Connected by heARTs Erasmus Project

Project Title

Connected by heARTs

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: Disabilities – special needs; Creativity and culture; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

The project “Connected by heARTs” is a Strategic Partnership for Innovation, with a duration of 16 months , implemented by a consortium with 4 partners coming from 3 countries: N. Macedonia, Spain and Greece.

The main aim of the project is to develop a virtual training methodology for youth workers on how to join together and involve young people with and without disabilities in the creation of attractive, creative, and cultural activities, in order to help them on their integration path and overcoming prejudices and discriminatory attitudes of community members.

Nowadays, with improving technology and digitalization of life, also due to the current global state caused by pandemic Covid 19, it is clear that people can be present in the community without being actually physically socially included. Through internet services and social media, people are easily engaging in conversations and debates and various virtual activities. As it is know being socially included people are happier, fulfilled, and optimistic about happenings in their life. With positive emotions and a positive mental state, they are by default healthier, because their immune system is functioning better. In fact, social inclusion is an important “determinant of health”- without inclusion, people are more likely to experience negative feelings, such as the feeling of abandonment, loneliness, isolation, and low self-esteem, where in many cases can lead to depression. Unfortunately, for many people with disabilities life is lonely, filled with unnecessarily negative emotions that are infused by society and their surroundings. They may not have a “sense of presence” in the community and may not have access to activities they prefer or desire to explore. People lack opportunities to work, play, create, learn, and develop social relationships with others (particularly with people who do not have a disability). People with disabilities are often not acknowledged in the community, or if they are, it may be in a negative way.

These are just a few of the reasons why we want to unite experts, youth workers, cultural organizations, and institutions that work, support, and take care of young people with disabilities, with young people with and without disabilities, in an innovative project that will give them an opportunity to work in an engaging environment, grow and create together, were beside youth workers and organizations, we will include half youngsters with disabilities and a half without. We aim to contribute to personal growth and to resolve/ improve the situation of young people with fewer opportunities, through the development of the guide, whereby using artistic activities young people with and without disabilities will be empowered, by cultivating artistic and social skills, non-discrimination and tolerance. This project is based on the active participation of each person involved, both experts, youth workers, cultural organizations and institutions as well youth with and without disabilities, and this will be ensured through constant monitoring and observation, giving specific tasks to everyone, encourage each person to express verbal or emotional. The possibility for proper engagement in the foreseen activities of the youth with special needs will be supported by the involvement of an accompanying psycho-pedagogic specialist/youth worker experienced in the work with young people with special needs on each learning/teaching/training activity which will also play the role of the translator by facilitation communication between the youth.

The project’s intellectual Output is going to be a virtual training methodology guide, coming from extensive and detailed research and analysis of the target audience, and will be tailor-made specifically to its needs. The digital guide will be descriptive, explanatory, engaging, and interactive- through which young people with and without disabilities will be able to improve personally and professionally, by the mean of the youth workers support, elevate their knowledge and understanding of them-self and each other, beneficial to improve mutual collaboration and mutually progress towards more stable and empowered future. The guide will be different from traditional approaches to this topic, due to its powerful and symbolic state- of- the- art concept.

The digital guide for virtual training, which will be created, will be an open educational resource, both available in a video training course available as a proposal from the promoting organizations, as well as it will be available as a design publication containing relevant information for using it and for replication and adaptation by other organizations, trainers, mentors or youth workers involved in such context and experienced, interested to train their members, volunteers and to better prepare their personnel in working with the young people with disabilities

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 46890 Eur

Project Coordinator

ZDRUZENIE ZA KULTURNA SORABOTKA INTERKULTURA SKOPJE & Country: MK

Project Partners

• Zdruzhenie na gragani AMPERSAND Skopje – centar za razvoj na veshtini i kompetencii
• BACKSLASH
• SYLLOGOS EKPAIDEFSIS KAI ANAPTIXIS ATOMON ME IDIKES ANGKES