Youth Empowered in SRE Erasmus Project

Project Title

Youth Empowered in SRE

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 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Youth (Participation, Youth Work, Youth Policy) ; Health and wellbeing; Gender equality / equal opportunities

Project Summary

** The project was premised as a response to European Policy, consultations with young people, research and current social movements in Western Society which indicaed that SRE (Sexual & Reproductive Education) for young people in youth work settings needed to come into line with the EU Youth Strategy and to better involve the youth work sector in Europe in policy initiatives related to SRE. Speciically, our understanding was taht SRE materials needed to be rights based and address the multiple identities of young people.

Our basic assumptions, based on initial research were that some countries in Europe were far advanced in supporting effectie SRE. While, a second cohort of countries, including Ireland were not. The project specifically targetted and engaged with this latter cohort through partnering with ECYC. ECYC unites 20 member organisations in 18 Council of Europe member states. Together, they reach 2 million young people in Europe every year.

Further research that took place in the lifetime of the project (Sexulalty education in Europe and Central Asia, IPPF, 2019) evidenced our assumptions. According to the IPPF, 14 of 25 countries have comprehensive Sex Education with an increasing prevalence of rights – based approach. In 11 countries sex education is either simple biological information or non- existent. Further, analysis of the European memmbers of our partner ECYC found a strong overlap between these 14 countries and the 18 member states of ECYC. Further, taking a rights-based view, ECYC is remarkable for containing a high proportion of the lowest ranking member states in Europe in relation to protections and rights for LGBT+ young people including the lowest two ranked states overall.

Focused engagement with ECYC provided an opportunity to:
1. Engage in participatory development to understand waht SRE materials wuld be fit for purpose in youth work settings in states were rights-based SRE was non-existent
2. Develop fit for purpose education pack and traning of trainers
3. Develop and deploy an online learning platform for SRE
4. Develop policy initatitives to bind ECYC members to implementing SRE education

The report that follows details the steps taken to achive these outcomes, the indicators of success and the overall learning from developing and implementing these products.

Project Website

https://yesconsent.eu/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 71861 Eur

Project Coordinator

NATIONAL YOUTH FEDERATION COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE & Country: IE

Project Partners

• ECYC – EUROPEAN CONFEDERATION OF YOUTH CLUBS AISBL
• LOGO jugendmanagement gmbh