TOPIC
Thousands of people are still flocking to Europe for search of safety and better life. However, more often than not they end up in the place that does not want to use their potential, let alone welcome them. How to avoid that? Displaced people (DP) must be integrated better keeping in mind that their potential is an opportunity to grow and advance both culturally and economically. This is also true for internally displaced (2 million in Ukraine alone). Our diverse consortium of youth NGOs believes that youth work could be the main driver of integration; thus, a project “A Million Voices” will be hosted.
Main Goal
The main goal of this project is to make sure that NGOs and young people are aware of the successful means of integration through youth work and understand their ability to help the DP through various (social) activities.
Objectives
The objectives to reach this goal are to: – exchange good practices of DP inclusion – raise the qualifications and competencies of youth workers by developing new methods for DP inclusion; – help local youth learn how to communicate with DP and lower their xenophobia; – spread the main idea of the project to other NGOs and the general public.
Actions
In order to achieve the project’s objectives and ensure project’s continuity, we will first organize a training course for youth workers in Kramatorsk, Ukraine (September 21-27, 2018, 4 participants / country aged 18-30), followed by a youth exchange in Kaunas, Lithuania (November 03-09, 2018, 6 people per country, aged 18-30, including team leaders from the TC).
Activities
The activities for the actions were planned together with all the project partners as well as the target audiences (youth, youth workers and migrant community). They are formed so that the participants would be involved as much as possible to the creation and implementation of them. These include: (1) Learning by doing (e.g. visiting IDPs communities in Kramatorsk where social activities with the residents would be made; (2) Knowledge sharing (e.g. meetings with the local NGOs in Ukraine (“Країна вільних людей”) on how to facilitate integration through sports and cultural festivals; (3) Public debate with local NGO’s in Ukraine; (4) Helping the IDPs through (public CV clinic for the unemployed, food bank activities, social competences improving); (5) Learning together with the migrants community (traditional games from Ukraine; living library workshops; world café discussion with them; story sharing, etc.); (6) participants’ self-made workshops (e.g. open space technology workshops in displaced people communitie); (6) public events (Olympic Games for integration through sports; “Cultural Festival”), and much more.
Impact
The project will greatly impact project participants. Among other things, they will learn, exchange and share new methods and tools for successful migrant integration through youth work; learn about the DP communities first hand; better understand how to communicate with them; learn how to organize social activities with and for migrants, as well as how to create long-term plans for DP inclusion and disseminate project results to the public. Likewise, the project would help all the participating organizations grow internationally and reach their objectives of youth development. Wider public is expected to be impacted as well. Firstly, the participants will share the knowledge acquired throughout the project within their own communities through awareness raising campaigns and non-formal workshops. The results dissemination will be also facilitated through the involvement of mass-media and spreading of videos, e-booklet and success stories prepared by the participants during the project. The goal is to increase the general awareness about the displaced people potential and the resulting social, economic and cultural benefits they can bring. In the long-term, the expected ct is that more organizations would integrate displaced people into their work with youth. This would allow youngsters to develop in a diverse environment; thus, building up their tolerance. In the meanwhile, the migrants would get a chance to build up links with the locals, make friends & integrate into the society faster. The impact would by far be the greatest in Ukraine, which at the moment lacks the means to cope with the IDP crisis it faces. That is why, there is an urgency for projects such as “A Million voices”.
