this Open Educational Resource (OER) was realised as a result of the journey and the experience collected throughout ARTCOM project which involved six countries from Africa and Europe (i.e., Italy, France, Greece, Kenya, Malawi and Zambia) to create innovative tools for youth workers, in order to support the social inclusion of marginalized young people in the two continents.

ARTCOM was a two years project, co-financed by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Commission, Key Action 2 – Capacity Building in the field of Youth[1]. Through this action and related mobility activities,the European Commission aimed to increase the positive impact of youth work, youth policies and youth system on the qualitative development, and recognition of non-formal education in Partner Countries. Therefore, our project aimed to support the cooperation between European and African countries, so as to support youth workers in their daily job with disadvantaged young people while facing different realities within the two continents.

Furthermore, our project was also aimed at developing new educational approaches for youth workers, promoting social inclusion through an innovative tool known as art therapy. Considering  its extensive experience in sharing best practises and methodologies, ARTCOM partnership worked hard boosting learning, stimulating communication and interactions and reducing the social isolation of young people in the two continents, helping them to better integrate in the society.

[1] https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/erasmus-plus/actions/key-action-2-cooperation-for-innovation-and-exchange-good-practices/capacity_en

We implemented two mobility experiences in order to achieve the above mentioned goals: the International Training Course in Art Therapy in Italy ; the European Voluntary Service (EVS)held in all project countries across Africa and Europe.

Specifically, the EVS experience involved 12 volunteers from and in Europe and Africa in 2019., Volunteers were involved in Art Therapy workshops to achieve intercultural and educational goals of the project, using tools created during the International Training Course in Italy in July 2018 and tested in all project countries from March 2019.

We contributed to the improvement of competences and skills in our local communities throughout ARTCOM project on the one hand, improving our daily job and using innovative tools to enhance the active involvement of young people with disadvantaged background. On the other hand, local participants and EVS volunteers had the opportunity to acquire different soft skills, both professional and personal, that empowered and helped them to increase their chances in the labour market and to acquire greater awareness of their potential. In particular, the disadvantaged people involved in the local activities have benefited greatly from the possibility to improve their skills and to understand more about themselves and on how to find their place in the society, avoiding isolation and discrimination.

We hope this OER will support and help as many youth workers as possible around the world to improve their work and the social inclusion of youth who are often forgotten by the society. In these difficult times, sharing positive values and supporting the new generations have become fundamental to increase hope for a better world. ARTCOM tools will be our donation and small contribution to create this future.

“The future belongs to those who give the next generation reason for hope.”

(Pierre Teilhard de Chardin)

ARTCOM partnership