"Artists, particularly young ones, have generally struggled with finding paid work, and this lack of opportunities has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 crisis as it has hit the cultural and creative sectors particularly hard. At the same time, within the wide spectrum of arts, street arts/graffiti has been a powerful conductor of social intervention/awareness, an extraordinary added value that’s not always duly recognized and awarded. However, despite highly attracting many youngsters and recently gaining some expanded venues with corporate work, it has not yet reached a general consensus/public acceptance, being still frowned upon by many people. And so, there is still a big lack of street and other public venues wherein to legally place this art despite this being its original context, because it is still misunderstood by the authorities and property owners in general.In this context, the organisations involved wanted to create opportunities to enhance young graffiti artists self-sufficiency, and emphasize their power to convey important messages about global issues, such as environment/climate change and youth participation, being these two subjects a great source of concern in societies all around.Within this context of issues for young artists today, GATS aims at having them make street art and graffiti (for simplicity, ""graffiti"" only will be used for the rest of the application) art pieces in publicly accessible ways. Which will provide them an opportunity to work, reaching a wide audience of people appreciating their art, without even having to go to enclosed locations, while openly promoting the aforementioned social messages. And, at the same time further promote and legitimate this form of art, with the production of a short-film, focusing on its social, artistic and cultural added value and on breaking myths around it. Thus, it’s objectives are:Obj.1 - Create opportunities for young artists to display their art while also promoting their own activist goalsObj.2 - Equip young artists with more developed skills, and increased audience and networkObj.3 - Deliver products that contribute to the legitimation of graffitiObj.4 - Prompt young people to become more active and participate in social causes, with a focus on environmental and climate change.GATS main target-group are young graffiti artists, and the hope is to meet their needs for more overall work opportunities; more venues available to broadcast their messages; skills development in terms of networking, marketing, entrepreneurship, etc., directed at enhancing their overall employability and self-sufficiency; higher acceptance/legitimisation of their art form, as it still remains perceived by many as illegal and harmful, and not ""art"".In addition, through the messages about climate change and youth participation, other young people are also targeted, the intention being that the messages from the art pieces will move more youth to become more active about those causes or others close to them.As such, the expected results are:- 20 young graffiti artists with more developed professional skills and enlarged audience and network of contacts- messages about environment and youth participation/activism promoted and disseminated among over 40,000 people (total expected foot traffic in the venues in a year)- enhancement of the graffiti public image and legitimacy as an art form, through the advocating potential of the art pieces delivered and the short-filmThe envisioned GATS impacts, from short to long-term, are an advancement in the acknowledgment of graffiti as a legitimate art form, able to connect and promote social intervention, by raising awareness about local and global issues. Which in turn has a great potential to mobilise youth to be more active, in terms of citizenship, as graffiti is a powerful vehicle of communication that usually resonates very well among them. While developing skills in young artists, can boost this field and its employability and self-sufficiency, opening more doors for it to happen in public spaces, and other venues.As a spin-off effect, we believe that the graffiti locations will benefit from the increased tourism revenue that can come from the participation/visibility in such an artistic (transnational) venture, a clear result from the dissemination of the project.Lastly, GATS strongly entails the potential to not only benefit individuals and broadcast important messages, but also to contribute to an art field that is sometimes remiss of its own place of origin. Graffiti has been used in its history to broadcast numerous public opinions, and as the political regimes across Europe have changed and the generations have grown it exposes and testifies to the changing culture. This project would, in its own way, make a small contribution to an important part of Europe's culture."

