CONTEXTThe early years from birth to compulsory school age are the most formative in children lives and set the foundations for children’s lifelong development. In this respect, high quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) is essential for all children’s successful lifelong learning, social integration, personal development and later employability.Every child requires and deserves a service that is holistic in approach and that provides a social, cultural and physical space with a range of possibilities for children to develop their present and future potential. These recommendations are part of the priorities for ECEC that EU Commission has set out aiming to make it more accessible and raise the quality of services provided in the EU states.Increasing access to high quality ECEC is also the focus of the European benchmark that calls for the participation of at least 95% of children between the age of 4 and compulsory school age by 2026.High quality ECEC has a particularly positive impact for children from disadvantaged and migrant backgrounds. Since 2018 was the European Year of Cultural Heritage, culture should be considered as a mean to foster integration in the classroom.OBJECTIVESThe following project objectives represented a concrete way to tackle the above-mentioned topics:- Train ECEC teachers to implement workshops on the thematic of European Culture with kids aged 3-5 at EU level- Update digital competencies of teachers- Promote children and family awareness in the frame of Cultural Heritage - Develop a holistic approach based on Active Learning and Play to support children’s growth- Implement cultural workshops with kids.In order to reach these objectives, the consortium investigated the needs and competence gaps of more than 50 teachers through focus groups in each partner country. On the basis of an interactive process of development and mutual feedback the partnership elaborated the EDUCLAB Guidelines, Training Handbook and Toolkit: a collection of useful contents and materials for pre-school teachers to implement cultural workshops in the classroom aimed at fostering inclusion of children coming from a disadvantaged background and preparing pupils to visit cultural institutions. The development phase was followed by a comprehensive testing through a common European learning and teaching activity with 19 pre-school teachers, local training sessions with 65 teachers at EU level and the implementation of 21 Cultural workshops with 382 children at EU level.According to this methodological action plan the main project RESULTS were:IO1. EDUCLAB Guidelines. A document for teachers on how to arrange training environment, learning processes, address age-specific needs and children motivation when implementing cultural workshopsIO2. EDUCLAB Training Handbook to supply competences for teachers to implement cultural workshops and to provide them skills in the digital area and inclusive approachesIO3. EDUCLAB Toolkit. A step-by-step description on how to carry out the cultural workshopsIO4. EDUCLAB Online platform and Cultural workshops. Video Tutorials were developed and uploaded on the EDUCLAB online platform to complete the EDUCLAB Toolkit with visual-based learning support. Additional videos were developed during the implementation of Cultural workshops at EU level.These IOs were connected with Local Multiplier Events and with the EDUCLAB Final conference in order to reach the widest range of target groups and stakeholders possible.In addition to the 4 core intellectual outputs EDUCLAB developed further outputs necessary to achieve its objectives: Dissemination and Communication Strategy, Quality Management Handbook and reports.EDUCLAB achieved an extended IMPACT on:- Direct participants in the project (pre-school teachers) who acquired skills in the digital field and to implement STEAM-based cultural workshops in the classroom for children 3-5 aiming at promoting inclusion of children with disadvantaged background;- Partner organizations who integrated the EDUCLAB training programme in their curriculum and will use them to train pre-school teachers in order to better support the integration in the class group of children aged 3-5 with different cultural backgrounds;- Other stakeholders and Associated Partners: they received an innovative tool to use in their daily work in the ECEC field. Since the platform will be available for 5 years after the end of the project, it will ensure a sustainable EU network of ECEC providers who can access a wide range of materials in various languages.On a LONG-TERM PERSPECTIVE, the benefits of the project will be on a systemic level with an increased quality of the ECEC system (reinforced and updated skills of pre-school teachers) which fosters the social inclusion of children with disadvantaged backgrounds.

