From February 21-26, 2023, a training session for youth workers and young people in NEET (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) conditions will take place in Brussels, Belgium.

The workshop aims to increase young people’s active engagement in the planning of youth exchanges and to provide opportunities to meet possible partner groups and develop connections in other countries.

Youth workers can attend this training workshop with one or two young people from their organization.Through this opportunity, you will learn the fundamentals of organising and applying for an Erasmus+ grant for youth exchanges.

Now, let’s look at some additional information regarding this training course.

Training Objectives

The main objective of the course is to provide information on Erasmus+ youth exchanges and offer a group learning experience in the process of setting up a youth exchange project. Moreover, the course will cover the following topics: 

• to comprehend non-formal learning and young people’s engagement in learning;
• to investigate the role of a group leader in the learning process of young people;
• to increase young people’s active engagement in the organising of youth exchanges;
• to provide the chance to meet potential partner groups and develop connections in other countries;
• to develop collaborations among young people and organisations;

The target group for the course includes a maximum of 40 participants, consisting of 1 adult leader (over 18 years old) and 1-2 young people between 15-18 years old in NEET situations. Priority will be given to applicants from certain European countries, but applicants from other program countries can still apply. The course is organized in collaboration with the NEET strand of Strategic Partnership for Inclusion.

The National Agencies of the Erasmus+ Programme will finance the costs for the training course, which will vary depending on the participant’s country of origin. Participants must submit their applications by January 13th. For more information about the “Eye-Opener for NEET Organizations”, you can visit the dedicated page on the SALTO-YOUTH website.

Read also

Applications open for the European Youth Capital 2026

European Solidarity Corps Proposals 2023 with €142 Million in Funding

L'articolo Erasmus+ Eye-Opener Training for NEET Youth and Youth Workers proviene da Youth Networks.

The European Solidarity Corps (ESC) is a program developed by the European Union to support young people in undertaking solidarity activities across a range of fields. These activities may include assisting disadvantaged individuals or working on health and environmental issues within the EU and beyond.

In an effort to create more opportunities for youth solidarity, the European Solidarity Corps programme is now accepting proposals for 2023 and will provide over €142 million in funding for various initiatives, including: volunteering activities, youth-led solidarity projects and European Volunteer Humanitarian Aid Corps.

This article provides an overview of the ESC and its call for proposals for 2023, including:

• details on the funding available;
• eligibility and participation requirements;
• application process for public and private entities.

If youth projects are what interests you, keep reading!

Funding Available for Various Initiatives

The call aims to create more opportunities for youth solidarity and will provide over €142 million in funding for volunteering activities, youth-led solidarity projects, and high-priority volunteering groups focused on aiding people fleeing armed conflicts and other victims of natural or man-made disasters. 

It will also support the next edition of the European Volunteer Humanitarian Aid Corps, which promotes solidarity among member states, associated third countries, and communities outside of the EU.

Eligibility and Participation Requirements

The program is open to young people aged 18 to 30 for solidarity activities addressing social challenges, and 18 to 35 for volunteering in support of international humanitarian aid activities. 

Interested participants can register on the European Solidarity Corps portal to find organizations implementing projects and apply for funding for youth-led solidarity projects.

Application Process for Public and Private Bodies

In addition to individuals, any public or private entity can apply for funding to carry out activities under the ESC. To do that, they must have a quality label certifying their ability to conduct high-quality solidarity activities.

For more information, you can visit the European Youth Portal

Read also

European Solidarity Corps Programme Guide 2023

The New Jean Monnet Grants to Support Schools and VETs

L'articolo European Solidarity Corps Proposals 2023 with €142 Million in Funding proviene da Youth Networks.

The European Commission has launched a new set of actions to support schools and VETs: these grants will help teachers, teacher training institutions and schools apply for funding to teach about the EU in Erasmus+ Programme countries.

In this article we will cover everything you need to know to access these funds:

– What are the Jean Monnet actions for schools?;

– The actions financed by the Erasmus 2023 programme;

– Deadline and applications;

Let’s start with the first point!

What are the Jean Monnet actions for schools?