In the strategic partnership FAE (Fusion of Art and Education) we will focus on the cooperation between adult educators and artists. We think this collaboration will help to develop the competences for the artists and the adult educators to launch educational and artistic projects, which are important for the future of democracy and participation. Involved are four expierenced organisations from Germany (HochVier - Gesellschaft für politische und Interkulturelle Bildung), Italy (CESIE), Portugal (Embaixada da Juventude) and Austria (uniT GmbH).They will do a research about the state of the art of the use of art and artists in adult education (IO1), organize examplary artistic and educational courses/events/pilot projects (IO2) and give recommandations about a further fruitfull collaboration of art and education (IO3).The project has four target groups:For the residents of the involved regions, communities or urban spaces the project will•give the participants a voice, make their needs visible and audible. The projects have to involve residents or members of the chosen community to reflect on their situation by using the means of art.•foster and stimulate dialogue, communication and discussion among the participants. •increase democratic partizipation and democratic development of society•raise awareness for the beneficiaries that they can do something to change a situation, to design a better future for them and to fight for their visions and ideas.•increase identification with their region, district etc. and the inclusion and communication between different groups in the according territory. Results for the artists•The project gives the artists a chance to demonstrate what art can do for a society, communities etc.•It can give an example of a two- way cooperation between art and adult education, which can also be a role model for other types of cooperation with other important institutions in society. •It will increase the competences of artists to run this type of project in cooperation together with other institutions. Results for the adult educators and adult education organisations•Gathering experiences how arts and adult education can cooperate, how the different approaches can create synergetic effects for the final beneficiaries and how the different roles in the project can be defined clearly, so that all the partners can bring in their own strengths•Increasing the competences to implement such cooperative projects and to see what additional competencies adult educators and organisations working in the field of adult education will need to run these projects and to implement the cooperation successfully•Motivating organisations for adult education to engage artists for projectsResults for target groups of dissemination•Artists’ unions and organisations, artists, adult educators and their organisations as well as politicians and stakeholders are here target groups. The project offers good practice examples, ideas, concepts and recommendations for cooperation between art and education.All outputs will be available as free OER downloads on the project's website and the websites of the participating organisations. The OER products and the link to these websites will also be published on EPALE as on other platforms.The projects website will remain online and updated available beyond project length so that an easy access to our dissemination materials is guaranteed. For the website we want to produce content even after the project has finished and want to establish as one important site for people looking for information about art and artists in adult education.The eight Multiplier Events are according to IO2 and IO3. They want show results, recommandations and best practise to a wider public and so dissaminate. At the same time they serve for discussion, reflection, evaluation and further development.First the project results will be disseminated into the participating organisations to improve the structures and procedures of the involved organisations and their staff's competences and expertise in using art and artists.The outside targets for disseminating the intellectual outcomes are adult education providers at all levels but also individual educators and artists, their organisations, stakeholder, politicians etc.

The VOLUME project is addressing volunteers who care about unaccompanied minors as a primary target group. The overall objective is to provide them with key competences that are needed to care about unaccompanied minors in an appropriate way. To reach this objective, the project will develop a training platform with training modules for volunteers, covering relevant topics like i.e. reception and housing, education and training, health and wellbeing, family reunification and legal framework. The training platform might as well be used by professionals seeking non-formal training opportunities in this field of activity. The final content and structure of the training modules and the curriculum will be basing on the outcomes of a need analysis conducted in the project prior to the content development. The modular structure of the training platform will enable learners and educators to individually choose from topics relevant to their respective activities. Learners will be able to assess and validate their learning outcomes with open digital badges. Moreover, apart from delivering self-directed non-formal learning opportunities for the primary target groups, the project is as well addressing educators who are implementing training courses for volunteers (and professionals seeking for non-formal training) seeking for appropriate training material that can be combined with face-to-face seminars and on-line workshops. To meet their demands, the project is going to develop and disseminate a blended learning curriculum that can be combined with the VOLUME training modules. The number of unaccompanied minors seeking asylum in the EU increased dramatically reaching a total of 100.000 minors in 2015. With a high number of unaccompanied minors waiting in entry states like Greece for being distributed to other EU countries, or