Youth exchange "The more aware – the closer to the Labour Market" in Greece

“The more aware – the closer to the labour market” was a youth exchange program. The exchange took place over 8 days in Athens, Greece. The participants come from Hungary, Estonia, Bulgaria, Italy, Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania, Turkey, Poland, Croatia, Spain, Lithuania and Greece. 

The main theme of the exchange is the high youth unemployment rates and its aim was doubled. On the one hand, to inform and raise young people’s awareness about the phenomenon and to activate them for action and on the other hand to empower them so that they can make informed decisions about their educational and professional career and effectively present themselves in the labor market.

You can read more about the project here.

"The position of young people in the Labour market today ”

Presentations by the participants As an introductory activity participants were invited to present the situation in their countries regarding youth unemployment in order to gain a clearer idea of the phenomenon and identify similarities or differences between the countries. Participants used different means in order to present the situation such as short sketches, presentations, online interactive games etc.

"Causes and results": Problem tree, work in group, creation of videos through Lumen 5.

Participants divided into groups discussed on the issue of unemployment and created problem trees in order to reveal the correlations between the individual and social factors that negatively affect the employability of young people and the results it brings to the individual and social level. They were then briefly introduced to the Lumen 5 video creation tool and were asked to capture the results of the activity in a short video. The activity ended with video presentation and discussion

“Excuse me, may I ask you?”: Outdoor teamwork 

Participants in this activity interacted with local community and asked random people about youth unemployment. They asked them how they are affected by the problem, which is their opinion for the problem, if they are employed, why the unemployment rate is so high in Greece and if they have any proposal to make for combating youth unemployment. They gathered proposals in written format or in videos.

"Express Unemployment”: Workshop 

Participants were divided in small groups and they created memes related with unemployment and hashtags which then were shared in the public in order to raise awareness of other people and especially youngsters on the topic in a more informal, joyful and attractive to the young generations way. 

“Me and my CV” & "Peer hiring": Workshops & role playing 

In these activities participants after a short introduction and based on what they had learnt in the previous activities, under the guidance of the trainer, had the opportunity to create their own CVs. When all of them had their CVs ready they had the opportunity to use their CV and try to get hired by another participant that had the role of the employer. The activity helped the participants make important conclusions on the important aspects of the format and the content of an appealing CV and learnt from each other.

"Α busy day in the ministry I": Group activity 

In this activity the participants had the opportunity to discuss about unemployment and try to find solutions on the problem having different roles. These proposals were used for drafting later in another activity a declaration on youth unemployment in order to make their voice heard. They discussed what can be done by the youngsters themselves but also by the society and the governments for meliorating the situation.

During the above mentioned activities and much more as well as secondary activities and processes such as energizers, group building and communication activities, intercultural activities, that they are not referred in the current report the participants gained important social, personal and professional skills. All the initial learning goals were achieved and most of the participants acquired/ improved very important knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviors. Their achievements were certified and validated through Youth Passes.