New beginnings: innovative ways for integration and increasing civic participation of young migrants and refugees Erasmus Project

Project Title

New beginnings: innovative ways for integration and increasing civic participation of young migrants and refugees

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 : Strategic Partnerships for youth

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Migrants’ issues; Youth (Participation, Youth Work, Youth Policy)

Project Summary

During the project, we have created a series of methods how to work with young people from migrant and refugee background to support their integration, develop their skills and enable them to fully participate in the societies of their hosting countries. These methods were developed during the study visits based on the individual know-how of different organizations and playtested in the local context (either as a single new activity or as a new approach to activities already organized by the organizations) and summarized in the booklet that was printed in four languages. In order to support the dissemination of these methods and the booklet, an introductory teaser video was created in three languages (Czech-Slovak, German and English) that promoted the booklet and the Project.

Target group of this project are young people 14-30 from migrant, refugee and majority background and the organizations and youth workers working with young migrants. Each mobility was attended by at least 12 people from the target group.

The principles of the project was to have people-centered approach, not the attitude “for you, but without you”. That is why, each mobility was attended by at least one person of refugee/migrant background per organization that was actively involved in the design of the methods and was present/participated/organized playtesting of the methods in the countries of their sending organization (depending on the level of their previous involvement, knowledge, skills and motivation).

The project was an international collaboration of partners from the Czech Republic, Austria, Sweden and Slovakia that are working with refugees in different areas. Two organizations (Sweden – Jordens Vanner, Austria – Global 200) were from countries with substantial migrant experience; thus, the organizations were also very experienced and were connecting the issues of climate change and climate justice with migration; whereas, the other two (Syreczech – Czech Republic, Mareena – Slovakia) were from countries with little migrant experience; thus, these organizations had more bottom-up approach.

New Beginnings project was for many participants unique learning opportunity not only to sensitize oneselves with issues, such as climate change, climate justice, environmental education, non-formal education, civic engagement etc, but also a possibility to shape the methods that were created, provide their input regarding the design of the methods and co-create these new strategies of involvement of young refugees and migrants.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 51811 Eur

Project Coordinator

Syreczech & Country: CZ

Project Partners

• Mareena
• Jordens Vänner
• GLOBAL 2000 UMWELTSCHUTZORGANISATION