"A modern phenomenon that has been recorded in recent years is internet addiction Disorder (IAD). Internet addiction is described as an impulse control disorder, which does not involve use of an intoxicating drug and is very similar to pathological gambling. Some Internet users may develop an emotional attachment to on-line friends and activities they create on their computer screens. Internet users may enjoy aspects of the Internet that allow them to meet, socialize, and exchange ideas through the use of chat rooms, social networking websites, or ""virtual communities."" Similar to other addictions, those suffering from Internet addiction use the virtual fantasy world to connect with real people through the Internet, as a substitution for real-life human connection, which they are unable to achieve normally. Internet addiction has become one of the main problems that European secondary school students are facing so our community has to deal with the source of the problem and its impacts. There is a tentative need to investigate the phenomenon and its impacts to all partners’ countries. Log On Back to Life project aimed to cover a number of gaps concerning the phenomenon of addiction to the internet and detect others that arose from the social research of the project and form the recording of the phenomenon. The project anticipate contributing to the scientific approach to the diagnosis of the factors that lead to addiction and help in the development of policies leading to prevention and treatment of the phenomenon in all its aspects, as they have been emerged from the scientific research so far. Through the activities of the project, participating organizations, especially those involved with education had the opportunity to study in depth the phenomenon of students' addiction to the use of the Internet and its impact. Participating organizations had the chance through the project activities and results to highlight those initiatives, educational methods and activities leading in both timely and valid revelation of the problem and in the proposal for implementation of all those policies and scientific methods to effectively address of the problem. By the end of the project participating organization offered special training and information sessions to both their teachers and staff and to their students regarding Internet addiction Disorder (IAD) in terms of identifying, preventing and dealing with the phenomenon by using the dedicated material and analysis that will arise as project’s results and by using the special eplatform of the project developed for this kind of activities. Special mention should be made on: •the social research carried out in the framework of our project using specially designed questionnaires by specialized scientists. The questionnaire was based on already developed and internationally recognized relevant questionnaires, (such as The Internet Addiction Test (IAT), which is one of the most utilized diagnostic instruments for Internet addiction), but has been a customized version of these, according to the requirements and needs of our proposed project •the Reference Handbook on Assess, prevention and Treatment of Internet Addiction developed in the framework of our project. The Handbook is not be a simple document (e.g pdf) file but also an ebook available for all kind of mobile devices (e.g laptops, tablets, smartphones etc). Special mentioned should be made in the new approaches of prevention and treatment proposed under the framework of your project and be included in the handbook • the new cooperative methodology for the assessment and prevention of internet addiction of Secondary school students. The methodology focused on non pharmacological interventions as these methods cannot be applied in the school environment in an easy way. The methodology was based on the concept of cooperative learning in which students and teachers form discussion teams in order to explore a significant question or create a meaningful project. The project has been the starting point and an opportunity for academic exchange between partners and the associated partners, highlighting the benefits of the Internet, as well the risks arising from abnormal use of the internet. Through the planned activities of the project had an integrated as possible knowledge of the effects of the use of new technologies, for shielding and empower of secondary school students regarding early diagnosis and addressing of the problem."

"The statistics show that only 22% of Europeans aged over 15 are engaged with volunteering activities. There are still lots of people that dont understand the importance of voluntarism and its endless benefits both for the volunteers and for communities. With this project we seek to promote volunteering, to empower youth to take an active role in their society and increase their sense of belonging to local community, as well as bring together young people from different areas of Europe with high/medium/low percentage of people's engagment with voluntarism for exchanging good practices. One of the challenges that people find in volunteering is lack of information (where, what, how and why), therefore in cooperation of 10 partners we will create an informative brochure giving details on volunteering possibilities in our countries and possibilities within ERASMUS+ programme. ""The science of Boomerang"" seeks for visible and long-term results on regional and European level in attempt to fight youth unemployment trough gaining certain sought by employers qualifications and experiencing volunteering activities. Our youth exchange is a tool that will change and re-shape the perceptions of the young multipliers that will take part in order to improve the access and participation rates of young people in volunteering projects and community programs. We strongly believe that this youth exchange will help us to reach more people with the main message that volunteering is a great way to get work experience, broaden your perspectives, train 'soft skills', enlarge contacts and build proffessional network, increase self-confidence - all leading to finding employment and having stronger position on labour market.This youth exchange is designed for active youngsters that want to make a change in their society, who are interested in the topic of volunteering and who are motivated to gain new skills and competences. The youth exchange ""The science of Boomerang"" will gather 51 participants from Estonia, Portugal, Macedonia, Poland, Lithuania, Austria, Germany, Hungary, Slovenia and Turkey. The project will be carried out in the city of Tallinn in the middle of September. We will introduce participants to the context of active volunteering, together we wil try to find new creative ways of promoting volunteering, we will identify direct connection between voluntarism and employment and we will exchange the realities from our societies. Whole concept is fully based around the principle of non-formal learning (round-tables, sharing and exchanging opinions, team buildings, case studies, thematic workshops, group discussions, etc) and learning-by-doing. The methods will be used in an interactive way to have a long-lasting effect on remembrance. Basics of Erasmus+ programme and concept of Youthpass with its key competences will be promoted throughout the project. By the end of the youth exchange we will organise a big volunteering event that will be done in collaboration with local organisations and istitutions for getting real volunteering experience, local youth will have a chance to join our activities on this day and have a group discussion with foreigners why it is important to volunteer and how we can engage more yongsters with it. We expect that participants will improve life-long learning competencies that are important for their professional development: communication in mother and foreign languages, civic skills, cultural awareness and expression, interest to engage in communities and networks for cultural, social or professional purposes. Youngsters will break the stereotypes among each other and will improve their sensitivity and solidarity. This project will give the young participants an opportunity to organize informal activities for their peers and local community and to be active citizens through volunteering. The skills learned in this youth exchange are not only applicable just to unemployment but can be expanded to form a broader base for life learning experiences. These long term, synergistic benefits will help to propel forward a more inclusive and better attitude towards active citizen participation throughout Europe and the surrounding countries."

