
Economic instability has exposed youth to unemployment, socio-economic inequalities and exclusion, negatively impacting on their autonomy, well-being and access to rights. This creates precarious lives and erodes social cohesion and peace. Social entrepreneurship (SE), particularly in youth voluntary work, has the potential to drive young people to creativity and leadership and to engage with the local community for their own holistic development and the collective growth of the community. Young people in this project will develop and lead campaigns and actions that run beside mainstream economy, creating economic opportunities and alternative approaches to employability. Aims-Build capacity and share best practice among volunteering and host organisations to promote social entrepreneurship for/by volunteers and young beneficiaries in host projects, e.g. community development, social cohesion projects for the disabled, refugees and migrants, advocacy and activism, youth initiatives in disadvantaged areas...-Promote creativity and leadership skills for social entrepreneurship among volunteers, young people and local communities-Build social cohesion and solidarity among partners and within local communities across continents Activities-Young Leaders for Social Change Taskforce Meeting-Young Leaders for Social Change: Entrepreneurship International Multiplier Workshop-12 young people participated in 8-month volunteering activities -Entrepreneurship Workshops held for volunteers and host projects in 12 countries: UK, Finland, Austria, Iceland, Poland, Slovakia, Argentina, Honduras, Ecuador, Vietnam, Philippines, South Africa-Volunteer campaigns or projects took place in 10 countries-Online Social Entrepreneurial Final Evaluation MeetingTangible resultsa) Global network of SE multipliers (youth workers, social workers and volunteers) from 6 European, 3 Latin American, 2 African, and 2 Asian countries develop SE tools and support processes for entrepreneurship b) International multiplier workshop for 20 SE participantsc) 12 SE local workshops for volunteers and host projectsc) SE campaigns or projects in 12 countries by/with volunteers, local youth and host organisationsd) Handbook for Social Entrepreneurship through Volunteering for volunteers, IVS and host organisations e) Strengthened partnerships, new cooperation with NGOs and likeminded organisations. Impact on youth, volunteers, civil society, partners and local communities:-Creativity, leadership and motivation for social entrepreneurship among volunteers, IVS and host organisations, and local communities-Cultural exchange at local and international levels fostered social cohesion, solidarity, sustainable change and development for partners and local communities-SE workshops and hands-on experiences maximised volunteers’ learning outcomes, opened up new economic opportunities and new initiatives in social economy, particularly for youth with fewer opportunities-Greater visibility and recognition of volunteering
Boosting cross-border interRelations to Overcome Animosity and DEvelop human Rights education (BROADER) gathered organizations located in countries which are today experiencing the passage and the settlement of migrants and refugees, or as Argentina has been a destination for Europeans in the past. These countries have or want to build walls at their borders or are threatened by neighboring countries to see walls built at their borders. BROADER aimed at boosting the exchange of good practices between EU countries (Slovakia, Austria and Italy) and Latin America (Argentina and Mexico) to foster youth participation, in particular young people with fewer opportunities and their role as promoters of intercultural and mutual understanding.That is why already during project design, exchange of ideas has been encouraged. Main methodologies used were learning by doing, learner-centered and peer-education facilitating the exchange of ideas between youth workers, youth, EVS volunteers, participants in the Youth exchange, partners and stakeholders. To strengthen cooperation and dissemination of results several meetings and trainings were held: more than 20 youth workers were involved in mobility activities and meetings such as a youth worker exchange in Italy, a study visit in Mexico and a final meeting in Slovakia; 24 youths took part in a youth exchange in Austria, to raise their awareness about migration phenomena and to reflect on activities to foster intercultural understanding; Finally, 12 youths (4 Italians, 2 Slovakians, 3 Argentinians and 3 Mexicans) took part in a long-term EVS. 3 volunteers were involved in the Italian bilingual region Trentino South Tyrol (Receiving organizations (RO): InCo, Asif Chimelli, La Strada), 3 in Mexico (RO: VIMEX), 3 in Argentina (RO: Fundacion SES), 2 in Slovakia (RO: Keric), 1 in Austria (RO: Die Baeckerei). Besides participating in the regular activities of the ROs, EVS volunteers together with youth workers designed and implemented new activities to raise awareness about the situation of migrants, boost inter-cultural dialogue and foster active citizenship among youths. For example, as part of Parallel Activities, 4 EVS volunteers were involved in the co-design and organization of an event in Trento to disseminate results from study visit in Mexico and to raise awareness and stimulate debate on themes such as migration, minor migrants, diversity and cultural identity.Youth workers, participants in Youth exchange and EVS volunteers developed specific transversal, intercultural, civic and social skills useful not only for their employability but also for their personal growth. Some volunteers found new jobs in unexpected countries and fields, while others fell in love with another culture. This wouldn’t had been possible without the project, as many volunteers came from difficult socio-economic or familiar background and were facing systemic unemployment, criminality or low salaries or purchasing power in their area. The creativity and sense of initiative of participants in international mobility activities was highly encouraged which in some cases boosted youths’ and youth workers’ active participation and tolerance. The skills developed during those non-formal learning experiences was recognized using the Youthpass which was also promoted in the different schools in contact with partners. BROADER had a positive impact on all actors involved: partners, participants in international mobility and local communities, thanks to a better intercultural dialogue and a higher participation of youth.
