The general goal of New Spirit was to explore opportunities via transnational cooperation to support and improve the way adult education engaged with mentally disadvantaged young learners and companies. Their role as facilitators and mediators between these latter two groups was essential to bridge the gap. We wanted to equip 20 key players from the three target groups in the Netherlands and Austria with relevant pedagogical expertise and with systemic and narrative awareness, competences and skills, so the collaboration between these groups would improve in a healthier way and there would be an increasing employability and a smoother transition between the worldview of the young adults with special needs, educational staff and of the business representatives. To achieve these aims we wanted to develop a 'New Spirit' way of working elaborated in a conceptual handbook, a toolbox and a training programm, which the key players could 'use' in their own trainings, teamwork and work processes. With these outputs our target groups would have instruments to: analyse company situations, establish inspiring networks, analyse solution models, negotiate training/work conditions and new work styles and define an inclusive collaboration.
In the New Spirit project we wanted to improve the understanding and interaction between (mentally) disadvantaged young adults with a distance to the labour market, business representatives (teammanagers, HR- & LD-people) and adult education staff (trainers, coaches, facilitators). In our work we noticed that younger employees have difficulties dealing with the structure and culture in organisations. For the young adult employees with special needs this gap between their worldview and that of companies is often too big to cross. This leads to a lack of energy, trying hard ending in a burn out, motivational problems and/or young talent leaving the company. At the same time managers complain about the lack of discipline and commitment of these younger generations. They felt frustrated and inable to understand them and make them fit in. With the decreasing labour force and the focus on diversity and wanting to be an inclusive employer, the wish to attract and keep young adults with special needs is strong. But often it seemed too difficult to join these two groups and their qualities. With New Spirit we wanted to provide key players with tools to help managers and young adults with special needs to bridge this generation gap.