"Design is increasingly recognised as a key discipline and activity to bring ideas to the market, transforming them into user-friendly and appealing products or services1 . Though still often associated solely with aesthetics, the application of design is much broader. A more systematic use of design as a tool for user-centred and market-driven innovation in all sectors of the economy, complementary to R&D, would improve countries competitiveness. Analyses of the contribution of design show that companies that strategically invest in design tend to be more profitable and grow faster. Design provides a series of methodologies, tools and techniques that can be used at different stages of the innovation process to boost the value of new products and services. When applied to services, systems and organisations, user-centred design thinking drives businessmodel innovation, organisational innovation and other forms of non-technological innovation. These methodologies may also be instrumental when addressing complex and systemic challenges, for example in redesigning public services and in strategic decision-making processes.Design is not just about the way things look, it is also about the way they work. Design creates value and contributes to competitiveness, prosperity, and well-being in Europe. The European Commission aims to accelerate the take-up of design in industrial and innovation activities at European, national, and regional level.The importance of design as an activity to bring new ideas to the market has been recognised in the Innovation Union, a flagship initiative of the Europe 2020 Growth Strategy. With over 400000 professionally-trained designers, Europe has internationally recognised capability and a leadership position in design.On the other hand, when we examine Turkey, a candidate country for the EU, we can see that she lags behind developed countries in design and innovation.(2017 Global Innovation Index / Turkey is ranked 43rd.) This is one of the biggest obstacles in terms of our development goals. In today's world, products and services which are undeveloped in terms of design and innovation have no chance of success. Public policies in Turkey have increased design awareness in recent years. The Design Strategy Document and Action Plan prepared within the framework of the Turkish Design Solidarity Council, established in 2019, were first carried into effect between 2014 and 2016. Significant results were achieved from this. Following this, a new plan covering the years 2017-2019 was put into action.This plan generally overlaps with the action plans prepared by the European Commission. In this context; this plan aims to"" increase the use of design for innovation and growth across Europe and Turkey"" raise awareness of how design-driven innovation increases efficiency in public services and drives business growth"" create capacity and competencies to deliver these policiesThe aim of the project ""İzmir Design Factory"", which set off on its journey with all these goals, to establish our country's first international design center associated with universities, private sector, professional chambers and non-governmental organizations. İzmir Design Factory-IDF will establish in İzmir to advance knowledge and nurture leaders and innovators to anticipate, serve or solve societal and economic needs, through an integrated interdisciplinary education program, focused on developing the skills required by an ever-changing world and determined to co-create new knowledge and innovation with societal stakeholders.The center to be built within Originn Coworking, Turkey's largest coworking area, will focus on fashion, interior design, service design and food design by utilizing the local capacity and needs of Izmir. The young people who will participate in the certified and accredited vocational education programs to be established within the scope of the center will first intern at the Porto Design Factory in Porto, one of the biggest design centers of the EU. These young people will then work in teams on design and innovation-based work to be taken from firms in Turkey and Europe, especially in Izmir, and develop innovative solutions. IDF, which will provide R&D support to corporate firms and smes, will enable the young people to gain business and career experience by allowing them to work directly in international teams.With all of the above mentioned aspects, our project directly covers the priorities of innovation, entrepreneurship, employment and professional qualification of Erasmus+, as well as offers a concrete contribution to the development action plans of the EU and Turkey."

COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERING WITH YMCA BOURNEMOUTH (Sept 17-Sept18) YMCA Bournemouth (UK) recruited 10 EVS volunteers from: - Associacion Building Bridges (Spain) - Federatio YMCA Romania (Romania) - CVJM - Gesamtverband in Deutschland e.V. (Germany) - Yasar University (Turkey) - YMCA in the Czech Republic (Czech Republic) - Porto Nuova Europa (Italy) Key Objectives: - 'Increased sense of initiative and entrepreneurship' - 'Increased self-empowerment and self-esteem' - 'Enhanced intercultural awareness' - 'More active participation in society' Most Relevant Topics Addressed: - Youth - Access for Disadvantaged - Health and Wellbeing The 10 placements were in: - Youth Work - Housing Support and Chaplaincy - Health & Wellbeing - Marketing & Events - Pre-School Local Impact:Members of the Dorset community became more culturally enriched, more knowledgeable about Europe, the Erasmus+ programme and how they could find out more. The project gave hope to local people facing adversity because of differences as the EVS volunteers demonstrated the more positive aspects associated with diversity. Longer Term Benefits:YMCA Bournemouth now employs one of the former EVS volunteers on a permanent Youth Worker contract. Two others have stayed in Bournemouth to continue their positive experience. They also continue to volunteer for the YMCA. All volunteers moved on to positive experiences including higher education and employment. Since completing their EVS years, some have returned to visit for their holidays and to reconnect with the staff team. Some of the volunteers also supported the recruitment and handover for the new EVS volunteers replacing them, leaving a long-lasting legacy that continues to benefit the local community and organisation.