European Hackathon: shaping youth ideas on the future of Europe

Background The partnership of EUROTHON wanted to satisfy the need of a structured but yet accessible and appealing methodology aimed at promoting the engagement of young people in the civic life of the environments in which they live. The promotion of their civic commitment has been obtained by satisfying other underlying needs such us: A clear understanding of the functioning of the European Union as well as an appreciation of its values and their importance Tools to become active and independent also economically through meaningful initiative of social entrepreneurship Understanding of the environmental issue and of concepts related with sustainability Appreciation of culture diversity as one of the main strength of EU Awareness of the best methods and strategies to act as “EU ambassadors” and of the opportunities to do so. Together with the above mentioned needs concerning knowledge strictly speaking, another important need that we satisfied with our project has been that of young people to meet and interact with their peers, in particular if coming from a different context, to compare their reciprocal points of view and develop open-mindedness. Objectives The objectives persecuted by the partnership of EUROTHON have been: To enhance young people’s civic participation, providing them with the right information, tools and channels to make their voices heard by policy makers and relevant organisations and stand up as tomorrow's change makers & new EU ambassadors. To increase social inclusion of young people on European values, while promoting intercultural dialogue and acceptance of diversity and tolerance, involving them in initiatives aimed at sharing experiences and different points of view with their peers from other countries and through the development of resources thought to make them appreciate other european cultures. To strengthen young people's sense of initiative, notably in the social field to support their communities, by providing them with skills and competencies needed to undertake similar initiative and with best practices and opportunities to do so. To promote open learning, collaboration and self-learning, by developing Open Educational Resources thought specifically to be appealing for young people. Implementation The activities implemented by EUROTHON have been: Development of the project’s outputs: the partnership developed three resources, namely the Methodological Framework and Training Modules (IO1) the EUROTHON Online Area (IO2) and the Toolkit for EU Ambassadors and Influencers (IO4). Financial and administrative management: financial and administrative documents needed to correctly manage and report the project and its activities have been properly taken care by the partnership. Internal communication between partners worked flawlessly. Four Transnational Project Meetings have been conducted. Dissemination and exploitation activities: the project performed dissemination activities through various channels (social media, website, etc.) and performed 7 promotional events. An Exploitation Plan has been developed in order to ensure the continuous usage of the resources developed. Quality Management: the quality of the project has been assured by rigorous periodical checks, resulting in report duly considered to improve the project’s management. Learning, teaching, training activities: 1 international training for staff members/educators (C1) and 1 Blended Mobility (EUROTHON Event) have been conducted. Achievements The concrete outputs and results of EUROTHON have been: The methodological framework and training modules (IO1): modules thought to have a more interactive and practical approach than a theoretical one and employed both formal and non-formal education methodologies. The modules included are: How to become a changemaker, United in diversity, Save the planet, Social entrepreneurship is the way, Be an EU ambassador! The EUROTHON Online Area (IO2): the modules developed under IO1 have been transformed into a sort of interactive course with theoretical notions and practical exercises. The online area also contains a digital map with topics related to common heritage allowing users to discover and analyse similarities and differences around the various cultural aspects included in the map. The toolkit for EU Ambassadors & Influencers (IO4): a toolkit including best practices of young people engagement, tools, methods, strategies and opportunities for them to act as change-makers and EU Ambassadors. Therefore, the project has increased the participants’ personal commitment to the European values and to enhance their practical skills, by providing them with a proper set of tools for such a strengthened commitment.