All project proposals under the Erasmus+ program must contribute to one or more of the political priorities of the program.
The EU wants to make the European continent climate neutral by 2050.
We aim to empower youth-related individuals/organizations and their businesses for cyclical activities by promoting a productive economic system. The transition to a circular economy will not only contribute to the solution of the climate crisis, but will also provide young people with a range of green sector skills. Our project will bring together partners from different EU countries to create products that will provide young people with the sectoral skills needed for a circular economy. The project will promote the creation of sustainable societies by training young professionals and young people through virtual courses.
COVID-19 has led to an unprecedented economic recession around the world. With the pandemic, many sectors have suspended or completely stopped their activities. This situation has led to a resurgence of unemployment in Europe and throughout the world. According to Eurostat statistics, youth unemployment in the last quarter of 2021 was 25.7% in Turkey, 12.2% in Belgium, 10.0% in Lithuania, 12.9% in Estonia, 11.2% in Ireland and Slovakia 12, 9 . In January 2022, the youth unemployment rate was 17.1% in the EU and 17.2% in the euro area. Data from partner countries continue to show that youth unemployment is one of the EU's top priorities.
The EU Youth Strategy aims at “quality employment for all”. The project focuses on providing sectoral vocational skills through non-formal learning activities, especially for young people with fewer opportunities (NEETs, young migrants, etc.) in order to reduce youth unemployment. Given the potential of circular sectors, the number of individuals still working in these sectors is very low. According to Eurostat statistics, the average of people working in cyclical sectors is 1.71% in Estonia. Slovakia is at 2.01%, Ireland at 2.05%,
Lithuania at 1.52%, Belgium at 1.63%, Turkey at 1.53%. The project will provide young people with the green and digital skills they need in the transition to a circular economy.
Through the products of the project, young people will learn new information about business models, companies and institutions for sustainable sectors. Project products will be produced and accessible as an open educational resource for young people and all related sectors.
According to the Digital Education Action Plan, more than one in five young people in the EU n achieve a basic level of digital skills. With the project products (virtual lessons, social media campaign), youth-related organizations will use digital technologies for learning and participation. This will support the transition to effective digital education by increasing their capacity in business activities. Virtual courses encourage the target audience to learn online and push them to use digital technologies both in business and personally. As a consortium, we will develop our digital marketing strategies by preparing an effective social media campaign.
Climate change and environmental degradation are an existential threat to Europe and the world. To meet these challenges, the European Union needs a new growth strategy that will transform it into a modern, resource efficient and competitive economy. Climate action is at the heart of the European Green Deal, an ambitious package of measures ranging from the ambitious reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, to investing in the latest research and innovation, and protecting Europe's natural environment. We use 8 gigatons of material every year in Europe. Most of these materials quickly turn into waste and less than 10% is reused or recycled. Extraction, processing, production and consumption of materials and products are responsible for a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions in Europe and a third globally.
This creates a huge environmental footprint. In order to reduce the effects of this footprint and overcome the climate crisis, integrating the materials used in more sustainable circular economic systems is a European and global need.
The transition to a sustainable economic system is an essential part of the EU's new industrial strategy. A recent study estimates that applying circular economy principles in the EU economy has the potential to increase EU GDP by around 0.5% by 2030, creating around 700 000 new jobs. Between 2012 and 2018, the number of jobs related to the circular economy in the EU increased by 5% to reach 4 million. Provided that employees acquire the skills required by the green transition, circularity can be expected to have a positive net effect on job creation. The potential of the social economy as a pioneer in job creation in the circular economy will further strengthen the action plan to implement the European Pillar of Social Rights, in particular, with the mutual benefits of supporting the green transition and strengthen social inclusion.
Moreover, it is possible to overcome the devastating threat of climate change and the pressure on resources by developing a more sustainable economic system, thanks to the cyclicality.