entering the EU in the upcoming periods due to many unsolved conflicts throughout the world, the issue will be remaining on the agenda of both political and societal level in Europe and its member states. In most EU countries receiving refugees and migrants, volunteers play a significant role in the support of unaccompanied minors. They act as legal guardians, accompany minors in their school education or initial vocatineeded onal training, host minors in their homes or look after their health and safety. Volunteers often form a specific role in the lives of unaccompanied minors who are mostly missing relatives, belonging to the few adults that are able to find an individual personal access to them. Within this special role there are numerous i.e. social, psychological, or educational skills to be me the volunteers. Other than professional staff they are not entitled for further training in most cases, so that they have to look for educational opportunities themselves. This clearly expresses the demand for individual training opportunities for volunteers supporting unaccompanied minors. There is a demand as well for for professionals working in related areas, seeking for non-formal training opportunities that can be combined with their daily work obligations. According to European studies, a common challenge reported in the fields of caring about unaccompanied minors is the lack of specialised and trained staff. Target groups of the project include volunteers caring about unaccompanied minors, volunteer coordinators, professionals in this field of activity seeking for non-formal training, and staff and decision makers in adult education and other educational and social sectors. The medium to long-term impact of the project on teaching staff will be to strengthen their methodological skills and abilities. The impact on the participating organisations will be to have better trained staff in an area of competence which is a key issue to providing educational quality at a very broad term. An impact in the participating organisations at medium to long term will be achieved by strengthening the methodological skills through the application of training platform and the blended learning curriculum. This will be due within the participating organisations where staff will be strengthened in their professional development, and externally for trainers working in other relationships with volunteers and/or professionals in the field. Participants in the project will gain a new platform for the development of individual competences as regards working with their beneficiary groups at short term, and being enabled to apply and further develop further knowledge at medium and long term. The project is bringing together partners from five European countries experienced in migration and integration issues including the care for unaccompanied minors. The VOLUME project outputs will be available on the training platform as open educational resources (OER) in all partner languages (English, German, Italian and Greek). Local multiplier events and a short-term staff training will support the dissemination.

"<< Background >>The Climate Crisis is an apparent issue. It is a great challenge for all of us in the coming decades. It is up to us to find solution. The project wants to contribute to this and develop a new footpath of learning. It must be considered that the Clothing Industry is - after the oil industry - the second largest polluter worldwide. At the same time, fashion is a booming industry with almost unlimited growth.The project combines ecologial learning and the development of environmental awarness with a new approach to fashion. It develops inspiring learning environments and materials, describes new formats of knowledge transfer, which ultimately fall back on an old pedagogical model: Hand, heart and brain are addressed. This is also the case here: The heart is allowed to express its concern about the impending catastrophe and the desire to contribute to overcoming the climate catastrophe. This is met with the strategy of upcycling. Brain: one gets information and knowledge about why it makes sense to act this way. Acting makes it possible to learn how to upcycle and thus get a better idea of sustainable clothing production. The production of the garment industry has an enormous impact on the environment; it is the second-largest polluter in the world after the oil industry. Considering that the clothing industry has such a negative impact on the environment and therefore highly contributes to climate change, all partner organizations aim to contribute to a valuable project that combats this issue. The subject of fast fashion and mass production is an issue with a worldwide impact. It is a highly relevant thematic and since it has a close connection to problematics such as climate change and environmental issues, in general, is of high concern. Such an Issue is not only of European interest but also is of crucial concern for other parts of the world such as Africa and Asia regarding the production and disposal of the non – sustainable clothing items. Considering the worldwide impact that non-sustainable clothing has and the absolute importance to search and find alternatives, it is of great importance that non-governmental organizations receive a better understanding and education about the thematic. It is particularly crucial to take up action at this time not only for environmental reasons but also for economic and cultural ones. The business with sustainable clothing and upcycling would be an adequate opportunity to gain financial means with already existing and used materials. Moreover, it is important to keep a focus on the cultural aspect of sustainable clothing. Considering that momentarily consumption is on an all-time high and that oftentimes it is talked about a throwaway society, such a project might be a good tool to demonstrate that it is possible to make further use of clothing items. It offers up the chance to make more efficient use of resources, which aligns with the principles of “The European New Deal”.