CALL FOR THE CREATION OF A DIGITAL YOUTH WORK COMMUNITY OF LEARNING

The Digital Youth Work Community of Learning  is created inside the  “#AlwaysOn for Youth” Strategic Partnership for Youth project which is implemented between April 2021 - April 2023 by Federația Young Men’s Christian Associations România (YMCA România), as coordinator and Young Initiative Association (AYI), Sdrujenie "Nadejda-CRD" - Bulgaria (NCRD), The Coordinating Committee for International Voluntary Service - France (CCIVS ) and the Alliance Europeenne des YMCA - Belgium (YMCA Europe), as partners. The project is co-funded by the European Union through the Erasmus + Program.

The aim of the project is to increase the capacity of youth organizations from Romania, France, Bulgaria, Belgium and the federated networks of the partnership consortium to serve young people (including vulnerable youth) extensively and intensively through digital youth work and digital inclusion and digital safety practices.

BRIEF ABOUT THE DIGITAL YOUTH WORK COMMUNITY OF LEARNING 

What we intend to do: create and develop a collaborative learning space focused on digital inclusion and digital youth work, connecting youth workers from Europe interested in learning more about these topics through the sharing of best practices and stories, learning about new tools, increasing the capacity and the competences of the youth workers and organizations involved. 

Criteria for selection

• Minimum level of understanding spoken and written English;
• Motivation to learn more about digital youth work, digital safety, digital inclusion  and to improve personal and professional competences;
• Capacity and interest in multiplying practices on a local/ national/ international level;
• Commitment to actively engage digitally in the community for the duration of the project;
• Readiness to engage in a large scale international network, to share and to learn, to co-create and give feedback.

* Age limit: 18+ 

* Youth Workers from across  Europe are welcomed to  apply and be part of this community. 

* Equal chances and no discrimination principles – we promote and encourage youth workers and youth organizations representatives accessibility from and with all backgrounds                      (rural/urban), from big or small organizations, targeting youth workers who are working with vulnerable young people.

* There is no requirement to be a professional youth worker (eg. proven through a certificate). Please treat the definition of a youth worker to the largest extent possible and applicable in your context, as long as you are working with or supporting the learning and development of young people in your community or organization. 

We want to put a spotlight on the tremendous work and support provided by youth workers to the young people all over Europe, highlighting how this support has challenged and helped youth to reach their potential and to lead change in their local communities through youth-led social action, even amidst the global pandemic and post pandemic. 

Together we want to analyze the new working context and to adapt and renew our approaches and tools to deliver quality digital youth work and enable digital inclusion.

Topics : 

• digital youth work, 
• digital inclusion, 
• (in)humane technologies, 
• deepfakes, 
• digital safety for young people and youth workers,
• privacy, etc

Who is this community for?: 100+ youth workers interested in developing their digital youth work and digital inclusion skills from European countries  (The youth practitioners can be youth workers, social assistants, teachers, psychologists, volunteer coordinators, youth center managers, etc). 

What engagement is expected?: Community members  will be actively involved in all stages of the project  and consulted, but will also have the opportunity to attend virtual co-creation sessions. The community will be facilitated by the partnership consortium in order to keep an active engagement by using digital tools. 

The commitment for being part of this community and engaging in sessions  is 2 years. As a community member you are expected to regularly access the community platform, share your experiences or questions and whenever you are available to attend some of the community (online) events.