All these policy recommendations of Cities of Learning fall under five priority topics:

• Non-Formal Learning
• Sustainability
• Inclusion
• Participation
• Mental Health

The recommendations of Cities of Learning

These are the Cities of Learning Policy Recommendations. You can also find the document with recommendations in this pdf or read all about it on the website of Cities of Learning.

“These recommendations are numbered for the purpose of reference only and not because of any one being more important than another. We believe all our recommendations are equally important and some should even be viewed collectively.”

A. Non-Formal Learning

“These recommendations should be viewed holistically.

A.1 Schools should have at least one day of non-formal learning every month, delivered by professionals, young people or other individuals with experience in the field.

A.2 Stakeholders in formal education settings (including senior leaders, teachers, lecturers, parents, volunteers and others) should be better informed of the benefits of non-formal learning and should be connected with role models and professionals in the field.

A.3 Support and ensure more research is carried out on the impact, benefits and purpose of non-formal learning so they can be explained to stakeholders (including employers, parents, teachers, volunteers, lecturers and others) in order to promote it.

A.4 Local governments should facilitate and provide the resources for collaboration between NGOs, schools and other partners, creating a stronger and more holistic network where countries are able to work from the same baseline.”

B. Sustainability

“*DEMANDS NOT RECOMMENDATIONS

B.1 Ensure people are better informed about the benefits of sustainable lifestyles, empowering them to be advocates, custodians and campaigners for the planet. B.2 Businesses must be required to publish accurate, standardised data about pollution they produce in an accessible format and this process must be regulated independently. People should be empowered to put pressure on them based on the data.

B.3 Ensure young people are better informed on the issues so they can have an active role in shaping decisions about issues that affect their futures. This should include topics such as; circular economy, public awareness, extraction of resources, consumer practices and transport.

B.4 Governments should immediately take action on practical and solvable things including implementing policies and practice such as:

• Hydroponic agriculture
• Sustainable fishing
• Reuse-and-Rebuild approaches
• Allocating transportation funds to clean public transport only
• Divert funds away from big business and into smaller local and sustainable projects and businesses”

C. Inclusion

“C.1 Create more specific opportunities for participation of excluded young people (inclusive events, activities, language learning for inclusion, increased mobility to gain essential life experiences).

C.2 Local and regional governments should provide the resources to enable safe spaces, projects and activities for community cohesion and cultural exchanges that are available, relevant and engaging for their communities.

C.3 Formal education settings should actively facilitate a safe place to discuss LGBTQIA+ topics, including providing staff with appropriate training that allows young people the freedom to express themselves.

C.4 Create accessible and inclusive spaces and events accessible for all young people with disabilities by providing access support such as Personal Assistants, suitable physical infrastructure, sign language interpreters and Braille.

C.5 Governments should immediately provide the resources to enable specific opportunities for the integration of young refugees and immigrants to ensure they feel part of the community.”

D. Participation

“These recommendations should be viewed holistically.

D.1 Considering and acting on young people’s opinions and interests must be a legal requirement for governments at local, regional, national and international levels. There must also be a mechanism to challenge decisions with clear timeframes and processes.

D.2 Campaigns and involvement opportunities should be designed to be engaging and appealing to young people, reaching them through the channels and locations they use and should promote political engagement.

D.3 Governments should ensure advisory youth councils and parliaments are established at local, national and international levels and provide a meaningful and impactful, creative and age appropriate democratic opportunity.

D.4 Governments at local, national and international levels should secure sustainable funding to ensure young people have the opportunity for participation projects and being part of a youth council or parliament.”

E. Mental Health

E.3 The government should recognise the importance of mental health and its visibility. They should do this by:

• National campaigns to increase public awareness of mental health including press and media activity, dedicated events (such as World Mental Health Day) and other communication methods;
• Increase staffing and capacity by making study and employment in the mental health field accessible and attractive.
• Ensuring the recognition of mental health related qualifications and providing opportunities to pursue them.”

More info

Cities of Learning is an online platform where young people can find learning opportunities. You can browse an interactive map of an area or look up events and learning opportunities based on your interests.