“EU4YOU” contributed to creating enabling environment that allows “to acquire and develop a mix of knowledge, skills and aptitudes youth need to succeed in the labor market” and “making education and training more relevant to young people’s needs” [Youth on the Move]. The project aimed to develop innovative complementary pathways for boosting employability of young people through social youth entrepreneurship and providing them with tools for cultural entrepreneurship in particular. The project created synergy between partner organizations and explored cross-fertilization potential of consortium. The project contributed to achieving the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy, The Social Business Initiative, Entrepreneurship2020 Action Plan.The youth workers who participated in mobility activities could enhance their knowledge on social entrepreneurship (SE), cultural entrepreneurship (CE), social innovation and learnt how to use strategically creative arts for bridging the “Three C” of current-state society: Culture, Community and Commerce. The youth workers acted as multipliers bringing the knowledge to their local community and contributed to the toolkit content creation. The young people who participated in local workshops gained crucial transversal skills and learnt how to apply principles of project management to their creative ideas in practice, enhanced their own ability on creative and critical thinking, public speaking and ability to approach societal problems in a multi-disciplinary way.The specific objectives were to:-Build capacity of consortium in the field of SE and CE and to enable transfer of good practices among the partnership;-Provide youth workers with specific knowledge on approaching youth with fewer opportunities and tools for boosting youth employability throughout education on cultural management;-Create, test and disseminate an innovative toolkit on cultural management education targeted to peer organizations and cultural institutions;-Provide youth with fewer opportunities with chances to enhance existing knowledge and gain new transversal skills in the field of cultural management and thus positively influence their employability potential;-Create a sustainable online platform that will serve as a space for idea and experience sharing among youth interested in social and cultural entrepreneurship;-Promote cultural entrepreneurship as an innovative way of tackling societal problems;-Encourage cooperation between youth organizations and social business sector;-Promote EU policies in the field of social entrepreneurship and Erasmus+ on global level;-Promote social and cultural entrepreneurship, active citizenship and non-formal learning on global level.The objectives were reached through following implemented activities:- 1 capacity building seminar on SE and CE (January 2018)- 1 seminar on cultural management education and development of learning tools (June 2018)- 16 job shadowing mobilities to develop the toolkit (autumn-winter 2018)- 1 final seminar to evaluate results and present toolkit to public (July 2019).The objectives were also reached through the outcomes and products realised: -1 website: https://www.culturalentrepreneurship.info-1 toolkit on social and cultural entrepreneurship: https://issuu.com/y-e-n/docs/toolkit_working_progress?fbclid=IwAR3jnPb6vvdCXpexZ2_R1fDLTL4IVtJwns7mWqNZLP8SCW6swzabb1Qoz3M-4 workshops contents co-created and then shared by the partners (used during the local workshops) about: introduction to Social Entrepreneurship and cultural entrepreneurship / Cultural Management / Strategic Planning in cultural entrepreneurship / Fundraising -8 shared reports about the job shadowings (see website)-8 local workshops realised by the partners in 8 different countries (Argentina, Bulgaria, France, Greece, Lithuania, Mexico, Peru and Vietnam)-1 Facebook group-3 vlogs (video-blogs of the 3 seminars)
"Enter Digital Era promoted a renewed co-operation between European and Latin American countries to improve digitalization of Youth, through improved organizational processes of the NGOs, digital and communication skills of the youth worker and their ability to transfer these to young people of the local communities. The activities, corresponding to the principles of Capacity Building in the Field of Youth, made the NGOs able to reach their targets more effectively. To reach the objectives a mixed Consortium was made up, with 2 different University from Mexico and Turkey, an Italian organization with great coordination experience, an Estonian NGO expert in NFE and five other NGOs with extensive experience in volunteering, from Europe and Latin America, which aimed to:- strengthen the capacity of organizations to better identify and analyze the needs of young people and communities, promoting innovation in methods of research and the integration of these with the digital- stimulate cooperation and promote synergies between the NGOs working in youth sector and those active in the fields of education and training- improve the skills and digital competences of youth workers so to innovate working methods, effectiveness, approach to the target audience, evaluation and monitoring of their work- improve the online presence of the Partners, through