<< Objectives >>Although many of our national members are aware of the great opportunity of Erasmus+ as a great tool for youth workers and youth empowerment, they lack in many cases deep knowledge and experience on how to successfully identify, apply and report within the program ensuring thou that their impact and their opportunities for youth empowerment are always maximized. The same way, while deeply rooted in non-formal and informal education, they experienced a lack of knowledge and practice on new innovative methodologies that could be applied on their work with the youth and especially to power their work with different groups of disadvantaged youngsters. During YouthProAktivs' General Assembly taking place in Brussels in February 2018, our national members requested a training that could give them a deepen knowledge on Erasmus+ and on innovative methodologies to apply on non-formal education, as well as a space for the exchange of best practices among them. This partnership for the project was built in order to address the following needs:- A lack of clear knowledge and expertise on Erasmus+ (special focus on KA1) and successful innovative methodologies on youth work. - An effort in order to professionalize and increase the quality of youth work and youth workers by providing them with professional tools to develop their work.- An effort in order to present the means and ways that the European Union, through the Erasmus + program, is providing them in order to ensure an effective way to reach marginalize youngsters and to tackle European societal pressing issues.This way, the two main general objectives of this training for youth workers are:- Increase their specific knowledge of the Erasmus+ program, actions, and tools in order to ensure a professionalization of youth work and youth work impact within society. - Increase their specific practical knowledge on new innovative methodologies to be used in the area of non-formal education with a special focus on empowering and developing the skills and engagement of most disadvantaged youth. The training is also following this set of specific objectives: - Increase youth workers knowledge and practice on KA1 mobility projects. - Equipping youth workers and youth organizations with a deep understanding of the common values inspiring the Erasmus+ program increasing their chances to successfully reach and include the most disadvantaged youth and contribute through non-formal education to the creation or more tolerant and inclusive European society.- Improve the professional competences of youth workers equipping them with the skills, non-formal methodologies and working methods needed in order to successfully implement their activities in the youth work sector.- Increase the quality of youth work ensuring that the available tools and means to develop their work are successfully used and implemented.- Ensuring the creation of a space for the exchange of best practices that will help them to identify successful initiatives in favor of their main young target groups.- Increasing the capacity of national youth organizations to operate transnationally and ensuring the establishment of strong and long-lasting partnerships among them.Following the great interest of YPA partners and members after our last General Assembly in September 2018, the coalition decided to reapply for this project after introducing some suggested improvements.The Erasmus+ program through its Key Action 1 is the perfect way to conduct this project that is mainly aiming to support the professional development of youth workers, through the implementation of a transnational training course. The training will count with the expertise of external trainers specialized on Erasmus+ funds and innovative methodologies applicable to youth work and non-formal education and youth projects but will also count with a constant involvement of both partner organizations and participating youth workers throughout the whole duration of the project. This way, we will ensure that they also increase their knowledge and skills to design, execute and disseminate successfully and professionally an international project from the beginning till the end and to increase the real impact on their daily work with young people.<< Activities >>The 29 participating youth workers will respond to an estimated age acceptance between 18-33 years old in order to ensure a much more close and deep understanding of youngsters needs and mentality. All our events and training respect the principle of gender balance as we promote equal access to opportunities as a requisite for a real and successful impact on society and youth work. Out of these 29 participants at least 9 will be youth workers directly working with disadvantaged youngsters. This training course is mainly designed for youth workers that are actively working or volunteering in a youth organization; actively involved in youth work&thinking on starting their own youth organization or youth project&that are actively working with less advantaged youngsters of marginalized youth.All the different stages&phases of this project& its implementation has been co-designed to ensure a real&measurable achievement of the different goals&aimed defined for this project. Following this pattern, the program has also been structured around 9 different types of activities conceived in order to help the achievement of the different goals &outcomes of the project as well as a full&comprehensive involvement of participants throughout them. 1. PresentationsDesigned in order to make sure that youth workers&youth organizations get a deep understanding of the common values inspiring the Erasmus+ program as well as its main implications for youth work&youngsters. The same way, this activity will be also ensuring that youth workers clearly understand why including the most disadvantaged youth&contribute through non-formal educations to the creation of a more tolerant&inclusive European society is a very important priority to be included within youth organization's working plans. 2 Exercises& 3.ActivitiesThese types of activities co-designed by all partner organizations are fully participatory non-formal elements of the program with the main aim of deepening into the different topics proposed throughout the program through intercultural learning &by better experiencing and understanding the commonalities&also the different feelings with regard to these topics in different countries&groups. 