Find more about Cities of Learning here:

• Website
• Facebook
• Twitter
• LinkedIn
• YouTube

Het bericht Cities of Learning creates policy recommendations verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.

The other participants will be the city council of Altea, project VOLUNTEU: Volunteering citizens as a response to social COVID19 crisis, JINT, the municipality of Idrija, and the project Governance and Youth in the Alps. Europe Goes Local has also ran joint sessions in the past.

Invitation

Youth participation is key to the democratic and inclusive development of local communities. Join EU Region Week on 25th October at 10.00 CET to learn how to foster youth participation in practice.

The event “YOUTH PARTICIPATION – How to foster youth participation in local communities?” will highlight the importance of youth participation for the development of local communities, showing approaches and funding opportunities available. It’s a follow-up event of the “Getting more children and young people participating in the workings of democracy: success stories” event, organized by DG JUSTICE and EACEA during the EU Week of Regions and Cities.

Agenda

• 10.00 – 10.10: Introduction
• 10.10 – 10.40: Youth participation, why should we care?
  • Round table with showcases (City council of Altea, Spain – project VOLUNTEU: Volunteering citizens as a response to social COVID19 crisis; JINT, Belgium – Europe goes local; Municipality of Idrija, Slovenia – project Governance and Youth in the Alps).
• 10.40 – 11.20: How can we work together? Approaches and funding opportunities to foster youth participation on a local level.
  • We will work together to find new ideas, synergies between existing local initiatives, ways of funding new ideas, and ways to capitalize results of past work.
• 11.20 – 11.30: Final findings

The debate will be moderated by CERV točka, Slovenian national contact point of programme CERV.

For additional information please write to cerv-tocka@pina.si.

You can register here.

You can find the pdf with the invitation here.

Het bericht EU Region Week: How to foster Youth Participation verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.

• Reflect on the way the youth work sector and community of practice have fared since the third European Youth Work Convention
• Learn more about the reality and needs of youth work providers in Eastern and Southeast Europe and on the existing youth policy support measures
• Reflect about which structures and mechanisms have been put in place to deliver on the commitments made during the Convention and in the European Youth Work Agenda – Bonn Process
• Discover (support) tools available at European and regional level for youth work and for youth work policy
• And much more!

Find more info here.

Het bericht Visible Value: Strengthening the implementation of the European Youth Work Agenda in Eastern and Southeast Europe verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.

The study visit will provide insights to the reality of local youth work and youth participation, through visiting three municipalities of the region. You will meet a diversity of local stakeholders, experts and practitioners and reflect on quality aspects of youth work and youth participation from the perspective of Europe Goes Local and Democracy Reloading tools.

You can find more information and apply here.

Het bericht Call for participants: study visit Sustainable Local Youth Work in Slovakia verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.

Aims & objectives

• Visits to various organisations related to the participation of young people
• Getting to know the situation in Finland regarding the participation of young people at the local level
• Learning about successes in youth participation in Finland and in Finnish municipalities
• Hearing about participants’ successes in youth participation in their own countries
• Getting to know municipalities’ youth participation work
• Meeting the relevant stakeholders

Participants

The Study visit seeks to involve and invite various actors and stakeholders of youth work, youth participation and the inclusion sector from practice, policy and research from all over Europe.

Accessibility and sustainability

The venue where we organise the event is accessible for wheelchairs. We will also consider your special needs so that you can fully participate in the training. If you need a support person, accessible room and transport or supporting tools, we will try to arrange them for you. If you are selected to attend this Study visit please tell us your needs already beforehand so that we can be ready. We will also send a questionnaire about special needs and dietary restrictions to all those selected.

Find more information and how to apply here. The application deadline is 25 September.

Het bericht Call For Participants: study visit Youth participation in Finnish Municipalities verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.

Then apply for a webinar from Democracy Reloading this autumn! There are webinars on 28 September, 26 October and 30 November 2022.

