Associazione Joint got awarded with a 3-year Erasmus+ accreditation for a strategy focused on the inclusion and the empowerment of young people facing social and economical fewer opportunities and highly vulnerable young people in European mobility projects. To do so, we need to create a structure able to inform, recruit and support these young people, through the creation of local networks, the capacity building of the involved organisations, the training of the group leaders involved, and clear quality standards shared by the associations.
In order to be able to reach our goals, we think that collaboration is paramount when striving for the inclusion of highly vulnerable young people in mobilities, ensuring their meaningful participation and equitable access to opportunities. By fostering open communication and sharing expertise, the collective effort of a community can address the unique challenges faced by vulnerable youth, promoting mobility programs that are sensitive to their needs.
PBA Partnership Building Activity
In this direction, between 28th – 30th November, Associazione Joint invited to Galbiate (Italy) representatives of 26 organizations from 17 countries (Italy, Portugal, Spain, France, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece, Georgia, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Denmark), that share the same mission of facilitating the process of participation of young people with fewer opportunities and highly vulnerable young people in the opportunities offered by the European Union, with a focus on youth exchanges with minors.
New 2024 Partnerships
Therefore, the aim of this meeting was to both create mutual partnerships for these experiences that will take place in 2024, and to build on the Position Paper written during the meeting of 2022, by:
- sharing good practices and define common strategies to make inclusion more effective in Youth Exchanges, with a focus on the participation of minors and highly vulnerable young people – you can find examples from the participating organizations here;
- assessing the feasibility of the definition of “highly vulnerable young people” against the 2023 experience and discussing possible future developments;
Together with the partners, we defined the quality standards of the network, regarding:
- The selection and preparation of the young people
- The implementation of the mobilities
- The follow-up process
- The profile of the group leaders, seen as figures of support
- Local and international partnerships
Highly Vulnerable Young People
Furthermore, keeping in mind the profile of the young people we are working with, together with the consortium, we drafted a more accurate description of what highly vulnerable young people could possibly mean, starting from the premise that they are youngsters that are living in a situation of vulnerability and who are facing an overlapping of potential exclusion factors, of which at least one is a long-term or permanent condition (examples: youngsters facing mental health & social issues, refugees, internal displaced young people, migrants, national minorities, members of the Roma community, alternative care beneficiaries, young people facing geographical and financial barriers, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, educational barriers in socially unfavorable environments etc.)
By creating connections with like-minded associations from all over Europe and through collaborative initiatives, we think that a more inclusive and empowering environment can be established, allowing highly vulnerable young people to engage in enriching experiences, broaden their horizons, and build essential transversal skills. This shared commitment to inclusivity not only benefits the individuals involved, but also contributes to the development of a more diverse, inclusive and empathetic society.
