Wash Away the Barriers

Experience has shown us that there is much goodwill among young people to work in charity projects but that they lack the competencies to work with disadvantaged people. This prompted us to combine our efforts to develop the skills of our youth workers. This project is the result of collaboration with our partners: • Orenda Foundation (Bulgaria) • Ticket2Europe (Spain) • and L'Isola che non c'è (Italy) By the end of this project, the 24 participants will have: • improved their practical abilities in communication, interaction, influence and motivation. • practiced providing information, moral support and implemented actions for and with disadvantaged people. • enriched their theoretical knowledge about working methods applicable to people with special needs. • developed an attitude of understanding and empathy towards disadvantaged groups. • worked towards developing more projects to help the disadvantaged (they will build the foundations of a personal action plan). • found the motivation to put the skills learned into practice in their community and organisations. In order to reach these objectives we prepared a list of activities that develop the youth workers' competencies and support the involvement of disadvantaged people (social and economic difficulties). We will use non-formal education methods such as role-play, photo-voice, team-building, storytelling and many others. We expect to see immediate results in developing the theoretical and practical skills of the participants. Over a medium-term, these participants will return home and pass on their new skills to the youth workers in their own organisations and in their local communities. Additionally, the project participants will be able to inform members of the community and mobilise them to participate in activities aimed at improving the living conditions of disadvantaged people. The greatest impact of "Wash Away the Barriesr" will be there – youth workers gaining the motivation, knowledge and support to create projects that will improve their organisations and local communities.