Project Concept Disadvantaged young people face great difficulties in making a successful transition from school to training and employment. Numerous studies confirm this. The problem is even more acute in remote rural border regions, where young people often lack sufficient opportunities to develop and unfold their abilities. The participating young people themselves live in regions where parties that explicitly oppose diversity, integration, and inclusion are gaining increasing support. These challenges are the focus of the project “Café zum Glück 2026 – Inclusion German-Polish.” Here, disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged young people from Germany and Poland learn together how to run a café on the grounds of the educational center Campus Trebnitz. In doing so, we put into practice the goals of the EU Youth Strategy and the Erasmus Programme, such as empowerment, participation, social integration, inclusion, appreciation, diversity, cross-border mobility, rural development, and successful transitions into employment, as well as key aspects of the “Union of Skills 2024” and the Erasmus+ Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, which views diversity as an opportunity and enrichment. Entrepreneurship The unique feature of the project lies in the combination of economic competencies, intercultural learning opportunities, democratic experiences, and inclusion/integration efforts. In view of rising nationalist tendencies, xenophobia, radicalization, and the climate crisis, the junior company sets a clear example of tolerance, respect, diversity, and sustainability. We want to strengthen social cohesion and enhance the resilience of young people. Resilient young people are better able to cope with difficult circumstances. Instead of resigning, they act proactively to shape and improve their living situation. Our aim is to give young people the opportunity to recognize, develop, and draw upon their potential – despite difficult conditions in the rural border region. In practice, this creates a protective barrier against radicalization and extremism, against violence and the exclusion of those perceived as weaker. Empowerment The project pursues several goals. On the one hand, inclusion and diversity are to be lived out in a very practical way. Many of the students come from special-needs schools, have significant learning deficits, or come from precarious social backgrounds. Through targeted empowerment, disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged young people alike are to be given greater opportunities for equality and social integration. In the structurally weak German-Polish border region, the café offers participants the chance to gain real-life work experience in service and entrepreneurship, while acquiring practical skills they can use later in their transition to working life. Methods The junior company is an educational project format that is associated with a high degree of motivation and engagement from all participants. It is an appropriate method to introduce economic mechanisms in an experiential way and to improve opportunities for entering professional life. To ensure good and low-conflict cooperation among the different “marginalized groups,” topics such as diversity, intercultural learning, inclusion/exclusion, and language animation play an important role. We address the special situation of disadvantaged young people by creating a culture of appreciation, providing reliable support, and embracing a diversity-conscious attitude that sees the variety of young people as an opportunity. With the Youthpass certificate, we can make the learning process conscious, transparent, and traceable for everyone. “Happiness Concept” The name of the café, “Zum Glück” (“To Happiness”), naturally has several dimensions of meaning. On the one hand, visitors to the café become “happy” through the enjoyment of its offerings – they perceive themselves as practically part of happiness. On the other hand, the name provides an opportunity to reflect on the concept of happiness itself (for example, living in a sustainable and healthy world). What really makes us happy? We therefore plan to make the idea of happiness visible in the café through quotes and pictures. In addition, the café operators will do everything possible to make visitors “happy” – through decoration, music, and atmosphere. For if the visitor is happy, if the product and service are convincing, then the feedback to the staff will also be positive. And of course, the project participants themselves should also feel happy within the project – through recognition, responsibility, community, respect, and success through inclusion and integration.