<< Objectives >>There is great potential to change the minds of many young people through gaming. More and more video game developers are focused on being more inclusive, the popular Overwatch League chose to make about half its game’s characters women. Esports is also giving many young people a sense of accomplishment and shows them that regardless of social or educational background, gender or disability anyone can be successful with hard work and enough practice.Therefore, youth leaders have a tremendous opportunity when it comes to games and Esports. By gaining an understating a general interest in gaming and Esports, many young people could be reached, probably even those who would not think of engaging with youth leaders. An open and positive attitude towards videogames could be a simple way to build connections with young people, who often have to justify their love of gaming and struggle with judgement and negative attitude from adults.The aim of the project is to engage more young people in non-formal learning with the help of video games. The objectives of the project:a)to help youth workers understand the world of video games betterb)to help fight the stereotypes regarding video gamesc)to provide youth workers with tools to engage young people through their interest in video gamesd)to provide youth workers with a platform to discuss their experiences and best practices regarding gaming and young peoplee)to develop a guideline on facilitating non-formal learning through gaming, focusing on the following topics: health, participation & leadership, social competence, creativity, strategic thinking & entrepreneurship<< Activities >>A 10-day seminar will take place in Slettestrand, Denmark in the summer of 2019 and will gather 28 youth workers and three facilitators from Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Romania, Spain and Turkey.The main focus of the seminar will be on exchanging experiences and best practices in working with young people interested in gaming and fostering their non-formal learning. At the end of the seminar, a guideline will be created with best practices in the following themes: 1) health, 2) participation and leadership, 3)social competence, 4)creativity, strategic thinking and entrepreneurship.The partners of the project have agreed that in order for the activity to be the most effective, the selected participants should be experienced youth workers with knowledge of gaming and/or experience with young people involved in gaming. It will be an advantage if the nominated participant has extensive experience in the creation of non-formal methods and methodologies, potentially involved with research and development at the partner organization. Ideally, the participant would also be involved with supporting the less experienced youth workers at the organization, probably even organizing their events and activities. Thus, even if the participants themselves are currently not actively involved with the delivery of youth activities at the organization, they have a deep and complex understanding of youth work. On the one hand, they would have a knowledge of the needs and struggles of young people involved in gaming. On the other hand, they can understand the methods and potential of youth work and have an overview of what is realistic.The 10-day training course will take place in Slettestrand, Denmark in the fall of 2019 and will gather 28 youth workers and three trainers from Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Romania, Spain and Turkey.The main focus of the training course will be on understanding the guideline created in the training course. The participants of the activity will arrive with little knowledge of gaming and how to attract gamers to their activities. The guideline is intended to help change that, however, it is important that they familiarize themselves with the best practices and methods included and think of ways to utilize them. The activities of the training course intend to provide a platform to the youth workers to do just that. Their knowledge of methods and best practices will be useful in their future work. It is also expected that they will share their newly gained knowledge and the methods of the guideline with other youth workers at their organization, another reason for a thorough understanding of the guideline.To best utilize the guideline created through the seminar, the partners have agreed that the main criterion for the participant selection for the training course is that they are active at the youth organization. It is expected that the nominated participants are the ones delivering the activities at the organization and they are in daily contact with the beneficiaries. As the training course will provide the participants with a thorough introduction to gaming and video games, it is not necessary for the youth workers to have a preliminary knowledge of the topic. It is, of course, expected that they have a general interest of the topic, and arrive to the training course with the understanding that becoming more familiar with video games will help them reach more young.As the guideline will have a collection of best practices and non-formal methods in facilitating learning through gaming, it is not required of the participants to have a wide experience with non-formal methods. Through the training course, and with the use of the guideline, they will be able to gain more experience and deliver higher quality activities. Additionally, when selecting their participants, the partners will look for the ability and willingness to share the newly gained knowledge with the other members of the organization.<< Impact >>ParticipantsBy the end of the project the participants will have a better understanding of the world of video games and esports. Through sharing their experiences with their fellow youth workers and discussions with the students of Randers Production School, the participants are likely to become more interested in gaming but at the least they will feel less out of their element. Thus, the participating youth workers will become more comfortable around young people interested in gaming and esports.With the help of the project, the participating youth leaders will be equipped with knowledge to fight the stereotypes regarding gaming. Other than that being for their own benefit in their work, they will be able to help young people better articulate the positive effects of their hobby in school, to their families, etc. Additionally, the participants will gain best practices in involving young people in non-formal education through gaming, making their work easier and more efficient. They will also gain a network of international youth workers they can turn to regarding the topic of young people and gaming.Participating organizationsFirst and foremost, the participating organizations will gain youth leaders that are better equipped in working with young people interested in gaming. Due to that, they will be able to organize more interesting activities aimed at that target group, reaching more young people through their work and involving them in non-formal education.At the end of the project, the participating organizations will gain a useful guideline that they can use for the organization of such activities. With the help of the guideline and their youth workers that took part in the project, they will be able to train more their youth workers to be able to use gaming as a tool to get young people interested in non-formal education.Finally, through the cooperation in this project, each organization is gaining a network of potential partners that they could work together with in the future.Target groupsThe target group of the project, young people that are interested in gaming, will have a chance of interacting with youth leaders that are more open towards their interests and easier to talk to. They will have more possibilities to take part in activities they are interested in. Through taking part in activities and events that are more interesting for them, and make them feel more understood, there is a better chance that the young people will become involved with non-formal education. Once they become more involved at the youth organizations and take part in other kinds of events, they will have the possibilities to develop themselves and widen their social circles.Local and NationalAs a result of the project and the creation of the guideline the youth organization can use, there will be more events and activities aimed at young people interested in gaming, with a higher rate of success. Thus, locally and nationally, more young people will be reached by youth organizations and become involved with non-formal education and activities. More active and effective youth work will mean more active young people for the local and national environments.European and internationalThe development and implementation of the project, as well as the creation and use of the guideline will create a stronger connection between youth organizations around Europe. It will also lead to more and better ways to reach young people, spreading the interest in non-formal education and potential mobility opportunities, strengthening the connection between the young people of Europe.As a result of the project and the guideline created, young people will not be discouraged from gaming but instead the positive effects of gaming will be pointed out to them, and they will also be made aware of the potential risks. The youth organizations will learn how to utilize video games in their work, helping young people around Europe to improve their foreign language skills and enhance their creativity and innovation. Being supported in their interests will help young people gain an increased sense of self-esteem and self-empowerment. Just as importantly, using video games as a tool, youth organizations will be able to promote equity and inclusion in a way young people can relate to. Therefore, Europe and the EU will gain more and more young people that are playing in a sensible manner, are able to channel their creativity, have better language skills and are generally more confident in their abilities.