4. Parallel Sessions 5. General Assemblies 6. WorkshopsCo-designed in order to improve the professional competencies of youth workers equipping them with the skills, methodologies&working methods needed in order to successfully implement their activities in the youth work sector. The same way, they are the instruments that we will be using in order to achieve our goal of training the youth workers on specific knowledge on the Erasmus+ program, actions& tools what will clearly ensure higher standards& professionalization of youth work&youth work impact within society. These activities will ensure that youth workers gain a better knowledge on how to target, include and successfully have an impact on most disadvantaged youngsters when defining and implementing their activities and applying for Erasmus + Funds (with a special focus on KA1). These sessions will allow participants to gain or improve their direct practical skills on writing EU projects (KA1) through a realistic simulation of the project definition and application process and a special focus on most disadvantaged youth groups. 7. Self and group evaluation sessions &8. Discussion & ReflectionThis set of activities will make participants reflect on how all the different acquired knowledge, skills&attitudes contribute to the general increase in the quality of youth work&thus of youth empowerment. The same way, they will create a space for the exchange of best practices that will help them to identify successful initiatives in favor of their main young target groups&especially most disadvantaged and marginalized youngsters. Through discussion and reflection activities participants will gain a better understanding of policies and practices in another European country and will be encouraged to think about their own national context and how it compares. The different evaluation sessions during the program will represent reflection point for youth workers on their process of self-evaluation through the use of the YouthPass. The final self and evaluation session is aiming at ensuring that youth workers finish successfully their process of self-evaluation thanks to the use of the YouthPass and with an up to date Europass CV. 9. Ice-breakers and networking eventsFinally, all the different ice-breakers and networking events have been designed to directly increase the capacity of national youth organizations to operate transnationally by establishing strong and long-lasting partnerships among them as well as to better experience and benefit from intercultural learning and multiculturalism. All the activities proposed as well as the different phases of the whole project are expected to have a real positive impact on the quality and professionalization of youth work. << Impact >>According to the general and specific objectives set up for this training, participants, participating organizations and other target groups are expected to experience the following positive impact:Youth workers will experience an improvement of their professional competencies through - The reinforcement of their contextual knowledge on the Erasmus+ Program goals and priorities; the different Erasmus+ actions (special focus on KA1) and programs and the different aims, priorities and best practices for each one of them and the positive impact that the Erasmus+ program brings to society especially in the youth sector.- The reinforcement of their technical and practical knowledge on the different steps in order to successfully apply for an Erasmus+ project (KA1); the best tips and advice for successfully writing an application and the knowledge for a better reporting and management of mobility tools.- A wider knowledge of different innovative methodologies that they can apply for non-formal learning and how to better use them and adjust them to the needs of most disadvantaged youth groups. - They will increase their sensibilization and awareness regarding their work for the empowerment of the most disadvantaged youth through the reinforcement of their knowledge on the best activities and methodologies to be applied when working with less advantage or marginalized youngsters. They will thus increase their level of engagement toward the inclusion of less advantaged and marginalized youngsters as well as a more open-minded approach to different issues, conflicts, and youngsters backgrounds.- The will experience a positive impact in the development of soft skills such as communication and analytical skills, leadership skills, team-work, negotiation, and problem- solving, effective planning, networking skills, language skills, and drafting skills.All these benefits will have a direct positive impact within the partner organizations. In addition to all these common benefits, partners are also expected to:- Benefit from an active exchange of best practices in order to better identify successful initiatives in favor of their main young target groups.- Benefit from an increased capacity to operate transnationally through the establishment of strong and long-lasting partnerships among partner organizations.- Benefit from the experience gained by the youth workers participating in the project that will become much more engaged within the organization, thereby triggering positive outcomes on the social level and providing inspiration to the organization for potential future activities, projects, and initiatives.- Benefit from a much more accurate and reliable knowledge about the Erasmus+ project, Structure Dialogue and Youth Strategy what will increase the quality and possibilities of their projects and activities.Finally, other targeted groups, especially through our communication and dissemination campaign, will also experience the following positive impact:- Local and national youth organizations working on the youth sector will increase the impact of their activities through a deeper knowledge on the tools for youth empowerment provided by the Erasmus+ program.- The local Youth with a special focus on marginalized youth will boost their professional and personal skills through a better knowledge of the different opportunities that Erasmus + program is offering them.