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Talking About Conflicts

2023-3-DE04-KA153-YOU-0001834992023Mobility of youth workersfinalizedGood practice
Countries: DE|EL|CZ|ES|RO|FR · Grant: €54,655
Quality and innovation of youth workKey competences developmentPhysical and mental health, well-being

Objectives

The project Talking about Conflict was designed to support youth workers connected to the partner organizations and beyond in understanding the barriers that often hinder dialogue and to equip them with tools for developing a more constructive way of communicating. Its approach relied on principles of non-violence, peace education, respect for diversity, and cooperation. The project was designed for participants to incorporate these approaches into their everyday practice, share them within their organizations, and pass them on to the young people they worked with. In this way, the project aimed to create a wider ripple effect that could reach partner organizations and the broader network of youth workers. The mobilities offered a space for non-formal learning in which youth workers could strengthen their competencies and improve the quality of their work. Throughout the activities, they explored how to address conflicts in a more constructive way, treating them not as moments to avoid but as opportunities for change, growth, and more inclusive development in their groups and organizations. In addition, by providing conflict management and communication tools, it contributed to increasing the overall working atmosphere of the youth workers involved and, therefore, their mental health and psychophysical wellbeing. The project focused on increasing both self-awareness and collective awareness among youth workers regarding their roles within groups, encouraging a noticeable shift during the project period. It also supported the development of meaningful and non-violent communication skills through practice and facilitated learning. Another central intention was to enable participants to acquire new methods and tools for conflict management and to apply them within their own organizational realities. Progress toward these intentions was followed through self-assessment questionnaires completed before and after the mobility periods, allowing participants to reflect on whether their communication and conflict-related competences had improved thanks to the educational path they followed during the project. The project represented an important step toward integrating, in daily practice, the values and attitudes youth workers seek to transmit to young people. It encouraged a way of relating that embraced diversity as a strength, supported authentic expression, and promoted ecological and community-oriented ways of living. The project fostered an understanding that tensions can become spaces for mutual learning and that violence offers no sustainable solution, where assertive communication, active listening can lay the base for mutual understanding and shared decisions.

Project partners (6)