A cyclical economic system can open an important door of opportunity to prevent youth unemployment and provide young people with green skills. The objective of the project is to equip young people with fewer opportunities with circular economy skills through digital tools and gamification methods. The project encourages young people to take action to reduce youth unemployment and tackle the climate crisis. In this respect, it directly serves the 7th and 10th objectives of the EU Youth Strategy.
The project offers young people the opportunity to acquire new knowledge about economics, design and business models, as well as to use them to develop circular economy skills. The project promotes cross-sectoral cooperation by increasing the green skills of young people needed for the transition to a circular economy. By breaking the pressure of COVID-19 on economies and employment, the circular economy can offer a solution that will open the door to green jobs. Our goal is to equip low-skilled young people with circular economy skills through learning methods based on digital tools and gamification. Our goals;
Expected results when the project is completed;
The project is innovative in various complementary elements, including the development of green skills and entrepreneurship to create employment opportunities for young people in circular sectors, the integration of digital tools and gamification in the fight against climate change. The project will design new specialized tools and resources to address the vocational skills needs and gaps of disadvantaged young people, by combining innovation in gamification pedagogies, technology and non-formal learning methods with the following products:
The project will bring the following innovative gains to participating organizations:
1. In order to encourage entrepreneurship, non-formal learning methods and the skills of young people in this field will be further supported on the local/national/international scene. The social inclusion of more young people will be ensured by increasing the capacity to develop non-formal learning methods in youth work.
2. Expertise will be acquired in the development of products that bring together all stakeholders for the development of circular skills and provide more opportunities for young people in this regard.
3. With the results of the project, the self-learning experiences of young people will be developed and will contribute to reducing the skills differences between individuals.
4. The digital material produced as an open educational resource will guide many actors in the field for the development of disadvantaged groups in youth work.
5. Participating institutions strengthen their project management capacities and Europe-wide business networks for youth work.
The project consortium has been running social inclusion, employment, non-formal education and skills development programs for young people with fewer opportunities and from disadvantaged backgrounds for years. The project promotes the development of young people's entrepreneurial skills, active citizenship, greater involvement in social issues and employment through digital tools and games. Aiming to develop innovative entrepreneurial tools and non-formal learning materials, our project complements the consortium's existing projects and work by delivering tangible results for youth unemployment, supporting low-skilled youth, creating sustainable communities and fighting the climate crisis.
POSTAL 3 as inclusive Green Learning places The KA2 project aims to transform a growing number of consumers into conscious producers by raising awareness of urban gardening and natural resource cycles, contributing to environmental protection and the reduction of climate change.
* KARAVAN (TR): The From the Emotional Management to Emotional Resilience project aims to develop gamification and innovative pedagogies to increase the social well-being of young adults in professional life.
* AISR; The Gen-Z Project: Developing Skills and Opportunities for Entrepreneurship in Social Media brings together the opportunity offered by the world of social media and the motivation that guides young people to develop employability and entrepreneurial skills. entrepreneurship.
* 4U Education; The project The added value of social entrepreneurship in youth work analyzes the concept, methods and values of social entrepreneurship adapted to the youth sector and provides youth workers with real examples of young social entrepreneurs in action.
* Wordlnet; « Dragon Dreamers »: It is a project that aims to transfer tools and capacities to young workers and young people to create sustainable projects in collaboration, to promote entrepreneurship and social inclusion in youth communities.
The fight against climate change is one of the main priorities of the European Union and our project is at the center of our concerns. This priority is addressed in formal and non-formal education activities in the different sectors of the Erasmus+ program (school education, adult education, vocational training etc.). Therefore, the project products can be used in different program areas. For example, the looping escape room game can be fun digital material in lessons on environmental and climate topics such as science and geography. Project partners represent organizations from different European countries with different profiles and past experiences.
