Current information & Workshop topic query
Thank you for registering for the European Youth Work Symposium 2024! We look forward to welcoming you soon at the Dortmunder U!
Preparations for this extraordinary event on 28 October 2024 are in full swing. We would be delighted to present the updated programme and inform you about the venue and how to get there.
But above all, we need your help now: please fill in the short form below and indicate which of the five working groups you are most interested in. This can be done in a minute and will make the preparations much easier.
Please fill in the form now!
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Working groups to choose from:
1. Stronger Together: Organising Youth Workers and Their Allies
Working conditions in youth work are often difficult: temporary and inadequate funding, overlapping professional and voluntary commitments, insufficient recognition of youth work as a profession: How should European youth workers and their allies from politics and civil society network to make their voices heard? Which cooperation organisations have already been formed, what experiences have they had and what are the next steps to strengthen the representation of common interests? How do these needs relate to the demands of the young people involved?
Facilitated by Olga Kyriakidou, youth worker and trainer for non-formal learning and youth counselling, Kids in Action (Thessaloniki, Greece) | Input: Federica Demicheli, board member AYWA – Alliance of Youth Workers Associations, vice-chair NINFEA – National Informal and Non-Formal Education Association, member of the International Youth Work Trainers Guild (Arona, Italy)
2. Mind Matters: Promoting Young People’s Well-Being in Youth Work
At the beginning of last year, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) declared a crisis in young people’s mental health. On this side of the Atlantic, the figures are also clear: mental health is the most pressing health issue facing young people in Europe. What are the common challenges to young people’s mental wellbeing and how can resilience be promoted in the youth work system? What support do youth work programmes need to respond to these challenges?
Facilitated by Marthe Behr, M.A. Democratic Politics and Communication, B. Sc. Psychologist, project manager and pedagogical staff of Krea-Jugendclub (Bergisch Gladbach, Germany) | Input: Karolina Kosowska, Mental Health First Aider, trainer and facilitator on topics including team building, well-being and stress management (Brussels, Belgium)
3. Overcoming Barriers: Fostering More Inclusive, Accessible Youth Work
Youth work should be equally accessible to all, regardless of personal circumstances, background, parental income and previous success in the formal education system. This diversity is not always guaranteed, especially in international programmes. How can barriers be recognised and ways created to make youth work more accessible? What strategies are effective in promoting inclusion and diversity in youth work in different European contexts? How can organisations ensure that they are accessible to young people from different backgrounds and with different needs – and what do youth work organisations and their staff need to do this?
Facilitated by Amaya Diloy García, Social Educationalist (Dipl.) and Psychopedagogue, Project Manager and pedagogical staff at Fundación Federico Ozanam (Zaragoza, Spain) | Input: Philipp Bryant, special needs pedagogue and lecturer for inclusive pedagogy at the Protestant University of Applied Sciences Bochum (Bochum, Germany)
4. Level Up: Strengthening Local Youth Work for European Cooperation
Impact research largely agrees that international youth projects have a lasting positive impact on the lives of young people and their participation in society, especially when they are integrated into stable local youth work structures. Nevertheless, many funding programmes do not take into account the importance of long-term sustainable local institutions. What steps are needed to secure local youth work as a sustainable basis? On this basis, how can European cooperation between local youth projects be promoted in order to create new synergies?
Facilitated by Gianni Orsini, youth worker and counsellor for sustainable development, international cooperation, conflict management, transformation and participation, Irènia – Jocs de Pau (La Nou de Berguedà, Barcelona, Spain) | Input: Judit Balogh, coordinator of the European cooperation project Europe Goes Local, JINT vzw (Brussels, Belgium)
5. Active Citizenship and Youth Activism: Two Sides of the Same Coin
Civic education, which enables active citizenship, is a declared goal of official European youth programmes. At the same time, young people who are committed to social, democratic and environmental issues sometimes face institutional barriers. The working group offers space for exchange between young activists and representatives from youth work, politics and administration: How can misunderstandings be avoided and actual conflicts of interest be dealt with productively? How can civic education formats help prepare young people for these conflicts? What common goals do active young people and those who decide on the funding and structures of youth work have – and how can these goals be achieved?
Facilitated by Kasia Blasinska, IRSE – Fundacja Instytut Równowagi Społeczno-Ekonomicznej (Gdańsk, Poland) | Expert input: Maren Mitterer, Fridays for Future and co-organiser of the demonstration „Gemeinsam gegen Rechts“ (Munich, Germany)
09:30 Check-in and admission
10:00 Arrival talks and official welcome: Why we are here and what we want, with, among others: ■ Jocelyne Jakob (IBB e.V. | Dortmund, Germany), ■ Marit Pelzer (European Youth Policy Centre at the German Youth Institute – DJI | Munich, Germany), ■ Nien Boots (Association Càlam | Barcelona, Spain), ■ Davide Sibilia (Centro di Creazione e Cultura | Florence, Italy)
11:30 Best practice: Young people present their projects and experiences in European youth work
12:30 Lunch
13:30 Keynote speech „Building Bridges, Breaking Barriers“ by ■ Katia Henrikh, youth worker and project manager from Chernivtsi, Ukraine (DUGA – German-Ukrainian Youth Work Association)
14:00 Expert statements on the focus topics with, among others: ■ Federica Demicheli (AYWA – Alliance of Youth Workers Associations | Arona, Italy), ■ Karolina Kosowska (Mental Health First Aider | Brussels, Belgium), ■ Philipp Bryant (Evangelische Hochschule Bochum | Bochum, Germany), ■ Judit Balogh, Europe Goes Local | Brussels, Belgium) ■ Maren Mitterer (Fridays for Future & Gemeinsam gegen Rechts“ | Munich, Germany)
14:30 Working groups on the five focus topics
16:45 Panel discussions on the results of the working groups
18:15 Conclusions and outlook
18:30 Meet & Greet during the evening buffet
20:30 Departure and end of the event
Building Bridges, Breaking Barriers
European Youth Work Symposium 2024
Monday, 28. Oktober 2024, 10:00-20:30
(Admission & check-in from 09:30)
Dortmunder U – Zentrum für Kunst und Kreativität
Leonie-Reygers-Terrasse, 44137 Dortmund
How to get there: The Dortmunder U is a 5-minute walk from Dortmund Central Station (approx. 800 metres as the crow flies). Car parks in Brinkhoffstraße 4 directly at Dortmunder U, in Schmiedingstraße (approx. 200 m) and at Dortmund Central Station. The venue in Google Maps.
The working language of the event is English, translations into German and Italian will be provided.
Do you have any questions or need further information about the symposium? Then please contact our project manager Marion Gronstedt by e-mail!
To get an impression, have a look at the results of last year’s symposium: Youth Work in Europe – Mission (Im)possible?