From 19 to 27.11.2017 in Lithuania an intercultural team of academicians and social activists participated in the training course on issues of young refugees’ and internally displaced people’s adaptation in new community «INVOLVEMENT: Involving and Embracing Mentalities» that was implemented under the umbrella of the EU Programme ERASMUS+.
The main developers of the project: National Mining University that has been cooperating with Lithuanian partners for a long time due to encouragement of Consulate of Lithuanian Republic in Dnipro, NGO “Inseptus” (Lithuania) and NGO “Development and Initiative” (Ukraine). The project participants represented Ukraine, Lithuania, Austria, Greece, Ireland, Armenia and Sicily.
The "INVOLVEMENT" project was the first attempt to combine formal and non-formal education in trying to solve the problem of social inclusion of young people who were forced to migrate through military conflicts. During the training, representatives of public volunteer organizations and the academic sector together tried to find ways to cooperate in this rather complicated case. In contrast to formal education that is strictly standardized and certified and allows people to gain specific knowledge and skills proved by degrees and diplomas, non-formal trainings and courses are not so structured and regulated in terms of content and educational methods. Participants were challenged by the problem of how academicians could be integrated into extra-classes delivered by NGO and, in turn, how social activists could provide young refugees with more planned and structured support. It is common ground that community activists and university teachers can play the role of connectors in helping young refugees adapt to the local social environment and develop complex plans for formal and non-formal education focused on young displaced persons.
Through the project, young people from different countries have improved skills in intercultural communication, critical thinking, argumentative discussion, analysis and strategy formation.
The training days were extremely rich in various sessions and panel discussions, and in the evening there were intercultural parties with national songs, dancing and interesting facts about the participating countries.
We invite partners and friends to cooperate in future projects.
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