- National Agencies will improve their communication with the different national youth actors and will benefit from the spotted best practices implemented by other National Agencies.- International organizations from partner countries will increase their knowledge on the different opportunities for youth empowerment that the Erasmus+ program is also offering to them. - European stakeholders working on Erasmus+ will benefit from first-hand feedback coming from the main beneficiaries of the program. - EAECEA will also benefit from first-hand feedback coming from the main beneficiaries of the program. - Members of the European Parliament from the CULT Committee working on Erasmus+ will benefit from the support of all the different youth stakeholders working on the sector as well as from the experience of those youth workers from their own national counties. This project is designed in order to have a positive impact on youth empowerment through better use and information of all the available tools provided by the program Erasmus+ as well as new innovative non-formal methodologies. This way, the project will have a direct impact not just on the participating youth workers and partner organisations but directly on the youth and most marginalised youth as well as on all the different related stakeholders that could benefit of Erasmus+ for the empowerment of the youth both local, national, internationally and at the European level.

“Entrepreneurial Lab” was a two-stage international youth exchange project, which gathered 42 young people from 5 countries (United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland and Turkey) and empowered them with entrepreneurial attitudes and mindset.Unemployment had been identified as a significant concern in Europe and beyond. Today’s world is marked by a widespread focus on economic development, technological advancement, and global integration. Yet, we still witness widespread unemployment, especially among young people who are left outside the prosperity loop and who find it more and more difficult to access ever-changing labour markets.The challenge of unemployment is even more severe among youth with fewer opportunities in rural and urban areas, where there is a lack of education and opportunity. Employability and being able to make your decent living is directly related to life fulfilment and personal independence. Young people in the vicious cycle of unemployment suffer from frustration, depression, low self-esteem and even aggression and cynicism.We believe that long-term solution to this problem lies not in externalities of macroeconomics or policy but in hearts and minds of young people. A renewed mindset is needed for young people to understand that even in the most difficult situations they have more control over their lives than they think and through entrepreneurial spirit, proactivity, creativity and strategic approach they can spot values, seize opportunities, assess and take calculated risks and grow. Instead of seeking a job, they can create one for themselves.Overall aims & Objectives:This two-stage Youth Exchange created a platform and a process where 42 young people were empowered and equipped to empower others in their communities through exchange of ideas, stories, attitudes, techniques, and tools that promote entrepreneurial spirit and skills of young people in general and young people with fewer opportunities in rural and urban areas in particular.One journey: 2 stages!The first stage took place in Bulgaria, where participants explored the subject, its challenges, and opportunities. In between the first and the second stage participants did a research and observation in their local communities to find useful insights and opportunities for value creation, entrepreneurship, and employability. The second stage of the exchange project, which took place in Hungary gathered insights, learning, inspirations and experience of participants from their local communities and translated them into concrete business ideas and quality youth projects to be carried out under Erasmus + Programme.Accomplished objectives of the first exchange:- The concept of unemployment was explored and a common understanding of youth employability was achieved.- Analysis of the current situation of young people, especially the youth with fewer opportunities in rural and urban areas and understanding their hopes, dreams fears and barriers to their personal development.- Explored obstacles and barriers to youth employability and ways to overcome them.- Participants identified innovative tools and best practices and methods which they transferred into working reality- Participants formed teams who did research and observation in their local communities after their return and found useful insights and opportunities for value creation, entrepreneurship, and employability.Accomplished objectives of the second exchange:- Gathered insights, learning, inspirations, and experience of participants from their local communities and translating them into concrete project ideas.- Participants were equipped with knowledge and skills in the field of project management and were enabled to develop quality youth projects. - Together with the participants we identified existing resources for the young entrepreneurs and shared know-how on social enterprises to link youth with business and entrepreneurship.- Erasmus + Programme was promoted and how young people could be involved in it was explained.- The participants developed concrete business ideas and entrepreneurial initiatives.- The participants developed concrete projects to be applied under Erasmus + Programme.- The participants developed and published an online catalogue of business ideas.The project activities were based on non-formal learning methods and principles, inter-cultural dialogue and communication in including group discussions, presentations, participants' lead workshops, teamwork, as 'out-of-school' programmes are important to provide flexible learning opportunities and new skills and knowledge to young people who are beyond the reach of formal education. Youthpass tool was used throughout the project to help young people regularly reflect on their learning journeys and become more aware of their learning. The methodology of the project stimulated active participation and sense of initiative and involvement of the learners.

