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The OeAD congratulates the award winners
Vienna (OTS) – The Austrian Youth Prize was awarded on December 14, 2021. For the sixth time, outstanding initiatives and projects in extracurricular youth work were honored. The winners of the Austrian Youth Prize 2021 also include five youth projects that were funded by the EU programs Erasmus + and the European Solidarity Corps (ESK). Since 2016, the Ministry of Youth, in cooperation with the Federal Youth Representation, to the Nationwide network of open youth work, to the Federal Network of Austrian Youth Information as well as the OeAD, the national agency for EU programs Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps, the best projects in extracurricular youth work are awarded the youth prize.
“Together with the project managers, we are delighted to have received this special award for their commitment. These projects make it clear how enriching a European dimension can be for youth work and how effective EU funding opportunities are. With their projects, those responsible have set sustainable accents on a local, regional, national and European level, ”says Jakob Calice, OeAD Managing Director.
Young people working for the community
The ESK projects awarded in the “European Initiatives” category were dedicated to socially explosive topics and presented new approaches to solutions. In their solidarity project “Turning Up Against Violence”, five young people in Tyrol started a campaign to prevent violence. They developed a podcast series that was broadcast on Radio FREIRAD from November to December 2020 during the international campaign period “16 days against violence against women”. Experts and those affected have their say in the podcasts. In addition, various facilities and offers of help are presented: “We wanted to educate those affected by violence about the local support options and inform potential perpetrators about the consequences of their actions,” explains Charlotte Riser, one of the initiators of the project. In the ESK project “My Rights – Human Rights!”, The young project team developed a collection of methods to convey human rights to the target group of children and young people. In an online webinar, the methods were then presented to multipliers who are involved in youth work or school social work. In addition, a digital version of the collection of methods was created.
Volunteer work honored
In addition to solidarity projects, ESK volunteer projects were also honored: five young volunteers from Estonia, Latvia, France and Portugal worked in youth centers in Tyrol as part of the European Solidarity Corps. The project “Volunteering in Open Youthwork in Tyrol” was coordinated by POJAT – Platform for Open Youth Work Tyrol. Thanks to the commitment of the young volunteers, the offer for young people in the local facilities could be expanded. For example, cooking courses, theater workshops and dance lessons were organized by the volunteers. Young volunteers from Europe also brought a breath of fresh air to five Don Bosco child and youth work facilities. “Time for young people” was the title of this ESK project, in which the young helpers got involved in local child and youth work.
With the “U Facilitating U” project, the further training of youth work specialists moved into the focus of the Austrian Youth Prize this year. The Erasmus + project, organized by the association POPEDU Austria, aimed to provide youth workers with valuable tips for dealing with challenges in their everyday work. The participants from different European countries also benefited from this European training setting: Foreign language skills were refreshed, new ways of working were introduced and valuable contacts were made.
EU funding opportunities for youth projects in Austria
The two EU programs Erasmus + and European Solidarity Corps offer financial support for numerous activities in the youth and education sector. The European Solidarity Corps supports local initiatives by young people and volunteer work by young people across Europe. Around 2.2 million euros in funding will be available in Austria in 2022. Erasmus + promotes, among other things, the meeting of young people from different countries, the further training of specialists in youth work as well as the participation of young people in socio-politically relevant topics. In total, more than 60 million euros in funding will be available in Erasmus + in 2022 for projects in the fields of education, youth and sport.
As the national agency for Erasmus + and the European Solidarity Corps, the OeAD is responsible for the implementation of both programs in Austria. More information about the funding opportunities at www.erasmusplus.at such as www.solidaritaetskorps.at
Inquiries & contact:
OeAD – Agency for Education and Internationalization
Mag. Ursula Hilmar
01/534 08-270
hurry@oead.at
www.oead.at
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