We finished the long-term training course "Youth Work Strengthening Minority Youth Rights" with the final 4-day seminar in Brussels, which aimed to look at the outcomes of the training course implemented back in November 2022, especially related to changes in youth work practice, explore the local actions, document learned lessons and give space to follow-up actions.
In many instances young people from minorities face considerable barriers in accessing youth work services, especially those which are tailored to their specific needs and situations. In addition, shrinking of civil spaces for organisations engaged in the youth sector significantly affects youth people from minority groups and identities in a negative way.
Therefore the aim of this LTTC was to revitalise youth work’s task to address minority youth rights by fostering the human-rights-based approach through capacity building of youth workers and youth work organisation.
This project was implemented in two residential activities:
1. Residential training course, implemented during 7-13 November 2022, on holistic mainstreaming of minority rights in youth work practise in Bakuriani, Georgia.
Followed by an intermediate phase - transfering experience to colleagues and peers locally.
2. Residential seminar, implemented during 14-17 of January 2023, on documenting, integrating and promoting procedures to mainstream minority rights to youth work practise in organisations.
The objectives of the LTTC were the following:
Train practitioner youth workers, especially those who are in a proximity to minority young people, in specific tools for minority youth empowerment and advocacy;
Equip youth workers with tools for the redressing and monitoring of human rights of minority youth;
Increase the inner readiness of youth workers to outreach to minority youth and offer them tailor-made opportunities;
Build the capacity of organisations with youth work services in order to increase their coverage with minority youth by integrating specific standard operating procedures and building up connections with other actors of civil society and state institutions advocating for minority rights.
Thematically, this project explored the intersections between youth work and human rights, in the following specific directions:
1. Social-economic empowerment;
2. Widening the youth civic space;
3. Human rights education and awareness-raising;
4. Redress, monitoring and advocacy.
This project is supported by BIJ - Belgian National Agency under the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.