"<< Objectives >>We are aware that the European youth has incredibly high their opportunities and competences over the past decades. However, there is still growing threats hampering youth participation and engagement in the creation of peaceful, inclusive and cohesive societies. 1. Youth unemployment rates are generally much higher, even double or more than double, than unemployment rates for all ages. 2. According to Eurostat, in 2014, the at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion indicator (AROPE) rated for young people aged 15–29 was 29.8 % in the EU-28, corresponding to about 25.9 million young people.3. Regarding marginalization and radicalization, the data from the EUROPOL report entitled ""European Union Terrorism Situation and Trend Report” explains that when coming to youth, religious violence accounted for only 10 of the attacks out of 2,176 total attacks, or 0.5% of the attacks. Separatists accounted for 70% of the attacks with 1,516 of the 2,176 attacks. Similarly, Right-Wing extremists, another focus, committed 6 attacks over the 5 year period, or 0.3%, while left-wing extremists often thought to have “collapsed with the Soviet Union and the Cold War in the 1980s”, 84 committed 164 attacks, or 8%, which is ten times the amount committed over the five year period by the right-wing and religious groups combined.During our fall General Assembly of 2019 and following the urgent need to equip youth workers to better reach and engage disadvantaged youngsters the GA decided to work on the definition of a project that will reflect on innovative methods to skill disadvantaged youngsters with entrepreneurial skills while preparing youth workers on the same methods. Inspired by the European Commission publication on the ""Overview of the Maker Movement in the European Union"" the Consortium"" decided to use the principles of maker education proven to be an effective way to develop the entrepreneurial skills and mindset of youth people, as a key element to foster an easier and more prepared inclusion within their communities.By focusing on maker education, as a learning approach that allows learners to imagine, design, and create projects that align the content of learning with a hands-on application (basic requirement to boost entrepreneurial skills), the different activities of this program are mainly focusing at the achievement of two main goals: 1. Equipping youth workers with competences and methods on maker education that will prepare them for better empowering disadvantaged youngsters, and2. Preventing and tackling youth unemployment, risk of poverty and exclusion, marginalization and radicalization among the local youth communities by directly defining activities that will successfully reach and empower disadvantaged youngsters, boosting their entrepreneurial skills and raising, thus their changes to social and labor market inclusion.Specific objectives of this project fall as follows:1. Explore new ways to include maker education, methodologies, and tools within the scope of youth work and non-formal education.2. Boost youth workers' professional competences on maker education methodologies, and tools applied to their work with disadvantaged youth groups. 3. Boost youth workers' professional & personal competences as to better comprehend, understand and emphasize with the disadvantaged youngsters they work with.4. Develop activities based on maker education to be implemented with disadvantaged youngsters directly targeting at boosting their entrepreneurial skills as a pre-requisite to boost youth employment and avoid the risk of poverty, marginalization, and radicalization. << Activities >>In order to ensure the proper achievement of project goals and desired to learning outcomes, the program is divided into 7 main types of activities:1. PRESENTATIONS. Under this category, we can find 1. A presentation on ""Maker Education & its benefits in a non-formal education context"" to ensure a better comprehension of concept, benefits, and implications of applying maker education principles in the non-formal sector. 