Keep It Real! Vilnius 2017

What does it actually make to have a REAL youth exchange? What is YOUR REALITY of youth exchange projects? You probably had some experience in applying, what were your challenges, and expectations? We want to help you with finding tips&tricks to raise quality of the future youth exchange. „Keep it REAL!“ training course will offer space to explore what does it take to have a REAL Youth Exchange. The course is mainly aimed at those who have no or only some experience of applying for international Youth Exchange – either you have just recently applied for the grant and received negative answer or you have freshly „joined the club“ of applicants by planning to apply for a grant for the first time. The main aim of this training is to support youth exchange applicants to increase main quality aspects in various phases of the project. The approach of this TC is based on combination of inputs and practice to let participants put hands on real experiences – explore problem solving, share advises, deal with issues which really matters. There are many quality criteria when it comes to Erasmus+ Youth Exchanges, this training course will concentrate on certain aspects that most of applicants are struggling with: youth participation, equal partnership, dimension of non-formal learning, intercultural learning, YouthPass process, seeing the whole project as a long-term learning process and dealing with possible risks. NB! This training course is created in close co-operation between Estonian and Lithuanian National Agencies. An added value of this special feature is a fact of having similar national realities and contexts of international youth work, so, it is easier to create a safe learning environment and foster mutual understanding among participants. To enhance quality of Youth Exchange projects this year we would like to involve more participants from different environments and focus on strengthening Eastern Partnership. We are inviting representatives, who are actively involved in planning a youth exchange project. In the training course we are expecting up to 20 participants from Lithuania and Estonia and up to 5 participants from Partner Countries Neighbouring the EU. *** Application deadline for participants from Partner Countries: 9 July 2017. Date of selection (participants from Partner Countries): 12 July 2017.*** „Keep it REAL!“ daily programme lasts for 3 full days, arrival day on Wednesday, 6th of September and departure day on Sunday, 10th of September, 2017. Team: Laimonas Ragauskas and Umberto Dorus Geerts, who will bring their long years of experience as youth work practitioners (both local & international), as learning facilitators and in running various activities related to quality of youth exchanges. Also representatives of National Agency will join the training to support the process, share some technical aspects of youth exchange projects, get into direct contact with participants and share real examples from the field.