in the local media. The project manager and the president of A.re.s were also invited to a television program on Italian national television (RAI).

Although Europe has been recovering from recent high unemployment rates, the general lockdown and consequences of COVID-19, will have a huge impact on local and global economies. The ILO estimates that more than 25 mil jobs will be lost in the coming months due to the outbreak. As a result, thousands of organizations in Europe and the world have shifted to working remotely, where possible. Still, many are struggling to apply good practices and routines to ensure productivity and wellbeing in their workforce during these challenging times. To make the transition as smooth as possible, those who lead remote teams need to have the skills needed to lead them effectively. When employees don’t gather together in the same physical location, a very different dynamic is created. Face-to-face meetings, casual conversations in the hallways, and break-room socializing all bring people together in unique ways. When people no longer work together on location, those shared experiences cease. The overlap caused by physically working at home can cause mental health-related problems including over-work. A study by Mann and Holdsworth (2003) showed that teleworkers experienced increased irritability and negative emotions, such as worry. This was attributed to social isolation and being unable to share problems with colleagues. So, stress among eWorkers can also be on the rise.This does not mean that organizational culture, team dynamics, and employee engagement levels have to suffer, but HR professionals and managers do need to find new ways to recreate these workplace assets through different channels.This project aims to help Leaders in SMEs to acknowledge the importance of digital skills and wellbeing practices in maintaining healthy and productive virtual teams. Its objectives include the development of appropriate competencies in team leaders to better manage virtual team wellbeing and productivity and at the same time enrich their capacity to use the appropriate technological tools. VirutalTeams also aims to equip HR professionals with tools and skills to be in a position to promote positive organisational cultures by adjusting their policies, practices and procedures and support their staff.OBJECTIVES1) Provide SMEs tools and techniques to overcome these challenges, by providing practical tips to help Virtual Team Leaders lead effectively, communicate successfully and so increase the performance of their virtual/remote teams2) Equip HR Professionals to improve their people’s wellbeing by adjusting their policies and procedures, thus maintaining a positive and productive eWork environment for all3) Improve the quality of work in virtual teams20 Managers/Team Leaders, HR professionals from SMEs and VET Trainers (in-company or external) from the 6 participating countries in the project will be chosen to participate in piloting the training modules of the training programme. Leaders will be trained on prioritising team building, fostering close collaboration, setting clear direction and objectives and leveraging technology. HR professionals will be trained to familiarise themselves with the IT infrastructure and available digital tools to set appropriate teleworking policies in place. The aim of these training activities is to assist eWorkers with improving their time management and productivity and bring about wellbeing, resilience and work-life balance. Also, associate participants and stakeholders will be consulted to provide feedback on all project outputs during the development stage.The project will be managed using Project Management tools and practices, including quality assurance, dissemination and sustainability plans.Short description of the results:-IO1: A toolkit for virtual team leaders, HR Professionals and managers-IO2: In-service training course for VET professionals-IO3: MOOC on effective management of virtual teamsWorking remotely is growing faster than ever and shows no sign of slowing down. It’s the future of work with benefits for both employers and employees. The project builds on the existing knowledge developed by partners and aims at supporting organisations thrive by developing positive and productive virtual work environments with longterm sustainability. The expected long-term benefit is creating work-life balance, wellbeing and productivity to teams working remotely with practices that can be easily adopted by any organisation, especially SMEs.