2. A presentation on the EU policy Framework on Entrepreneurial Skills & Making Education and 3. Six different specific sessions with introducing tools to SENSITIZE, EXPLORE, CREATE, REFLECT, WORK TOGETHER and SCALE-UP and SHARE. The aim of this presentation is to introduce practical tools and helpful materials that can be applied to disadvantaged youngsters when helping them into the creative entrepreneurial process. They will take place during Day 2,3,4& 5.2. DEVELOPMENT OF INCLUSIVE SOCIAL INNOVATION PROJECT IDEAS. Under this category, participants will be able to find different activities that will help them to practically develop a social innovation project idea with the aim to put in practice, techniques, tools, and methodologies that could be afterward implemented with the disadvantaged youngsters they work with. Under this category during Day, 2 youth workers will find a session to present all the different inclusive social innovation project ideas that they have submitted through the application process. Also during day 2 through the ""group selection session, participants will select and agree upon the three more pressing/interesting project ideas to work on during the training. 3. TOOLS EXERCISE and EXERCISES: Under this category and following each one of the presentations proposed with tools to SENSITIZE, EXPLORE, CREATE, REFLECT, WORK TOGETHER and SCALE-UP and SHARE during days 2,3,4& 5, participants will enroll in practical exercises, divided by groups around the 3 project ideas selected, will choose, 1 of the different tools proposed and practically implement it with the rest of the participants ensuring to enrich their own idea through the used of collective intelligence. Different activities aiming at ensuring4. EXCHANGE OF BEST PRACTICES. Under this category, participants will find 1. On Day 3 a session “Showcasing Best practices” where maker experts will share examples of different successful maker education tools to improve entrepreneurial skills for disadvantaged youth groups. 2. A “Getting inspired” session also on day 3 where participants will visit a successful organization applying maker principles for the inclusion of disadvantaged youngsters. 2. A session on day 4 “Showcasing best practices” in which the same youth workers will present their own designed tools/ activities to work with disadvantaged youngsters. 5. ORGANIZATION ACTION PLAN- EMPOWERMENT OF THE MOST DISADVANTAGED GROUPS. Under this category, a very important activity is proposed during day 5 with the aim to ensure the local and national exploitation and use of the proposed tools with local and national disadvantaged youth groups, ensuring both to enrich the capacity of youth organizations and generating a positive real impact grassroots on the disadvantaged youngsters.6. SELF-REFLECTION & SELF-EVALUATION ACTIVITIES, along with the whole duration of the program with the main aim, to ensure a deeply personal and group reflection on the achievement of project goals and learning outcomes, as well as to better understand the different tools provided by the Erasmus+ program for the recognition of learning outcomes. 7. ICE-BREAKERS AND COMMUNITY BUILDING ACTIVITIES, along with the whole duration of the program such as thematic ice-breakers, presentation of organizations, breaks, networking lunches and intercultural activities aiming at creating an informal learning contexts and enabling peer to peer exchange of ideas and intercultural learning and enrichment. The training will count on the participation of 24 youth workers coming from 8 different EU countries and neighbor countries (Bulgaria, Lithuania, Cyprus, Turkey, Slovakia, Belgium, Poland, and Spain). Out of this number, at least 8 youth workers will be participants facing any kind of disadvantage situation or well working exclusively with disadvantaged young people. The group-age will comprise participants between 18 years and 33 years ensuring age closeness and thus better understanding with the main target group of our project: disadvantaged youngsters. However, group leaders and facilitators may be over 33 years old when required by experience and competences.The group of participants will respect the principle of gender balance ensuring balanced representation of male and female as well as a comprehensive approach to any possible specific needs from disadvantaged youngsters that may require a specific approached related to gender issues. << Impact >>According to the general and specific objectives set up for this training, participants, participating organizations and other target groups are expected to experience the following positive impact:Participating youth workers:-Improvement of their professional competencies related to the area of entrepreneurial skills -Improved their professional and personal competences for reaching, working and empowering disadvantaged youth groups.