These organizations have been involved in many different projects supported by the Erasmus+ programme. These projects fall within the fields of youth, adult education, vocational education and school education and have enabled the consortium to establish cooperation networks with different institutions and organisations. Based on its past experience, the consortium can contribute to a strong impact in different areas of the Erasmus+ program by disseminating the project results in its existing networks. Our project directly serves the European skills agenda by supporting the development of digital skills and green skills of young people in circular sectors
The project combines the experiences of 6 different institutions from 5 countries and creates an EU-wide synergy to develop young people's skills related to the circular economy. The circular economy is one of the political priorities of the EU, and the work to be done in this area by partner countries will contribute to the creation of sustainable communities, green transitions and the EU's fight against the climate. . In order to prevent youth unemployment, which is one of the main problems of EU countries, all partners will approach the project from their national perspectives and contribute to the development of innovative products related to the youth sector within the framework of their expertise.
The dissemination of the results of transnational cooperation projects to a wider audience encourages the development of new cooperation networks.
The transition to a green economy requires a major shift in the roles and skills of workers around the world. Strengthen the capacity of our staff and organizations in our network to develop the green, circular and digital skills of NEETs and young people with fewer opportunities
1. PARTICIPANTS FROM PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS: Managers, trainers, youth experts, researchers, project managers, administrative staff and other professionals will constitute the staff of the partners directly involved in the development of the project. Staff working on the project at a personal/professional level;
2. YOUTH (including those with fewer opportunities): An effective social media campaign will be conducted to encourage youth participation in activities. With the campaign, information such as time, time, conditions of access, content and speakers of the event will be expressed.
3. Representatives of YOUTH WORKERS (Experts, trainers, public and NGOs) : Institutional visits will be made and invitations will be sent to invite them to project activities. The agenda containing information on the objectives of the event, activities, etc. will be given to participants via invitations. Youth operators will send the information forms containing the staff profile to the institution/organization organizing the event by e-mail.
4. European companies, youth organizations and public institutions
Two different methods were followed to determine the needs. These:
1. International Studies Study: Findings from the ILO Skills and Employability Department, in collaboration with the European Center for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop), of the global research on skills needs for greener economies , represent a large sample for needs analysis in our project. Because this research was carried out in 21 countries which represent 60% of the world's population, 59% of the world's GDP and 49% of the world's CO2 emissions. Country studies have shown that the evolution of employment, and therefore of skills, is the result of four drivers of change: physical change in the environment, policies and regulations, technology and innovation, greener markets for products and services, and consumer habits.
2. Survey study: 6 organizations that make up our consortium applied questionnaires, including a set of green skills, both to their corporate staff and to 500 people aged 15-30 in their own country. According to the survey results, participants; 48% pollution prevention, 37% waste prevention, 57% renewable energy production, 43% environmental improvement, 56% ecosystem management, 38% sustainable development education, 54% environmental audit. It was concluded that 41% did not have enough information on environmental financing. , 58% on environmental policies, 63% on sustainability research and 29% on sustainable development
Low-skilled young people are a disadvantaged group when it comes to finding a job. The project will produce innovative tools that will provide young people with the green and sustainable skills required by the circular economy and create quality employment opportunities. Project partners will enrich non-formal learning methods/tools in the youth sector using innovative and up-to-date technologies to produce tangible results. Staff from all partnerships will enhance their personal/professional profile by sharing their knowledge and experience with each other. It is based on the development of the manual, virtual lessons, escape games, local project work, multiplier events, dissemination and networking activities to meet the needs of the consortium and the target groups.
Project products; There will be accessible and high quality learning tools to train young people and youth operators in the circular economy. With virtual courses, structured content on the circular economy and experts in this field will be brought together with the target audience. The willingness of more qualified young people to participate in circular activities and their initiatives to tackle the climate crisis will increase. Young people with greener skills will have a stronger profile for employment by recognizing employment opportunities in these sectors.
The escape room game will provide the skills that young people should have in the transition from a linear economic system to a circular economy system. The games will encourage young people to explore skills in circular sectors, social entrepreneurship and active citizenship. Local activities and multiplier events will ensure distribution and use that will take the use of products from a local to an international dimension. The networking activities will provide a basis for all partners to contact them and share the results of the project in order to establish new collaborations at local/regional/national/European dimensions.
