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Accredited project in the field of youth

2024-1-IT03-KA151-YOU-0002227732024Mobility of young people for accredited organisationsongoing
Countries: IT · Grant: €184,285

Objectives

One of the main objectives of our accreditation was to address the challenges faced by young people, particularly job insecurity and the limited participation in volunteering and associative activities. We often encountered highly motivated young people eager to contribute actively to the development of local projects; however, due to the long waiting periods between project drafting, approval, and contract activation, they risked losing interest and motivation. Through this accreditation and so by realizing this project, we have been able to engage young people more consistently and give them a more structured and meaningful role, rather than sporadic involvement. For this reason, we committed to making these opportunities more continuous, reliable, and systematic, in order to increase the active and conscious participation of young volunteers. Young Effect already offers local activities—such as creative workshops, intercultural cooking labs, and more—at its headquarters and in local libraries. However, having a well-defined and long-term project schedule has allowed us to involve even more young people. The project and its activities were therefore designed and implemented precisely to create more inclusive spaces, starting from the needs and participation of the young people involved. At the same time, we invested significantly in building a network of collaboration with other local organizations. During this project, we developed strong partnerships with Parco del Ticino Authority, the Eco-Institute of the Ticino Valley, Canoa Club Milano, the soup kitchen Non di Solo Pane, the Anti-Violence Center of the Municipality of Sanremo, Pigna Mon Amour from the Municipality of Sanremo, and many other local associations that supported us in implementing our activities. Beyond the local context, we also worked to establish international partnerships aimed at addressing social issues that have always been a priority for our organization. Among these is the NEET phenomenon (young people not in education, employment, or training), which is particularly widespread both in our region and across Italy, as highlighted by the initiatives of the Ministry of Youth Policies, especially in the post-pandemic period. With regard to the youth population in our community, Young Effect is also committed to preventing extremism and radicalization, while promoting social inclusion of young people with fewer opportunities—this has therefore become one of the key goals of our project. In this area, we maintain a significant collaboration with the “Scuola senza frontiere” (School Without Borders) in Corbetta (MI), aimed at fostering inclusion and integration. In addition, we are developing a specific project for young people with disabilities, in collaboration with local associations in Cuggiono, which aim to include young people with autism in the activities of accredited projects. Currently, youth participation opportunities are sometimes connected to the Erasmus+ programme, but our goal is to ensure that these opportunities become an integral part of the learning paths provided by the programme. In this way, we can increase the impact of mobility initiatives and ensure long-term sustainability of results, even for young people with fewer opportunities. The main objectives we pursued through this project were: Strengthening the organizational capacity of the Association:this objective was achieved, as evidenced by the increased number of staff members involved and the significant growth in membership. Improving the professionalism of youth workers in non-formal education practices: thanks to the PDA activities, we were able to exchange high-quality best practices with youth workers from partner organizations and provide advanced training sessions with the support of expert trainers. Expanding intercultural exchange opportunities for young people: this was achieved through the implementation of two youth exchanges focused on combating waste—both food and consumer goods—and on themes of well-being through nature and sustainable development. Providing targeted training for educators and social workers working with young people at risk of social exclusion: this goal was also achieved through collaboration with local entities that work daily to promote the inclusion of young people at risk of radicalization.

Project partners (1)