<< Objectives >>The main objectives of this project are promoting sustainability and inclusion in adult education, improving the competences of educators and other adult education staff and gaining more knowledge in terms of sustainability and the clothing industry. While there already is notable knowledge and experience present in that aspect, it always of all partners interest to gain new ideas and methods in the context of adult education. Particularly considering that Educational trainers are the main target group of this project, the Partner Organizations see this the project as a valuable opportunity, to gain an even better understanding of creative, innovative, and practical teaching methods, especially in terms of the relevant subject that is sustainability.People get together to create their own unique style using secondhand clothing. They investigate the origins of the garments, the conditions surrounding their creation, and deal with their quality through working with textiles. As a result of the informal learning processes in the workshops, small ""environmentally conscious cells"" are formed. In collaboration with adult educators and artists who are actively interested in the artsFurthermore, all partners realize the opportunity to gain more knowledge and educate about Development Education activities. The issues of Fast-Fashion and non-sustainable clothing does not only have impacts in Europe. Especially regions in Asia, through the production of the items and then later Africa through the disposal of the clothes feel the effects of the fast fashion industry. Even though there is already vast experience present in the field of Development Education, it is of strong interest for the organizations to make use of that experience and knowledge, while also being able to gain more knowledge on the matter. We also want to promote European ideas and improve intercultural understanding by sharing our experience from Erasmus+ in the different project steps and events. The participating organisations also aim for improving their their educational activities, networks and intercultural/ international work.<< Implementation >>Besides the project results, we are going to implement general management activities like financial and time management lead by HochVier as the head of the steering committee as well as quality management activities like evaluations, feedback loops, qualitative and quantitative measures and controlling milestones. To achieve the project results there will be various activities such as online project meetings, designing, participating in and organizing workshops, creating a website and an informative online brochure, producing short film clips, photos, short texts and create an artistically designed journal. Discussions with stakeholders will be held and recommendations will be given. There will be several dissemination activities like publishing the outputs, creating a website, spreading information in newsletters of our partners and our network etc. During the five transnational meetings, all the monitoring activities, communication processes and trust-building will be emphasized. There will be activities to prepare the multiplier events which are conferences with stakeholders, educators etc. where the project results will be presented and also the multiplier events themselves are an implemented activity.<< Results >>To reach the goals set by this project we will identify, exchange and test already existing good practices. Furthermore, different project results will be created during this partnership. The workload of those Project Results will be divided up into five work packages. The first Project Result will focus on designing a Pilot Project of Workshop spaces that deal with the matter of sustainable clothing and concentrate on the aspect of upcycling. The organizations will work closely with young adults, older people and migrants on the impact of fashion production on the environment and strategies such as upcycling to address this. A further Project Result will reflect and analyse those results that were produced in PR1 and out of that a Collection of Best Practice can be developed.The offered materials of the Collection of Best Practice should make people want to offer the workshop formats. Project Result 3 will be a Peer-to-Peer Learning Model. Young adults, in particular, communicate a lot on the internet, on social media. The project makes use of this. It develops materials (film clips, photos, short texts) with the young adults involved that can be shared via the internet. In this way, the acquired knowledge is passed on among peers. For this purpose, a model is systematically developed by reflecting and systematising the experience gained in the first series of workshops and testing it again in the second workshop round. Furthermore, to this, another Project Result will offer two different training modules for adult educators and artists. This will have amongst other things the goal to have a long-lasting impact beyond the end of the project. For the last Project Result, an artistically designed journal will be produced. The journal presents the project, the results of the activities and the learning experience of the workshop participants in the form of artistic creation with visual effects and short texts. There is the opportunity to use a number of various visual effects in order to showcase the content. Incorporating a design that addresses the thematic of clothes would be one opportunity for example. The book is an important part of the dissemination of the project and has the purpose to present the overall work done in the project.Through the exchange of good practices, organisations and educators will gather inspiration in terms of upcycling, sustainable clothing items and mindful environmentally thinking in general. The exchange with colleagues from other European countries also creates a mutual understanding basis for future cross-border cooperation and lays the foundation for internationalisation efforts of the involved organisations as well as the involved staff which contributes to a European space for learning."