The Jean Monnet actions offer opportunities in the field of higher education, as well as in other fields of education and training. More in detail, the European Union will support these actions:

• Jean Monnet Actions in the field of higher education 
• Jean Monnet Actions in other fields of education and training
• Jean Monnet policy debate (higher education and other fields of education and training)

To find out more about the Jean Monnet actions, click here

The actions financed by the Erasmus 2023 programme

The latest Jean Monnet call, available as part of the 2023 Erasmus+ Programme Guide, contains the following actions to support schools:

Jean Monnet Learning EU Initiatives – for individual schools

Learning about European Union initiatives will support schools & Vocational education and training institutions, enabling them to provide content on European Union-based subjects (democracy, EU history, how the EU works, cultural diversity—among others). Activities could include project weeks, study visits and other immersive activities.

To read more about the objectives of the action and the criteria to be met in order to apply for Jean Monnet Learning EU initiatives click here

Networks of school – 6 schools / 3 programme countries

Networks of schools, Vocational education, training institutions and higher education institutions will participate in the Jean Monnet strand by providing Teacher Training /Education. This would give students an international aspect while also allowing them to experience co-teaching within a group of countries.

To read more about the objectives of The Jean Monnet Networks and the criteria to be met to apply click here

Teaching training – for teacher training institutions

This action will support Higher Education Institutions or Teacher Training Institutes/Agencies to organize activities in order to enable teachers in schools and Vocational Education and Training providers to develop new skills, thus empowering them through a better understanding of the EU and its functioning.

To read more about the objectives of the action and which are the criteria to be met to apply for The Jean Monnet Teacher Trainings click here

Deadline and Application

The call opened on 1 December 2022 and the deadline for submitting proposals is 14 February 2023. You can find out how to apply on the specific sections by visiting this website.

L'articolo The New Jean Monnet Grants to Support Schools and VETs proviene da Youth Networks.

Soft skills are becoming a necessity in today’s workforce. With the growth of emerging digital companies and the increased competition in the global job market, employees need to be well-rounded and have strong soft skills.

This article will explore the ESSENCE project, funded by the Erasmus+ programme, which aims to increase the employability of university students and its graduates through the development of soft skills.

Nowadays, it is crucial to match both technical knowledge and soft and intangible skills. To meet the demands of employers and recruiters connected with the most desirable competencies, the demand-driven employers’ perspective guided the structure of the courses.

GOALS – The Importance of Intangible Qualities

According to the research published by the World Economic Forum in 2016, in the era of digital automation and AI, career success factors are facing significant changes in all industries as time passes (especially in those with high technological coefficients). 

Nowadays, strategic competitiveness depends more and more on intellectual capital assets: the fourth industrial revolution– where new technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), robotics, virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI) dominate the world- hence the need to create new managerial talents that are also highly empowered on both technical knowledge and soft and intangible abilities. 

ESSENCE project’s aim is to create a complete set of new soft abilities on the students and fresh graduates to enhance their educational and labour market competency.

In order to achieve this result, during the project partners developed training, courses, educational modules, content and, last but not least, 4 operational tools.

THE 4 INTELLECTUAL OUTPUTS

1 – OER Platform

The OER platform, available in seven languages, is meant to reach different international populations: students, trainers, and teachers who specialize in labour, business experts with substantial knowledge in HR and PR, entrepreneurs, and managing directors. The material has been transcoded into an e-learning format for the target groups and other stakeholders to benefit.

2 – Mapping the Soft Skills

The 2nd Intellectual Output linked soft skills with employability by mapping the most desirable soft skills among employers within the EU countries based on questionnaires distributed among the private sector and business associations.

3 – Toolkit to Learn New Abilities

For each soft skill identified as fundamental in the mapping’s process, a Training content is available, more specifically:

• Coordinating with others
• creativity
• emotional intelligence
• judgment and Decision-Making
• Complex Problem-Solving
• Critical Thinking
• Cognitive flexibility
• Go to the Essence Decision Games

4 – Guidelines and the Soft Skill Manifesto

In order to maintain project materials and dissemination after Erasmus + co-financing ended, intellectual output 4 consists of two components: 

1. The guidelines will aim to mainstream them and foster their use across geographic areas. You can find them here: Guidelines
2. A soft skills manifesto, aimed at university administrations to encourage employability and empowerment of employees in the business community and organisation environment. You can download the pdf here: Manifesto

Partners of the project

• UNIVERSITY OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
• IBAF
• IDDP
• UNIDU
• IHF
• SSE RIGA
• INTERNET WEB SOLUTIONS
• UNIVERSITY OF ECONOMICS – VARNA

L'articolo Project Result | Learn New Soft Skills With ESSENCE proviene da Youth Networks.