-Improved their competences, skills, techniques and methodologies to operate with quality and professionalism in the non-formal sector.-The increased positive value of youth work and its impact on society.-Increased motivation to engage in youth work and to participate in mobility projects and training. -Broader understanding of EU policies and framework on entrepreneurial skills, maker education and non-formal education sector.-A broader understanding of the connection between non-formal education and access to an inclusive labor market with a special focus on the integration of disadvantaged youngsters. Participating organizations are also expected to experience:-An openness to modernization and improvement of their structure and work with the introductions of new tools, methodologies, and activities.-A capacity and structural growth thanks to a more engaged involvement of their youth workers participating in the training.-Increased preparation to address, prepare and include different types of disadvantaged youth groups. -Better preparation to operate transnationally and participate in an international project.-A general increase in the quality of the youth group enriches by peer learning and the exchange of best practices.This project is also aiming to have an impact on the following target groups:-Local, national and international organizations working with disadvantaged youngsters. They are expected to enlarge the networks of organizations working for the inclusion of disadvantaged youngsters and to increase the quality and the means of their work through the different materials proposed.-Local, national and international youth organizations. Youth organizations that do not directly work with disadvantaged youngsters are expected to increase their motivation to do so and get enough tools and means to do it in a professional way.-Disadvantaged youngsters, as explained in detail throughout the next question, will be expected to increase their professional competences and social inclusion.-Policy-makers at the local, national and EU level shaping education policies are expected to reflect on the benefits of introducing the principle, methodologies and tools of maker education within the formal educational system.-Society, in general, is expected to reflect on the benefits of the maker education approach as fundamental for the development of entrepreneurial skills and on the positive implications of favorizing higher rates of social inclusion.At the local and national level, the project has the following desired impacts:- The growth and quality increased in the network of organizations working for the inclusion of disadvantaged young people. - The growth and quality preparation of youth organizations to be able to directly work with disadvantaged youth groups.- The achievement of higher rates of youth employment- A decrease in the rates of marginalization, radicalization and social exclusion among the local youth communities.- The increased quality and professionalization of youth work and the non-formal education sector through better engagement of youth workers within their organizations and a better professionalization of their skills and competences. - Widespread acceptance and consideration of the benefits of maker education as a proven successful framework to enhance entrepreneurial skills. At the international level, the project has also the following desired impacts:-General improvement of the quality of youth work and the non-formal sector and widespread recognition as a powerful tool on the empowerment and inclusion of disadvantaged youngsters.-The growth and quality increased in the network of international organizations working for the inclusion of disadvantaged young people.-Increase social awareness about the benefits of inclusive societies and the means to achieve them.-Increase social awareness on the needs for new, innovative and hand-on approaches to develop entrepreneurial skills. -Reinforced links between policy and practice by ensuring better informed, innovative and inclusive education policies."