Building Social Bridges by Entrepreneurial Thinking: the overall aim of this project is to facilitate and pave the way for sustainable social inclusion among socially marginalized groups through improving their entrepreneurial mindset and competences. In the project we focus on increasing social capital which often goes hand in hand with the increasing of cultural and economic capital. Social capital has commonly been used as a term to characterize the networks that link people together in useful ways (bridging capital) and build reciprocity and social solidarity through shared norms and loyalties (bonding capital). Social capital is a constructive source of participation and community relations; thus it is an important resource for adult learners aiming at better accessing labour market, local communities and social groups.The main beneficiaries of the project are marginalized groups in European societies who are educationally and socially disadvantaged. According to Eurostat (2012) circa 24% of the European population risks poverty or social exclusion. Due to the expertise of the participating organizations the project partnership will concentrate on the work with migrants and refugees on one hand, and with drop-outs of the compulsory school-system as vulnerable sub group on the other hand. During the project lifetime, we expect to include 100 end beneficiaries and 20 role models as active participants directly into the project flow. Major target groups of the project outputs will be teachers and stakeholders in adult learning, and other educational and social sectors.To increase any type of capital, an entrepreneurial mindset and entrepreneurial competences are needed. What is important in the project approach is that we do not work on entrepreneurship with the objective to create small companies, businesses etc. We focus on entrepreneurial thinking as a means to increasing social capital to motivate people to create, or access and develop networks and communities to link people to the external environment beyond the confines of one´s own affinity group. They should become change makers of their life as well as in the community. The main strategy to achieve this goal is to work with role models - preferable role models who have faced challenges comparable to those the learners are facing. Role models will be people who achieved to build social bridges against all the external circumstances and obstacles. Building up an entrepreneurial mindset is including knowledge about ones’ own values and fears. For example, if one does not allow oneself to fail, to take risks, to be active in the planning ones’ own life, it will block the approach to and the motivation to learn and to improve the own situation.The project will result in 3 intellectual outputs:- A review on recent research of good practice in working on the entrepreneurial mindset and competences and of working with role models. - Portraits of role models for entrepreneurial thinking, highlighting why people have had success and have been able to increase their social capital and we will make the findings accessible to the public. These role models will come out of the beneficiary groups of the project. At the end there will be portraits and descriptions of these role models and their secrets, accessible for the public and useable for educational activities, aiming at fostering entrepreneurial thinking and beyond.- A toolkit for teachers, trainers, stakeholders and multipliers from adult learning institutions and other educational / social sectors, in which the training programme developed in the project will be published together with the training methodologies applied by the partners, and learning experiences made by training participants.We want to highlight the importance of building bridges to external environments, and how helpful communities, associations etc. are for gathering a better position and voice in local societies. We want to assess the beneficiaries’ entrepreneurial competences by different methods (i.e. portfolio work) and give them feedback. This will be done in workshops and trainings. We will improve the entrepreneurial competences and change the entrepreneurial mindset by a process of dialogue with the role models and the reflection on this experience. The partners will work on the objectives with different methods due to their strengths - creative methods, blended and online learning. Through the possibility to transfer the project outcomes to other target groups, further effects of the project may arise at long term. This concerns stakeholders (professionals from education and training institutions, social services and migrant organisations) that are incorporated in the project, and should help to ensure the sustainability of project outcomes.