Through ResCom, we aimed to strengthen how young people, youth workers and the youth sector in general, understand and respond to crises and disasters. Our goal was to increase awareness and practical knowledge in risk, crisis and disaster management, and to improve emergency preparedness and response in situations linked to natural hazards, climate pressures and man-made events. We also wanted to develop accessible tools to help communities address collective and social trauma following major incidents. Supporting emotional recovery and mental well-being was essential for helping communities regain stability and continuity. At the same time, we aimed to motivate young people and youth workers to take an active role in building more resilient communities, strengthening civic engagement and shared responsibility. The project also supported both organisations in building their capacity to respond to local community needs related to preparedness, recovery, resiliency and continuity. Unfortunately but predictably, during the implementation of the project, further crises and events, highlighted that these objectives were very relevant for large segments of the population in both countries and locations.
We applied for the ResCom project because we were witnessing, in our daily work and practice, how crises and disasters were affecting young people and local communities in both countries. Severe floods, extreme weather events, wildfires, and ongoing climate pressures exposed clear gaps in preparedness, coordinated response and psychosocial support, especially for youth and the youth sector in general. We identified a strong need to strengthen awareness, knowledge and practical skills in risk, crisis and disaster management among young people and youth workers. At the same time, we saw that collective and social trauma was often left unaddressed, with very few accessible tools that non-specialists could use to support recovery at community level. Even practitioners and mental health professionals were often underprepared to assist in such events and often realized their education did not prepare them for mass scale events. Through ResCom, we addressed these needs by combining preparedness, community resiliency and trauma-informed support, helping youth and those working with them respond more effectively, recover more sustainably and maintain community continuity during and after crises.