The “Gender Pop” project was created with the goal of promoting gender equality and fostering equal opportunities through the critical and creative use of popular culture. Its foundation lies in a key observation: media, including comics, movies, TV series, and video games, play a major role in shaping gender stereotypes among young people. These stereotypes, often reinforced by patriarchal narratives, perpetuate traditional roles that limit freedom, personal development, and the active participation of young people—especially girls—in their family, social, and romantic environments. Through a training activity aimed at youth workers, this project sought to transform these entertainment media into pedagogical tools to address gender stereotypes from a critical, creative, and inclusive perspective. The goal was twofold: on one hand, to empower youth workers by developing innovative competencies and methodologies for educational intervention; on the other, to generate a positive and lasting impact on the young people they work with by promoting critical thinking, self-expression, and respect for diversity. The specific objectives of the project were: - To develop tools and methodologies that allow youth workers to address gender stereotypes with young people using pop culture materials. These resources—including guides, activities, and educational proposals—have been compiled in a final publication, designed as an open and transferable tool. - To create new models of behavior, friendship, and love that inspire young people to imagine and adopt more equitable and inclusive forms of relationships. The project aimed to reinterpret pop culture narratives through a gender-equal lens, challenging hegemonic discourse and proposing positive alternatives. - To empower young women to take active roles in their family, social, and romantic contexts, challenging traditional norms and promoting leadership and self-assertion. - To strengthen youth work as a transformative space in non-formal education, equipping participants with an innovative approach to address gender issues in their communities in a playful, creative, and participatory way. - To foster participation and intercultural dialogue, creating a meeting space for young people from different European countries to share best practices, reflect on common values, and build lasting networks beyond the project. - To contribute to the EU Youth Strategy 2019–2027, particularly in terms of inclusion, gender equality, democratic participation, and the recognition of youth work as a tool for social transformation. “Gender Pop” aimed to be more than a training course: it aspired to be a transformative experience for both youth workers and the young people they support, promoting educational practices rooted in equality, creativity, and shared responsibility. The project combined critical analysis of pop culture with non-formal learning dynamics, offering methodologies tailored to real contexts of youth work and laying the groundwork for future applications in various educational and social settings.