The online session runs on Friday 27th May from 9.30am to 12.30pm.

The informative session on Capacity Building aims to support the international cooperation and policy dialogue in the field of youth and non-formal learning.

Capacity Building in the field of Youth

On April 20th 2021 opened the Call for Capacity Building in the field of youth. The deadline for submission of projects on Capacity Building in the field of youth is July 1st at 17:00 (CET).

Capacity-building projects are international cooperation projects based on multilateral partnerships between organisations active in the field of youth in Programme and Partner countries. They aim to support the international cooperation and policy dialogue in the field of youth and non-formal learning. They act as a driver of sustainable socio-economic development and well-being of youth organisations and young people.

The proposals should focus on one or more of the following thematic areas:

• political participation and dialogue with decision-makers;
• inclusion of young people with fewer opportunities;
• democracy, rule of law and values;
• empowerment / engagement / employability of young people;
• peace and post-conflict reconciliation;
• environment and climate;
• anti-discrimination and gender equality;
• digital and entrepreneurial skills.

Eligibility Criteria

The following organisations can apply as coordinator:

• NGOs (including European Youth NGOs and national Youth Councils) working in the field
  of Youth;
• Public authorities at local, regional or national level.

The coordinating organisation applies on behalf of all participating organisations of the project. They must be legally established and located in an Erasmus+ Programme country.

See further details about eligibility criteria for non-coordinating organisations.

For more information on the 2021 CBY call we invite you to consult the Erasmus+ Programme Guide.

In the meantime, if you have questions for EACEA in the information session, you can send a message to this email address:

EACEA-YOUTH@ec.europa.eu

indicating “CBY 2021 Info-session” in its subject.

Read more

New Features of European Solidarity Corps 2021-2027

European Solidarity Corps (ESC): Inclusion and Diversity Strategy

L'articolo Capacity Building in the field of Youth – Informative Session proviene da Youth Networks.

The international seminar will explore the role of youth work in supporting young people’s access to social rights. Furthermore, it will foster peer-exchange on the approaches and frameworks of cooperation between local authorities and youth workers, in order to promote social inclusion for young people. The seminar will bring together up to 50 youth workers, youth specialists and representatives of local and regional authorities who will meet and exchange practices related to the promotion and implementation of the two Council of Europe Committee of Ministers’ Recommendations ( Enter! and Youth work Rec)

The seminar will be held in Kazan, Russian Federation from 9-12 October 2018, and will gather youth work practitioners and local authorities in a 50-50 model. Please share this information with the youth workers, youth organisations or local authorities that you work with and who could contribute with their experiences in working on social inclusion with young people.

Objectives of the seminar:

1. To develop an understanding of Council of Europe standards and tools of youth policy, youth work and youth participation for interventions aiming to combat discrimination and social exclusion at local and regional levels;
2. To consolidate experiences and good practices of youth work and youth policy on access to social rights in the Russian Federation and other states parties to the European Cultural Convention;
3. To identify and explore challenges in working with the Enter! and Youth Work Recommendations and devise future plans for their implementation;
4. To identify good practices and youth work approaches which support the social inclusion of young people and their access to social rights;
5. To support and strengthen the networking and cooperation between different stakeholders and partners interested in the implementation of the Enter! and Youth work Recommendations.

Detailed information and online application forms

L'articolo International seminar: From Policy to Practice proviene da Youth Networks.

Building on developments in the region, the activity aims to make a contribution to strengthening youth work in the region, by analysing its state of play and identifying the support needed from youth work policy, and in turn will consider the crucial role that youth work can play in supporting youth policy at different levels.

The seminar objectives are:

• to strengthen the knowledge about youth work in South East Europe;
• to explore current challenges and needs that youth work as a field has in SEE and how youth policy can respond to them, at different levels, through frameworks, capacity building, and support tools;
• to enhance synergies between different relevant actors in the region for the development of the youth work sector;
• to analyse the crucial role that youth work can play in supporting youth policy at different levels.

The event will gather up to 50 participants, representing the triangle of youth work practice, policy and research.