"The idea of this project started from the agreement of all our partner organizations across Europe for: - The need of a better training of youth workers on personal development and LLL as to ensure that they are enough well prepare to design their own training programs on the national level. - What will answer to the need of increasing the quality and the preparation of youth workers and their capacity building within their organizations. The project's necessity and utility, derives from the fact that it will formulate a clear connection between lifelong learning and personal development as positively correlated variables in a young person's life. Related objectives are: . Promote of quality of youth work and youth workers by training them on personal development and lifelong learning. - Raise awareness concerning the necessity of personal development in the lifelong learning process - Provide training on personal development, ground for mutual learning and exchange of good practices around personal development activities among the participant countries and training on methodologies to better develop training courses. - Knowledge development and sharing regarding the current policies and practices in EU and the participant countries with regards to lifelong learning opportunities. - Inform and discuss the existing EU tools and that can be used in someone's personal development plan. Main target group: youth workers. Participant organizations will select among their staff/networks, 3 candidates for the training that falls inside this category. Main activities: 1. Trainings: - A 1rs Training on Personal Development through the participation to the Multiple Intelligence test, the learning style Inventory activity and a final activity on formal and non formal education in the service of the above. - A 2nd training on Personal Development on the service of LLL - A 3rd training on team development based on the DISC test. 2. A lecture: that will make participants reflect on the meaning and necessity of personal development for LLL. 3. Peer learning activity including a session on exchange of good practices on LLL by participating organizations. 4. Workshop for ""taking action"": including a session in order to provide a space for final definition and adjustments of each group ""national action plan"". 5. Networking and community building activities including: welcoming dinners, lunch breaks, networking pauses during the training and ice-breakers. 6. Evaluation activities, including a final session on evaluation of the training with and Informal coaching session as well as a reflection on the instruments of Europass and YouthPass. The working methods to be used are: On-The-Job-Trainings, coaching/Mentoring, active listening learning, group discussions, management games and simulators, video recording and community building. The project is expected to have a 2 big sides impact on the youth workers and their organizations. 1. Motivation of participants to initiate a personal development plan based on their skills and competences in relation to their goals and aspirations. Youth workers with a real awareness on the need for personal development in the context of LLL will ensure a direct increase of the quality of: - Personal and professional performance of the youth worker. - Youth work in general and the outcomes of this youth work. - General youth actions and engagement. 2. Furthermore and with close relation to the above, the project will assist the participants to realize and actualize the amount of opportunities which are available right now in Europe nationally and internationally. This will lead to a direct increase of: - The quality and opportunities of youth workers and youth work. -The implementation of very accurate national actions as a result of a deep understanding of the different needs of each European country. - A bigger engagement on youth workers for raising awareness among their peers on the need for personal development and LLL programs, as a result of the study of the needs and gap of their countries on the issue. - A better preparation of the participants for the second part of this program (out of the scope of this application) where discussion with policy-makers will ensure a better understanding of the legislative processes and the growth of participants and participating organizations engagement in the policy debate Long- term benefits will be: - The initiation of a training replication process for other youth workers in the countries of the partner organizations participating in the project as well as decentralized relevant actions in the partners countries, with emphasis on countries which provide less opportunities - The establishment of sustainable transactional cooperation between youth organizations for matters of personal development. - The increase of the quality of youth work and youth workers and capacity building with"

"<< Objectives >>With youth workers empowerment and preparation as one of our core goals, our first General Assembly of 2019, with the aim of defining the lines of our work as a European coalition, greatly focused on the European Commission study on “ Quality Youth Work, a framework for the further development of youth work”. Based on this study, youth workers quality competencies as a precondition and methods for mapping “the different needs, interests, and experiences of young people and processes for structured dialogue youngsters are a basic for youth work high quality and empowering impact.However, many times due to lack of resources, solid structure or social understanding of the importance and value of youth work, youth workers are not aware and prepare enough to:- Understand the needs of the youngsters they are working with- Connect with them and communicate with them in a way that makes them feel empowered and ready to take action.This way, the general objectives of this project were:1. To equip youth workers competencies and methods needed to effectively understand the needs, reach and communicate with the youngsters they are working with.2. To put a focus on the most disadvantaged groups ensuring their empowerment through, social and civic activation, critical thinking, sense of initiative and respect to human rights and EU values, through effective communication.Specifically, the project was aiming to:1. Boost youth workers' professional and personal competencies and leadership skills as the most effective way to reach and empower the