About the project
Objectives
The YOUTHWISE – Youth Work Innovation for Skills and Engagement project’s main aim is to improve the quality of youth
work by equipping youth workers with innovative tools and methodologies, raising their knowledge and enhancing their abilities to support young people. Recognising youth workers’ vital role in improving young people’s futures, this project will empower them with different skills and approaches, along with providing access to suitable and up to date resources and opportunities to create more inclusive, practical and effective practices that are in accordance with today’s social and
economic reality.
The project is developed specifically to strengthen the quality of youth work by creating practical resources and implementing targeted training that allows youth workers to adapt to the needs of young people.
Furthermore, one of the main objectives of the YOUTHWISE project is to address youth employability by improving youth
workers’ knowledge and equipping them with relevant strategies to help young people’s professional development by
acquiring essential job-related skills and preparing them for future opportunities.
Another fundamental part of the project is digital youth work, as it integrates ICT- Information and communications technology to make the learning process more adaptable to present technological and digital reality.
To achieve these objectives and priorities, the practical guide will be developed during the project. It will help youth workers to understand and use different digital tools in their everyday work and ensure young people’s constant, effective and relevant engagement in their activities.
Target groups
The target group of the project are youth workers and the young people they work with, therefore the project is designed in a way to ensure supporting them. Youth workers are the main focus of this project initiative since they are the ones who
provide various opportunities, mentorship and guidance to young people. Therefore, it is essential to equip them with proper and better tools and knowledge which will lead to direct and long-lasting impact.
The project is designed in a way to have a focus on youth workers from diverse backgrounds. Those may include youth
workers who are involved in NGOs, associations, educational centres, community centres, informal youth initiatives and other educational institutions.
While the YOUTHWISE – Youth Work Innovation for Skills and Engagement project focuses on youth workers, it benefits young people at the same time in various ways.
With the help of well-equipped youth workers, young people will be able to
get stronger support which will enable them to develop their skills, improve personally and professionally, explore their career opportunities and most importantly actively contribute in developing their society.
Furthermore, youth organisations and different stakeholders in the youth sector will also be involved. Those will be local
authorities, career counsellors, and educators, who will be able to integrate the project results in their activities.
Our motivation
The motivation to implement this project mainly comes from the rapidly growing need to foster youth work in the digital
transformation and economic uncertainty era. Youth workers have difficulties in keeping up with young people’s evolving needs, especially to digital skills, employability and entrepreneurship.
The YOUTHWISE project empowers youth workers with the right knowledge, tools and international connections which will
enable them to support young people more effectively. We strongly believe that well-equipped and well-prepared youth
workers are able to create meaningful change in their communities.
By implementing this project, selected priorities of Erasmus+ programme will be supported. It aligns with the aim of making
youth work more effective and innovative, fostering active citizenship, and equipping young people with the important skills
to create a successful future.
Data
The recent data shows the urgent need to strengthen the youth work sector in all partner countries.
In Bulgaria, 18% of young people are NEET, with over 40% lacking basic digital skills, which limits their chances of being employed. In
the Czech Republic, over 60% of youth workers do not feel prepared to support young people in digital skills, career planning, and entrepreneurship, which makes the transition to employment difficult. Slovakia faces a growing brain drain, with thousands of young professionals leaving annually, and only 30% of youth organizations have sufficient resources to provide career development support to their target groups.
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