About

When discussing and analyzing the matters of the positioning of youth and youth representing organizations, it is hard to avoid the pressing concerns caused by the often-declared issues youth face when seeking employment or attempt to enter a competitive race in the labor market. Youth unemployment has been an ongoing issue in the EU since the early 2000’s economic crisis, and while some countries have made progress in overcoming this issue in the past years, others still struggle with it in a significant extent.

Challenges European youth faces when exiting the education realm and entering employment market often cause broader issues such as poor social and economic positioning, disillusionment for social and political participation as active citizens, disbelief in the political systems and distrust towards educational institutions, and institutions in general. At the same time, youth and for youth organizations, attempt to tackle the issue of youth empowerment and representation but on that way need to face a plethora of personal, economic, political, administrative obstacles, often too rigid to any real impact and unable to solely resolve the issues youth faces. Recognizing such issues, and at the same time taking account of the various EU initiatives, platforms, organizations established to support the mitigation of those challenges, organizations that implement “Laboure HotSpot” project recognized the need to highlight the matter of youth employment by directly involving youth and youth organizations as key actors and providers of input. In order to achieve a bright future in which diverse communities of youth are equally possible to enjoy the benefits of different opportunities, platforms and initiatives, youth itself and youth NGO’s need to be aware of the possibilities derived from i.e. European Solidarity Corps, EU Youth Strategy, European Youth Forum.

But, at the same time, it is clear that issues faced by youth and youth organizations are not the same in each country and region. Therefore, including them in the dialogue by putting them at the same table to discuss key concerns, issues, to present ideas and set recommendations, is a must. Beyond that, sharing those ideas and recommendations with similar minded communities and NGOs around Europe is an added benefit which enables the unification of voices and share of best practices, all with a goal of creating equal possibilities for all.

For that reason, the project outlines four specific objectives.

Objectives

  1. Empowering youth, especially those with fewer opportunities and in NEET status, by including them in the process of structured dialogue
  2. Creating knowledge and shaping perspectives on the status of youth in socio-economic environment
  3. Creating tools and the “YouthLab” platform for the expression of challenges, opportunities and recommendations to be implemented in order to improve the position of youth in the labour market
  4. Building the transnational and cross sectoral working capacities of NGO’s active in youth work in the field of employability, digital content technologies and practices and new learning approaches.

 

With such goals in mind the project envisions following results.

Results

  • Database in the shape of digital toolbox of youth organizations actively working on youth inclusion and empowerment in the field of labour and employment
  • Research provided information on key challenges/constraints/perspectives/goals youth faces when tackling employment issues
  • Feedback and best practices received from actors involved in Focus Groups with a focus on various European Union initiatives and programs such as European Solidariy Corps, EU Youth Strategy, Next Generation EU
  • Structured dialogue sessions in line with the scope of European Youth Forum providing direct interaction with youth and attaining input on subjects of inclusion, empowerment and sustainable development
  • A guidebook manual shaping approaches of empowering youth and methods on how to implement measures of improving the position and employability of youth by policymakers, institutions, businesses
  • Test training aimed at professional and voluntary youth workers, especially those working with youth with fewer opportunities, where the new approaches and methods will be experimented and upgraded according to feedback
  • An online learning platform providing a living source of information, lessons, practices with an exploitation capacity

 

By accomplishing the listed results, the outcomes of project “Laboure HotSpot” youth empowerment, strengthening to participate in the labour competition, improving the capacities of NGO’s and implementing most recent measures deriving from EU initiatives and platforms will be achieved, thus completing the vision outlined within the key objectives. Creating the partnership consortium of organizations coming from different cultural and economic backgrounds will ensure learning of and from diversity.

Target groups

The project target groups are divided into primary and secondary, each according to the level of involvement in the project and the impact foreseen to create.

The primary target groups are:

  • Youth – unemployed, willing to participate in the work of NGO’s, those entering the labour market, marginalized because of poor socio-economic status. Special emphasis will be on involving young people with fewer opportunities with whom partner organizations work. These are youth with behavioral disorders, minorities, young people with NEET status, young people from rural areas.
  • Youth organizations/NGO’s – organizations working in the field of youth empowering, inclusion, enhancing the position of youth in the labour market. In addition to the 3 NGOs directly involved in project implementation, in each country we’ll create a small project nonformal network of 5 NGO’s who work to increase the employability of young people. Overall, 15 organizations from 3 countries will participate in the implementation of the project and the exploitation of project results. In this way, we will strengthen youth workers from 15 organizations that need empowerment in terms of new approaches, practices and methods, especially those in the field of motivation and inclusion in the labor market.

 

The secondary target groups are:

  • Public institutions and policymaking bodies (youth councils, local employment offices, social centers where young people gather)
  • Educational institutions (secondary schools, adult education institutions)
  • National and local employment agencies

 

Duration of the project

The duration of the project is 18 months from April 1, 2022 to October 1, 2023.

 

Participating Organizations

The project holder is the organization YOUTH POWER/UNG KRAFT, while the partner organizations are UDRUGA ZA PROMICANJE AKTIVNOG SUDJELOVANJA STUDIO B, STEPPING STONE MILES e.V and PANNONIA CONSULTING D.O.O.

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