youth and especially the most disadvantaged youth.2. Boost youth workers' leadership skills by deepening into self & others awareness methods and activities as the best way to effectively map and understand the needs of youngsters and especially the most disadvantaged youth.3. Boost youth workers' leadership skills by deepening into communication styles and techniques in order to effectively reach, mobilize and empower these youth groups<< Implementation >>The project was conceived to implement one activity of 5 full days of training from the 26th of April to the 1st of may (including one day for travel). However, due to the COVID outbreak, the activity was canceled. The originally planned activity was foreseen the following sessions:1.Presentations: designed to enrich youth workers with a deeper understanding of the following topics: positive leadership and its characteristics & styles, case of studies, character & temperament, EQ, and role models for youth empowerment, self & others awareness. 2.Case of studies: designed to offer youth workers more profound comprehension and examples in regards to applications of positive leadership for high and youth positive performance.3.Exercises, Activities Exercises & activities were aiming to deepen youth workers' knowledge when developing, improving, or displaying specific skills. They aimed to help them to more profoundly understand and design methodologies of the particular topics of self-awareness, positive leadership, personality types, communication process, and conflict management. 4.World Café aimed to reflect among given cases of study on real applications of positive leadership for positive youth performance. Youth workers were supposed to come to important and useful takeaway conclusions that can be applied or developed afterward in the youth work area. 5.Workshops, including topics such us as: a) Youth workers as a positive leader, designed to equip participants with useful working methods, skills, and methodologies that will help them to increase their impact on youngsters and disadvantaged groups they work with.b) Personal and organizational action plan when participants were expected to gain practical skills in creating personal and organizational plans and achieving short, long term goals more effectively for themselves & their organizations. 6.Self & group evaluation & reflection and 7. YouthPass Ceremony When participants were conceived to evaluate their performance based on the different desired learning outcomes & the criteria for helping & empowering youth & disadvantaged groups.8.Ice breakers & networking events, designed to warm up the conversation among participants and to comfortably interact with each other. During these activities, participants were expected to raise their understanding and awareness of other cultures, which naturally lead to intercultural dialogue and multiculturalism. Participants were aimed to build long-lasting international contacts, enlarging their community of youth workers. Due to the impact of the sanitary crisis and the official cancelation of the project and trying to make the best of the situation we make sure to send the already prepared presentations and supporting materials to sign up participants for further feedback, including: 1. Theoretical background and information for all those topics that were supposed to be covered by originally planned presentations2. Self-awareness, EQ, and personality tests to individually performed. 3. Practical exercises and activities proposed in order to boost communication between teams and with specific groups of disadvantaged youngsters. 4. Self- reflection and self-evaluation activities. 27 youth workers from 8 different partner organizations (SPAIN, BULGARIA, HUNGARY, LITHUANIA, TURKEY, CYPRUS, ITALY) participated in the project until cancellation. They were directly selected by partner organizations among youth workers:- Actively participate, volunteer, or work in a youth organization - Work with disadvantaged or marginalized youth well exclusively or not.And on the basis of the following criteria: - Working level of English that will allow them to fully participate and take advantage of all workshops and training sessions. - Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to develop their competencies in regards to leadership and youth empowerment - Personal and professional engagement regarding youth work and non-formal education as tools that assist in the creation of positive impacts of youth, especially disadvantaged youth.- Proven desire to participate in preparatory activities and all sessions planned for the program as well as on the communication and dissemination campaign.The selection of participants did happen according to these criteria as it took place before the coronavirus outbreak.<< Results >>Despite the project was officially canceled, and aiming to evaluate the usefulness of the content, exercises, and methodologies that were planned to be proposed, we conducted a final evaluation form on the basis of the supporting materials sent to participants, to better understand the possible positive impacts of the prepared materials and the topics and activities that were supposed to be implemented. According to it:- 83% of the participants stated that ""the training and its materials would have provided them with the competencies needed in order to understand the needs of disadvantaged youth groups""- 73% of the participants stated that ""the training and its materials would have provided them with the methods needed in order to better reach and communicate with the most disadvantaged youth groups.- 64% of the participants stated that ""The training and its materials would have increased their professional competences in the field of youth work"".- 91% of the participants stated that ""The training and its materials would have allowed them to gain knowledge on self- & other-awareness methods"". - 65% of the participants stated that ""the training and its materials would have increased their positive leadership skills to be applied in the field of youth work"".- 72% of the participants stated that ""The training and its materials would have increased their communication skills and for better direct communication with disadvantaged youngsters. - 93% of the participants stated that ""This training and its materials would have increased their knowledge on new and innovative methodologies that can be used in non-formal education settings""."