Background information

Increasing knowledge and supporting the development of youth work and youth policy in SEE has been for several years one of the objectives of the EU-CoE youth partnership. In this framework, the EU-CoE youth partnership organised in 2016 the peer-learning seminar ‘Getting Across’, which brought together 55 participants involved in youth policy and youth work, particularly in the Western Balkans. The event reaffirmed the role of youth work in supporting young people in exclusion situations and generated guidelines for increasing the quality and impact of cross-sectoral youth policies and youth services.

From 2017 onwards, EU-CoE youth partnership has carried out a research project on the educational paths of youth workers, which aims to collect data and analyse the formal and non-formal education paths and career steps of youth workers, as contribution to the quality development in the youth work field.

Moreover, youth work is today very prominent in the priorities and processes of the Council of Europe and of the European Commission.

Slovenia, furthermore, has established, over the years, a strong youth sector and a well-developed cooperation within South-East Europe in different policy areas affecting youth, while its Office for Youth has been fond of deepening regional cooperation in the field of youth, contributing to the implementation of the Council of Europe Recommendation on youth work.

L'articolo Peer-learning seminar on youth work and youth policies proviene da Youth Networks.

If you are between 25 and 35 years, have networking skills and are interested to foster your expertise in regional development, cultural cooperation and sustainable tourism, please refer to the  Call for young professionnals

Objectives
(1) Increase the visibility of the four EU macro-regions (Adriatic-Ionian Region, Alpine, Baltic Sea and Danube Region) as well as the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe Programme through the involvement of young professionals;
(2) Disseminate information and knowledge on cultural cooperation, regional development and sustainable tourism in the 4 EU macro-regions;
(3)Develop a platform for the exchange of information on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), start-up businesses, as well as innovative and creative industries in the field of Cultural Routes;
(4) Stimulate the peer-to-peer exchange among young people working in the 4 EU macro-regions on regional development and on cultural tourism.

Structure
The network will be managed by its members under the supervision of Routes4U. Among the network members 4 young professionals
(1/EU macro-region) will take the responsibility as coordinators for their respective EU macro-region; the role of President will be rotating among the 4 coordinators. The mandate of coordinators will be of 2 years; the mandate of president will be of 6 months. The activities of the network will be developed by the members and coordinated by the President and the coordinators.

In line with the objective of the Routes4U Project to “enhance the participation of networks and association, involve local stakeholders and encourage bottom up processes” and to put a “special attention to young people and women entrepreneurship”, we are looking for young professionals to create a network (refer as “Routes4Youth network”) on regional development through the Cultural Routes in the Adriatic-Ionian, Alpine, Baltic Sea and Danube Region.

The young professionals will be in charge of carrying out a variety of tasks, such as:
* Creation of a macroregional network of professionals including a mentoring programme with senior professionals;
* Development of an action plan to increase the visibility of young professionals in the four EU macro-regions;
* Dissemination of information on regional development and cultural cooperation in the four EU macro-regions;
* Strengthening of professional knowledge and expertise through trainings and courses on the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe programme.

Eligibility Criteria
Professional experience: A minimum of 2 years working experience in at least one of the following field of expertise (internships can be counted as professional experience):
-Economic development;
-Regional development;
-Sustainable tourism;
-Cultural cooperation;
-Cultural tourism;
-Cultural heritage;
-Any other related field to Cultural Routes in the four EU macro-regions.

Academic Background: A Master’s Degree in Social Science, Humanities, Science, Management or other related fields OR about to attain the Master’ Degree (planned by March 2019); or a Bachelor’s Degree and at least 2 years of professional experience.

Nationality: Of one country of the EU macro-regions.
-Adriatic-Ionian Region: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia.
-Alpine Region: Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovenia and Switzerland.
-Baltic Sea Region: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden.
-Danube Region: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Moldova, Montenegro, Ukraine, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Romania.

Age:Minimum 25 years and maximum 35 years when joining the network.

Languages skills: Proven fluency in English (written and spoken)

If you are interested in applying, please fill in before the 30th of September 2018 the online form
Note: You will berequested to attach a CV to the form.

More information about the Routes4U Project

L'articolo Routes4Youth network – Call for young professionals proviene da Youth Networks.

