Train2Sustain Erasmus Project

Project Title

Train2Sustain

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Partnerships for Creativity

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Creativity and culture; Social entrepreneurship / social innovation; ICT – new technologies – digital competences

Project Summary

What is Train2Sustain?
The Erasmus+ project Train2Sustain is a Strategic Partnership in the field of Youth whose main goal is to respond to the effects of Covid-19. The main target group are young people active in the field of cultural and creative industries and artists. On a secondary level, as they are connected with the main target groups, there are youth workers and trainers, as well as CCI and culture and creative professionals. Five partner organisations from Austria, Slovenia, Serbia and Greece collaborate for 24 months in order to develop the skills and include their target groups through creativity and the arts. They do so by evaluating and disseminating innovative digital approaches and supporting participants to develop their skills and key competences in culture, arts, digitalization, networking and innovation.

Why do we need it?
Covid-19 affects all stakeholders in culture and creativity, both on the production and the distribution side. According to the UNESCO (2020), 60% of activities during regular work days in arts and culture organizations have changed because of Covid-19. Both organisations and creatives are struggling to make ends meet and continue their work under the new regulations. About 95% of the estimated 60,000 museums worldwide were closed due to the pandemic. Artists find it hard to find locations and settings where they can network, exhibit and train. People interested in art and culture find their opportunities limited, as few events are taking place. At the same time, online visits have become more attractive as an answer to lockdowns and social distancing. However, in order to take part in this new world of culture and art, culture and art creators, promoters and consumers need better skills, knowledge and resources.

What does it offer?
Train2Sustain offers its participants opportunities for upskilling in terms of digital readiness and empowerment for a better handling of digital tools and innovative practices in the cultural sector, as well as opportunities for personal and professional development. Additionally, it creates further opportunities for an active collaboration and digital alternatives to analogue cultural life. For the participating organisations, Train2Sustain improves the competences in distance learning and exchange of know-how, while increasing the digital competences in digitizing arts and creativity. All staff and stakeholders become more responsive and sensitive to the social, emotional, and intellectual needs of the target groups, while youth workers/ cultural managers from CCI sector become more confident in their networking, promotion and e-mentoring skills.

How does Train2Sustain achieve its goals?
Firstly, for Train2Sustain to meet the needs of its target group more precisely, it creates a survey among 200 young creative and artists, CCI and cultural organisations. Secondly, the project partners analyse current digital practices on digitizing art and creativity, apply them and evaluate their efficiency and dissemination potential. Based on these findings, a manual is created. Thirdly, findings from both these outputs are used to create a webspace which brings together all this information and bundles it into one responsive webspace adapted to the target group. Train2Sustain manages to include marginalized CCI, creative professionals, young artists and youth workers who can participate online irrespective of their location or financial background. In addition, Train2Sustain provides 3 learning mobilities dedicated to 3 different target groups, which support and develop their skills in creativity, digitization and culture creation. In order for these processes to be widely visible and efficient, the project partners have devised management, dissemination, reporting and sustainability tools and measures.

Which impact will the results of Train2Sustain have?
Train2Sustain helps to create added value and improve the resilience of our target groups, but it also raises awareness of the challenges of preserving diverse cultural offers in times of COVID-19. Train2Sustain illustrates the opportunities that lie in the digital era: increased European awareness, accessibility to cultural offers for a broader audience, common values, diversity and participation. The participants benefit from our learning and exchange offers, while the organisations involved benefit from improved skills, processes and results, which will help them optimise their available resources to create new opportunities/events. We connect relevant stakeholders and create synergies for Digital Skills enhancement, thus building resilience for the cultural/ creative sector. Moreover, the visibility of EU-funding programmes is improved, while on a international level, it improves the understanding of cultural diversity and cultural awareness of the social necessity for necessity for culture and art. Individual learning and further educational/ professional opportunities are promoted.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 149916 Eur

Project Coordinator

Art Mine – Verein zur Förderung des interkulturellen Austausches und Dialogs & Country: AT

Project Partners

• VEREIN ZUR FORDERUNG VON KULTURAUSTAUSCH UND NACHHALTIGKEIT IN EUROPA(GAIN&SUSTAIN:EUROPE)
• Zveza društev mladih in kreativnih Tolmin
• MONOPATIA ALLILEGIIS
• Narodni muzej Zrenjanin