Chance to Change Erasmus Project

Project Title

Chance to Change

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: Gender equality / equal opportunities; International cooperation, international relations, development cooperation; Inclusion – equity

Project Summary

The project C2C results from the observation by several organizations working in the social inclusion of young people of a reality which is problematic and that has not been easy to change: the increase in violence among young people and children, a phenomenon that takes even greater proportions in schools since it is there that gathers lots of young people and, on the other hand, they are in contingency to interact with others who do not identify with themselves. This problem has consequences for the well-being and health of young people but also in their school results and the very quality of education.
The answer may arise joining two factors that we believe are essential in order that the success is assured: 1) through non-formal education and, even more, through active methodologies because it is well known that young people (and not only them) assimilate better knowledge through methodologies that involve learning by doing; 2) through peer education because the group can play a very important role in personal, social and psychological issues.
But peer education is not without weaknesses. One is the lack of knowledge of the subject by the educators with the depth and the desired orientation. Another problem is that non-formal education is not yet recognized in some contexts as an effective way to make change happens.
This project considers that has found an innovative answer to the problem that is multiple: juvenile and child violence, lack of opportunities for young university students to exercise their active citizenship in volunteer programs in their own communities and, finally, the lack of credibility that non formal education has yet in some contexts.
What we propose to do then?
By creating a strategic partnership involving four european countries (Portugal, Germany, Italy, and Macedonia), we think we have created the conditions to disseminate the project results to be reached through the work around the achievement of specific objectives.
The first is to encourage the active participation of the youth in the life of their community contributing to a better society but also for their empowerment.
The second is to find innovative ways to prevent and combat the phenomenon of juvenile and child violence and intolerance, especially in schools.
The third is to train and enable youth workers and their organizations by sharing experiences and ideas.
With this project we aim to directly involve in a pilot project, 12 university students, about 300 children and young people in primary and high schools, 30 youth workers and researchers, 200 people that are directly linked with this subject in 4 public events and 100 that represent institutions interested in learning about and eventually apply the methodology in an multiplier event.
The central activity that we undertake will be the construction of a methodology to implement voluntary initiatives of university students promoting a culture of peace and nonviolence in school contexts. This methodology will be disseminated through a guide which also includes a set of educational games to be used by volunteers in volunteer activities in playground contexts and the classroom and a quiz online that allows children and young people to make a self-diagnosis of the degree of violence and intolerance and giving them suggestions how to change the behaviors and dysfunctional attitudes.
The project will use methodologies hands-on training because university students will undergo training while developing their volunteering. It will also use participatory methodologies because the young university students with children and young people in primary and high schools will test the educational games and give us feedback of their impact.
With this project we intend to disseminate in universities, primary and high schools and NGOs working with young people or with the issue of violence and intolerance, an innovative methodology that contributes to a more balanced society by decreasing misfit behavior of young people and children and simultaneously empower university students.
And of course, given the involvement of multidisciplinary and multicultural team set up, we also want that this project has a direct impact on us to improve our skills as experts working the issues of social change and to provide us innovative tools and methods to work in an area that, more than others, adapting to a changing reality is essential.
If this initiative we want to improve and spread by sharing it with the partnership, get enthusiasts around Europe, we are sure it will be a powerful tool to combat behaviors of intolerance of violence among young people because in Portugal is having a lot of success even without being structured by a procedural guide for its implementation. And this is the added value of this partnership: to build a tool for a common problem with the contributions of each organisation which have their own and particular experiences, methodologies and contexts.

Project Website

http://c2ctoolbox.net/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 44560 Eur

Project Coordinator

COOLABORA CRL & Country: PT

Project Partners

• ASSOCIAZIONE CULTURALE STRAUSS
• ASSOCIATION FOR PROGRESS, EDUCATION AND LOBBYING NEL SKOPJE
• UNIVERSIDADE DA BEIRA INTERIOR
• UNTERNEHMERGESELLSCHAFT HAFTUNGSBESCHRANKT ROTER BAUM BERLIN