The Europe 2020 strategy, adopted by the European Council in June 2010, is the European Union’s agenda for jobs and growth for the current decade. As a main objective, the strategy strives to deliver high levels of employment, productivity and social cohesion in the Member States, while reducing the impact on the natural environment. To reach this objective, the EU has adopted targets to be reached by 2020 in five areas: employment, research & development (R&D), climate change & energy, education and poverty reduction.
These have been translated into national targets in order to reflect the situation and possibilities of each Member State to contribute to the common goal. A set of nine headline indicators and additional sub-indicators, compiled by Eurostat, give an overview of how close the EU is to its overall targets.

Today Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, issues the 2018 edition of the publication “Smarter, greener, more inclusive?”, which provides information on past trends and latest statistics useful to monitor the progress towards the targets of the Europe 2020 strategy.

A complete picture of trends in the Europe 2020 headline indicators

The analysis in the Eurostat publication is based on the Europe 2020 headline indicators used to monitor progress towards the strategy’s targets. Other indicators focusing on specific subgroups of society or on complementary issues are used to deepen the analysis and present a broader picture.

The publication aims to shed light on the trends in the headline indicators over the past years and helps understand the factors behind the changes observed so far. Since 2008, substantial progress has been made in the area of climate change and energy through the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. In recent years, the positive trend has however slowed down. In the area of education, the EU is within reaching distance of both headline targets. The most recent developments in R&D investment and poverty alleviation are less promising, while the EU’s employment target can be reached if the growth recorded over the past few years continues.

For more information
Eurostat website section dedicated to the Europe 2020 strategy.
Eurostat scoreboard on Europe 2020 headline indicators.
Eurostat publication “Smarter, greener, more inclusive? – Indicators to support the Europe 2020 strategy” (2018 edition).

L'articolo How is the European Union progressing towards its Europe 2020 targets? proviene da Youth Networks.

The situation of young refugees in European societies is an important topic for human rights, democracy, living together in diversity and social cohesion. Among different sectors working for and with young refugees, youth work offers a diversity of spaces and initiatives for young refugees to become a full part of their communities and to have a voice in all matters that concern them.

This publication offers practical tools for youth work on the inclusion and participation of young refugees at local level. It focuses on youth participation and inclusion as key dimensions to build inclusive societies and, at the same time, to create an enabling environment for young refugees to be fully fledged actors of their personal and community development. It tackles the following themes: intercultural learning; access to social rights; young women refugees; youth participation and mental health and trauma.

About STEP-by-STEP

The Guide encompasses a variety of experiences and practices of youth work, including from the so-called transit and host countries, as well as working with unaccompanied minors, young asylum seekers and refugees. Step-by-Step will not tackle in an exhaustive way the different realities of young refugees across Europe. Instead it gives a general overview of the main challenges and possible practices in the youth work field with these young people who are refugees. In addition, it chooses to focus on the young person rather than the profile of the country, meaning that it is important to consider the context, needs and aspirations of that young person and, if we are working with young people “on the move”, it is also important to be able to define the best way to work with them. The authors are aware that realities change depending on whether young people are in transition, on the move or if they have reached their final destination.

The publication is addressed to:
► youth workers and other professionals and volunteers working directly with young refugees;
► policy makers who co-operate with the youth sector at the local level, so they can develop programmes to support youth work further or types of funding for youth organisations working with young refugees.

This publication has two chapters.
■The first chapter, “Youth work and young refugees”, puts the emphasis on the role of youth work in the inclusion and participation of young refugees in Europe, highlighting its added value and, at the same time, underlining the main challenges and needs of the youth sector.
■ The second chapter, “Support, tips, examples and possibilities for youth work with young refugees”, offers tips and good practices on the specified themes, while reflecting on the specific challenges and contributions of the youth field in each one of them.
■ At the end of the publication, suggestions for further learning on youth work and young refugees are included.

This publication was developed by the partnership between the European Commission and the Council of Europe in the field of youth, on the basis of three seminars and workshops held in 2016 and 2017 and a collection of good practices of youth work with young refugees. The practices were collected between May and July 2017, through the online survey “Youth Work and Young Refugees in Europe: Speak about Your Initiative!”, and we have included in this publication those practices that provided sufficient information about their youth work with young refugees.

Read it here.

L'articolo Step-by-step together – a guide for NGOs working with young refugees proviene da Youth Networks.