know-how transfer with regard to the creation of communication strategies, web and social media strategies promote the digital and technological literacy of the young people as target group of the NGOs involved- offer training and learning opportunities on the digital to youth and youth workers and guarantee on the same subjects opportunities for mobility.Aims and objectives were reached through the following activities:- Online cooperation between partners- 1 Kick Off Meeting in Colombia- 2 Coordination Meeting in Turkey and Italy - Study Group Strauss/Universities- 1 TC for Youth Workers- EVS for 12 Volunteers in EU and Latin America- Local workshops to digitalize Youth and communities in 6 countries- Final evaluation seminar + final conference in MexicoNGOs have been successfully trained on digital resources and strategies for No-Profit, learning new and different skills on the field, instruments and tools that they are already using to reach their target group. In addition, they have benefited from the exchange of skills and experience with other Partners. The Organisations were able to draw on the experience and scientific methods proposed by the Universities in the field of needs analysis. The Universities themselves have experienced a different and new perspective on learning through Non-Formal Education, so much so that they have decided to engage in other projects and initiatives in the field of Erasmus+ Youth. The young people who have participated in the Voluntary Activities have been able to live a formative and intercultural experience, full of a learning of personal, social, professional skills. For many of them, the experience of volunteering in such a different context from their own has been life-changing. The young people and local communities included in the Capacity Building activities were able to experience a world of opportunities that they were not aware of, through digital local workshops.The activities that the partners of the consortium sponsored as well as a promotional video about the project and a paper-study on the impact of the same on young people and the communities, produced:- a study paper on academic contents of which the Mexican University was promoter for publication at an international level;- a ""T-Kit – Non Formal methods to digitalize Youth Work"" to support NGOs and Youth Worker in their work- an Open Content Platform of free training contents, www.enterdigitalera.com, such as guides on the digital and opportunities for and interexchange of volunteers and projects of international mobility."
"The project “Frame[v]work” aims at improving the quality of volunteers exchange within the IVS movement, in order to reinforce the concepts of international voluntarism, active participation and international solidarity. The name refer to the concepts of framework, network and voluntarism: “Frame[v]work"" intends to be a capacity-building project to develop a functional, shared framework for international voluntary work and volunteers exchange in the IVS movement. The partners of the projects are networks and organisations who implement long-term and short-term voluntary projects involving local activists, international volunteers and local communities. The members of the partenrship share the same needs:-the need to find solutions to stop the drop of volunteers in workcamps;-the need to harmonize the exchange procedures for short-term and long-term volunteers developed by the different networks of the IVS movement;-the need propose clear and unify promotional strategy for international voluntarism, in order to reinforce the involvement and active participation of young people, including those with fewer opportunities;-the demand to map all the existing best practices on volunteer exchange and to share them within the networks, in order to increase the quality standards of projects and the campacity on the assessment of their impact. IIn order to improve the quality of the international voluntary activities of the IVS movement, it is vital to involve as many networks as possible in the process. For this reason, the partnership include large networks (CCIVS, Alliance, NVDA, SCI) and several organisations coming from different regions and continents. The final outcome of the project will be the creation of new guidelines for voluntary exchange, more updated and comprehensive that the ones already existing.The project foresees 4 phases:- A preparation phase, with the creation of the Steering Team and the kick-off meeting, where representatives from the networks and organisations will analyse the current exchange procedures and prepare the ground for the following regional laboratories;- The 4 regional laboratories, where organisations will analyse all the aspects of their region related to volunteer exchange, quality standards of projects, promotion and communication;- An evaluation and production phase, where the outputs from each laboratory will be evaluated and consolidated into a final production (exchange guidelines with a contribution from all networks);- A dissemination phase, including a training course to share the new guidelines with IVS organisation and to illustrate the way they can be applied to voluntary projects, in order to improve their quality and impact."