The webinars will

• introduce the Democracy Reloading Toolkit
• show its functions and present the structure of the content
• discuss possible ways of developing the organisational culture of the municipality in relation to youth participation in municipal decision-making

Find more info and how to apply here.

Het bericht Democracy Reloading Webinars 2022 verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.

Project Labs

The Europe Goes Local Project Labs are international training and networking events. They bring officials and practitioners in youth work together to strengthen the usage and exploitation of the possibilities offered by the Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps programmes for youth work at municipal level.

Specifically, the Project Labs aim to:

• provide information and training on the possibilities of the European mobility programmes, and how to use them;
• present and curate good practices in using the programmes, with a focus on youth work at municipal level;
• support partnership-building and networking, with a focus on youth work at municipal level;
• allow for project development with a focus on the usage of the European mobility programmes, and provide coaching thereof;
• provide direct contact and support by the network of National Agencies to the potential project promoters / beneficiaries.

Find more information about this project lab on rural youth work here, and apply until the 20th of September here.

You can also still apply for the Project Lab in Bonn until the 5th of September. This project lab doesn’t have a specific theme.

Het bericht Call for participants: Project Lab Supporting Rural Youth Work verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.

The themes of the newsletter will be:

• Events and activities of EGL
• News and activities of partners
• Articles and videos about good practices
• Important highlights of European youth work for local youth workers

EGL aims to launch the future newsletter in the fall, but you can already subscribe here.

Het bericht Newsletter Europe Goes Local verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.

Parameters of the Project Labs

Two project labs are foreseen in 2022.

The first project lab has a general focus and will take place in in Bonn (Germany) from 19-21 October 2022 (including arrival and departure).

The second project lab is focussed on municipalities and local organizations from rural areas. It will take place from 14-17 November 2022 in Halkidiki (Greece).

Both project labs will have around 30-40 participants from the programme countries and neighbouring partner countries of the Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps programmes.

There will also be a joint preparatory webinar for the participants of both events during the week of 3-9 October.

Requested trainers profile

Essential skills and experience:

• Training and facilitation experience in international events with a group of 20-40 participants;
• Familiarity with the youth sector in Europe, awareness of the role of different stakeholders;
• Familiarity with Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps programmes;
• Extensive experience in both formal and non-formal methods applicable at the project labs;
• Proficiency in working with small groups in workshops;
• Familiarity with methods that support exchanges of information and ideas between all participants of the event;
• Experience in facilitating interactive webinars with the use of participatory online methods and tools;
• Fluency in English.

Advantage:

• Knowledge of Europe Goes Local

Working conditions

All costs of travel, board and lodging incurred in relation to the meetings and events will be covered by the organisers. Expert fee (gross): €320/working day.

The number of working days depends on whether the trainer facilitates only one or both project labs.

• Number of working days for one lab: 8 working days
• Number of working days for both labs: 13 days

More information and how to apply

Find more detailed information and how to apply here.

You can also find the call for participants here.

Het bericht Call for trainers for EGL’s Project Labs verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.

Moldova

Let’s start with the municipalities in Moldova!

The first video is about Cahul, which is a city and municipality in southern Moldova. The city is the administrative center of Cahul Distract.

The next municipality is Sipoteni, a commune in Călărași District.

Georgia

SALTO EEC also made three videos about their EGL municipalities in Georgia: Chokhatauri and Zugdidi.

Chokhatauri is a town in Georgia’s Guria region, 310 km west to the capital of Tbilisi. It is an administrative center of Chokhatauri Municipality, which comprises the town itself and its adjoining 60 villages.

Zugdidi is a city in the western Georgian historical province of Samegrelo (Mingrelia). The city is located 318 kilometres west of Tbilisi, 30 km from the Black Sea coast and 30 km from the Egrisi Range.

The first video of Zugdidi is about their culture center.

And then we also have the video about the library in Zugdidi.

We posted one video a week on our social media, and this concludes our weekly videos. You can also watch all of them on the YouTube channel of SALTO Eastern Europe and Caucasus Resource Centre !

Het bericht The EGL municipalities of SALTO EEC verscheen eerst op Europe Goes Local.