European countries are investing efforts in introducing topics of financial literacy in formal training programmes/offers, often in the framework of the National Qualification Frameworks and several side initiatives (informational based) are also set in place to foster the understanding of financial literacy topics. However, those programmes and initiative target the younger generations very much. Euroinvestment offers educational resources addressing low skilled adults involved in formal and informal training initiatives (including RVCC processes) overcoming an existing gap in the provision of quality and appealing educational resources, flexible enough to be used for several purposes. A consortium of six organisations from three different countries (Portugal, Spain and Cyprus) joined their efforts to design and implement Euroinvestment project for a period of 26months.Our results were designed and produced with the involvement of end-users (more than 400 individuals, both low skilled adults and adult trainers, tutors and other professionals were involved in the activities), covering relevant topics to improve adults financial literacy levels such as managing income and financial resources; make informed saving options or borrowing decisions; plan adequately for retirement; understanding the impact of interest rates when buying goods or services; etc. The resources developed are populated with stories and exercises that reflect real-life situations that users can face and thus mirror their reality and they, while using, can understand immediately how to use the concepts in practice and, through that, improve the way they manage their finances and income.The following outcomes are available:- Strategic Plan for financial education of low-skilled adults (EN), mirroring the specific needs of low skilled adults on financial literacy and how they deal with their finances and management of their income, including their willingness to use ICT-based educational materials, and ending with a roadmap for the development of the other resources of the project. Partners have also designed a booklet that presents the strategic plan more simply and intuitively, and easy to share with the stakeholders, which was translated into national languages (Portuguese, Spanish, Greek) + Catalan. This IO has 2 main benefits: it is a helpful tool for adult trainers and adult training providers who are looking for games that enable a more didactic teaching approach for concrete themes; it will be extremely relevant as a support tool for the development of more adjusted educational solutions for adults, presenting suggestions and recommendations for approaches different from the traditional teaching-learning models. - EuroInvestment Game is composed of 3 blocks of educational materials, consisting of 15 mini-games, covering 3 main topics: Risk & Credit, Money & Transactions, Planning & Management. The 15 mini-games were designed to support formal/informal training initiatives addressing low-skilled adults and the increase of their financial literacy skills levels. The games have different levels of complexity, aligned with the topics presented, from beginner to intermediate and expert. All the games are open to any user without registration and can be used with the support/guidance of a trainer or autonomously by adults. Although developed in English, the games are subtitled in Portuguese, Spanish, Greek and Catalan.- Euroinvestment Play by the rules, includes 2 Handbooks– one for Trainers, aimed to explain what the games are about, linked with the framework of competences, and how can they be used in training offers for adults, including formal and informal training, and one for Trainees aimed to support the adults as independent users, enabling them to use the games outside any training setting, more as a guide for users). The guides were translated into each partners language (Portuguese, Spanish, Greek) and in Catalan. - A training course for professionals working with adult education, consisting of a flexible training programme that can be implemented face-to-face, at distance or in a mixed approach to training further professionals working with low skilled adults (trainers, teachers, tutors, RVCC professionals), on the relevance of teaching financial literacy topics, how to best use and explore the Euroinvestment mini-games in formal and informal training contexts.Further, the high relevance of the materials produced and their possible flexible uses, allows for their use outside the scope of adult education, enabling its use in regular school education with young students, in regular VET offers, and also outside the traditional learning units of a financial literacy competences framework.The results were found as very relevant for adult education (formal and informal contexts), but users also expressed that the games and the handbooks can be used in regular VET offers with young trainees and in school education.

<< Background >>STAND UP is a project focused on the fight against cyberbullying in VET, especially in IVET and middle VET. Although the European Union is currently very focused on the fight against cyberbullying, there are still important gaps; for example, the list of national agencies to contact in case of being a victim of cyberbullying, which is available in the COE, only includes half of the countries present in this proposal (IE and GRE). In addition, cyberbullying is usually focused and studied only in primary and compulsory secondary education; most of the available studies and materials are focused on students under sixteen years old corresponding to compulsory education, as is the case of Save the Children or Unicef studies. However, VET students, who are usually positioned between 16-24 years old, are not normally the subject of such studies, although if we look at the percentages of the 2017 Unicef study it is clear that bullying goes up as age goes up (there were 14% of participants victims of cyberbullying under 14 years old, and 15% under 16), from which it can be derived that students between 16 and 20 years old still need tools to help them in this area. And even more importantly, teachers, trainers and workers in VET centers who are in contact with these students need tools to know how to manage cyberbullying crises. There are some articles on the subject ( for instance, from the UOC), but they are not current and in many cases do not address the specific problems of EU countries, thus not providing customized solutions for the EU.In this context, the need that STAND UP seeks to fill is that lack of training given explicitly to VET teachers, as well as content designed for VET students. Not only that, it also seeks to give a tool that provides support to teachers, who in many cases have already denounced the danger they see in cyberbullying, and how it is increasing due to the widespread use of cell phones among adolescents and young people. At the same time, the aim is to provide a tool to help students who suffer from cyberbullying, through a mobile application that allows quick access to regional or national contact information, and that provides tools to raise awareness among students about the importance of the fight against cyberbullying. In this way, the most familiar tool for students (the cell phone) will be used as a contact method to solve the needs seen by this proposal.Finally, it should be noted that due to the COVID-19 health crisis in many cases students have had to confine themselves and work from home, having the Internet as the only method of contact with their classmates; this has also led to a higher percentage of students suffering cyberbullying (some studies place cyberbullying ratios 70% higher than before COVID). This need underscores the need for teachers to receive specific training to help them.