Youth Work in PRO.GRE.S.S. – Increasing competences in PROject coordination for GREen, Social inclusion and Sustainability initiatives.
Training course on project management with a focus on social inclusion and environmental sustainability
Coordinated by Servizio Civile Internazionale – SCI Italy

Activity dates
1) Online meeting (one online session, date to be confirmed, mid–April, 90 minutes)
2) In–person training course in Rome: 4–9 May 2023 (3 May arrival day – 10 May departure day) – Please note: DATES TO BE CONFIRMED YET!
3) Follow up phase: participants will be involved in the coordination of a local action organised by the sending organisation in summer / autumn 2023
Final output: a digital publication including the contents of the training course and short
reports of the local actions

Venue: Rome, Italy, at “La Città dell’Utopia” (http://www.lacittadellutopia.org/in–english/)
Total number of participants: 22 (20 participants + 2 trainers).

Background of the project
“Youth Work in PRO.GRE.S.S.” is a project financed by the Italian National Agency of Eramus+ Programme that intends to increase the competence of the partners and their youth workers in the development and coordination of projects focused on ecology, environmental sustainability and social inclusion. As confirmed by extensive research in the social, psychological and medical fields, young people’s needs in Europe have changed due to the scenario that has characterized the last few years: the Covid–19 pandemic and the most recent conflict in Ukraine have contributed to an increase in the incidence of mental health problems among young people (cases of depression, apathy, anxiety among young people have been on the rise starting from 2020), and to a greater difficulty in undertaking life paths due to economic, health and geo–political uncertainties. This unease is aggravated by the perception of the effects of global issues, like climate change, which adds further factors of instability, uncertainty and anxiety to young people’s development process. The aim of the project is to update youth workers’ skills, enabling them to effectively detect the emerging needs of their target groups and to propose quality training and inclusive activities.

Phases of the project: what will you do?
After the selection process, you will be invited to join a 90–minute online meeting with the trainers and the group of participants. You will better understand the project, the programme, how to prepare to the training (through exercises and preparatory tasks), what to bring. You will be able to share your expectations and personal ideas to shape the activities. During the training course, two experienced trainers (Mauro Carta and Katerina Stoyanova) will propose non–formal education methods, presentations, exercises, interactive sessions, group work and plenary activities. The training will include 2 workshops conducted by local organisations working in the field of social inclusion and climate justice. The sessions will focus
on:

  • methods to analyse local contexts and design NFE activities based on young people needs;
  • the project management cycle;
  • practical exercises to improve the coordination of intercultural groups;
  • techniques to boost social inclusion;
  • how to deal with impact measurement, reporting, evaluation of learning outcomes in NFE projects.

After the training course, you will have the chance to put the skills and knowledge into practice: your sending organisation will involve you in the coordination of local actions during the summer / autumn season. You can contribute in many ways, according to the action and to the agreement with your organisation: design of the activity, preparation, logistics, coordination, evaluation, communication tasks, reporting etc. The local action can be a workcamp, a mini–workcamp, a training course, a seminar, a workshop, a street–action, an awareness–raising action…there are plenty of formats you can choose! After the local action, you will send us a short report, including a description of the activity (with pictures), details of the participants, evaluation, impact and results. You will receive detailed instructions on how to create the report during the training course. The reports will be included in a final digital publication, which will be finalised by SCI Italy and will be shared with all participants and organisations at the end of the project. The publication will contain also a description of the sessions of the training course.

Objectives: what will you learn?

By joining this project, you will learn: the main steps of project management: from the design of an idea to its implementation and evaluation. You will be able to design effective initiatives targeted to young people and
based on their needs!

  • interesting and creative non–formal education techniques and methods to be used in your youth work and activities;
  • knowledge and inspiration on innovative initiatives in the field of social inclusion and environmental sustainability, presented through 2 workshops during the training course;
  • how to coordinate local actions, through your involvement in local projects with the support of your organisation in summer / autumn 2023;
  • how to create reports, assess results and measure impact of your non–formal education activities.

Participant profile: who can apply?
– There are no age limits, but priority will be given to participants aged between 18 and 35 years;
– involvement in your organisation, as activist, volunteer, staff or board member, trainer, youth worker, member of working groups;
– availability to join the online module, the whole residential training course, the local action and to support the creation of the digital publication, creating the report of the local action;
– strong interest in project management, non–formal education, social inclusion and environmental issues;
– availability to put into practice the skills and knowledge gained in the project to implement initiatives at local level with the sending organisation;
– good working knowledge of the English language;
– motivation, enthusiasm, willingness to meet new people from different cultures and to share experiences, ideas and contributions;
– flexibility, willingness to contribute to the event with small manual tasks when needed (cleaning, shopping, washing up…).

Important
Please note that the training course is an official activity financed by the European Union and it is not an entertaining or a touristic event. You are expected to attend all the sessions, to participate actively to the success of the project and to join the meals together. The working days will consist in 3 / 4 sessions a day, lasting each 90 minutes. On the other hand, there will be also time for relax! We will arrange a coffee break after each session and there will be the possibility to enjoy free time every day (1 or 2 hours after lunch; the evenings after dinner; one free afternoon in the middle of the training course).

Accommodation
You will be accommodated in the “Casale Garibaldi”, a nice historical building hosting the local project of “La Città dell’Utopia”, in sleeping rooms on the first floor of the venue. We will provide more information in the “infosheet”, which will be sent to organisations and participants after the selection process. Most part of the sessions will be conducted outdoors; however, in case of unpleasant weather conditions, the activities will be held inside. The meals will be prepared by a cook and will be served mainly in the open. We are sure that we will be able to count on your cooperation and enthusiasm in order to make the event a memorable experience for everybody! Financial conditions For each participant, SCI Italy will offer 100% contribution for the travel costs, according to the European Commissions distance band (275€ for Estonia).

Please note
– in order to receive the reimbursement, participants must leave from the country of the sending organisation and travel back in the same country;
– it will be responsibility of the participants to keep and send to SCI Italy the travel documents (receipts, boarding passes, etc). Travel costs will be reimbursed only after providing these documents, and after filling in the official online evaluation form sent by the Erasmus+ programme.

– The reimbursement will include only economy class tickets (no business class). Taxi costs are not reimbursable (only in case of exceptional situations, that is impossibility to reach a terminal by public transport – in this case, please contact SCI Italy to explain the situation).
– SCI Italy encourages participants to choose environment–friendly means of transportation.
– The project will not cover the costs for Covid–19 tests
– Food and accommodation will be provided during the days of the training course.
– After the selection phase, SCI Italy and partners will support the participants with the booking and purchase of the tickets. Participants and organisations will start booking their ticket ONLY after SCI Italy confirmation! Therefore, please first share your travel plan (route, dates and costs) with SCI Italy and wait for a confirmation before booking!
– Arrival day is on 3 May, departure day is on 10 May. Participants are expected to book their tickets according to these dates. In case of need (for example, lack of affordable flights on arrival or departure day) there is the possibility to extend the dates of 2 days (for example: arriving 1 day before and leaving 1 day after). However, keep in mind that food and accommodation will not be provided during the additional day(s).
– SCI Italy might ask a small contribution from participants, to co–finance the accommodation costs. More information will be included in the infosheet.

Registration procedure
Candidates are invited to fill in the online form not later than 12:00 AM (CET) of 3 April 2023. The selected profiles will be contacted after the deadline to confirm their participatio

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