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Young Soul

2020-2-MT01-KA105-0742722020Youth mobilityfinalized
Countries: MT|PL|EL|DE|RS|IT|NO|BE|LV|BG|SE · Grant: €29,205
Intercultural/intergenerational education and (lifelong)learningQuality assuranceNew innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Objectives

What is the image of a modern youth worker? Being active in Youth in Action and Erasmus+ projects during more than 10 years, we have cooperated with many partner organizations and know colleagues with various backgrounds (older and younger; volunteers, freelancers, employees and managers etc.) and various youth fields (social work, sports, education, cultural sector, etc.). However, we have noticed that those who are “visible” and participate actively in youth workers’ mobilities, travelling around the world, are just a specific part of youth workers – still young people themselves or maximum of the age of a bit over 30, students, activists, free-lancers, speaking English fluently, often the same faces, staying tuned and in the topic. Another part – the elder and mature ones, stay as grey cardinals, locked in four walls of their working places, struggling with routines and adult life obligations, families, not coming out of their comfort zones, not feeling the need to improve the language skills, not motivated to use non-formal education methods or modernize their approaches… But they do exist, and they have long careers and experiences, their youth elixir and work secrets, worth to share and to learn from them; they are also ready to do this, if the comfortable conditions would be provided and their needs and specifics would be taken into consideration. In particular, we would like to reach out to the youth workers dealing with various groups of young people with fewer opportunities: social, cultural, educational, geographical, political, psychological etc. obstacles – as we believe it is crucial to have an experience exchange for improving the conditions of this final target group. Therefore, the project aimed to create a favorable atmosphere for bringing together young, as well as more mature youth workers for inspiring and learning among the generations for a more balanced - experienced, professional and modern – work with young people with fewer opportunities. So, the objectives were: -to appreciate and support the invisible, but existing target group, that can be considered a group with fewer opportunities and definitely with special needs – more mature youth workers, usually staying in their customary conditions in home realities; -to create proper supportive conditions, to motivate this target group to come out from its comfort zone (including travelling, speaking in English, communicating with younger colleagues); -to learn from the experience and particular case-studies from this target group; -to find out the secret of their youth elixir and the secret of long successful careers; -to let the younger and tuned youth workers to inspire, motivate, update others with fresh ideas, new tools (including the digital ones), modern methods; -to promote non-formal education, stimulate new creative techniques and life-long learning; -to open the stage for a dialogue of generations, idea brainstorming, creation of new methods together; -to encourage participants to continue to be active balanced youth workers, also planning particular follow up activities for young people and future cooperation within youth work field. The project went in line with Erasmus+ programme priorities. “The Erasmus+ Programme was designed to support Programme Countries' efforts to efficiently use the potential of Europe’s talent and social assets in a lifelong learning perspective, linking support to formal, non-formal and informal learning throughout the education, training and youth fields.” Also, quoting the guide, “well performing education and training systems and youth policies provide people with the skills required by the labor market and the economy, while allowing them to play an active role in society and achieve personal fulfilment.”

Project partners (11)