<< Objectives >>The STAND UP project seeks to achieve the following objectives:- To provide VET teachers, educators, and professionals, especially in IVET and middle VET, with tools that will enable them to understand the process of cyberbullying, recognize signs in the classroom of possible victims, and understand how they can collaborate in their fight against it.- Give VET educators tools that will enable them to provide their students with the knowledge they need to understand cyberbullying and its consequences.- Provide educators with tools and skills to assist their students in case of risk of cyberbullying, or if they know of a case of cyberbullying, to know how to deal with the situation.- Create tools that support social inclusion inside and outside the classroom and encourage the creation of a positive school environment in VET classrooms, using teachers, trainers and VET professionals as a channel for change and improvement.- Support the use of an innovative and digital approach to support pedagogical change in VET.- Provide trainers and students with tools to respond to cyberbullying, now that COVID-19 has led to an increase in cases- Support the continuing education of VET educators.- Promote the creation of VET classes in which tolerance and a positive work environment are ensured, both among the students themselves and between students and faculty.<< Implementation >>STAND UP will carry out a series of activities to meet the anticipated needs and achieve the objectives. To begin with, the project will carry out extensive dissemination of the project results to ensure that the target audience is reached. The project will use Facebook and Instagram as the main methods of dissemination, creating content of interest to both target groups in both cases, but focusing on reaching VET students through Instagram; the project profile will become an anti-cyberbullying information area for its followers, providing VET students with engaging and necessary content to understand how to fight cyberbullying.At the same time, the project will carry out its three main outcomes:- Creation of a training specifically designed for VET trainers on how to detect and fight cyberbullying in the classroom, with content specifically designed for potential confinement situations and online education. The teacher training will be supported by practical content that helps teachers understand how to act in each potential situation, and how to promote a trusting classroom environment that helps potential victims of cyberbullying to come forward and seek help.- Creation of training designed specifically for students, in the form of visual and clear content to encourage students to pay attention and understand the information contained. The training will provide the student with information on how to act in the event of cyberbullying, as well as behavioral tools for those students who believe they are witnessing cyberbullying. The content of this training will be summarized in visual posters that will be shared on the project's Instagram, to bring such content closer to the students. - Creation of a mobile application in which both the training content for teachers and the content for VET students will be available. The mobile application will also contain a database with contacts at regional, national and European level, a repository of useful resources available in the European Union (such as complementary applications, articles, reports...), and lists of factors that may denote a case of cyberbullying, to serve as a behavioral map in case of doubts of cyberbullying in the classroom.On the other hand, the project will carry out a multiplier event in each country, to ensure the dissemination of the results not only among the direct target groups, but also other sectors of interest, such as educational centers, training centers, language schools, relevant authorities, etc.<< Results >>The STAND UP consortium seeks with this project a series of results, mostly directly related to the fight against cyberbullying, but also focused on vocational training. On the one hand, STAND UP seeks to reduce cases of cyberbullying in VET education, through specific training that helps teachers and students to identify such cases, delimiting them and seeking solutions that help the victim to overcome the harassment suffered. In this sense, the expected result of the project is a clear knowledge about ways to act in case of cyberbullying in the classroom, and also ways of identification.In addition, STAND UP seeks as a result to provide users of its mobile application with the contact details of those regional, national and European agencies focused on helping victims of cyberbullying. Often, students who experience cyberbullying are not able to find such agencies, whereas it is natural for them to use a mobile application; by creating STAND UP's app, it will make it easier for them to access such content, promoting contact between young people and the agencies that seek to help them.It also seeks to result in the conversion of VET students into advocates in the fight against cyberbullying; the use of Instagram to reach the target audience hopes to result in aware users who not only help end cyberbullying cases, but also promote an anti-cyberbullying policy in their groups of friends.On the other hand, STAND UP will result in training content explicitly designed for VET teachers. The aim is to increase the transversal competencies and soft skills of VET trainers, giving them new areas of training that will be innovative in relation to the content currently available.Also in terms of innovation, STAND UP will seek as a result to mitigate the negative consequences that COVID-19 has had in relation to cyberbullying. Cases of cyberbullying have skyrocketed during times of confinement, making even more necessary tools that are specific to fight this type of bullying, and STAND UP seeks to solve that problem.The tangible products of the project (training content for VET teachers, training content for VET students, mobile application, project website and project social networks) will be focused at all times on achieving the aforementioned results.