Author: web-admin

Lernen passiert immer und überall. In alltäglichen Situationen – aber vor allem dann, wenn wir mit ungewöhnlichen und neuen Herausforderungen konfrontiert sind. Freiwilliges Engagement ist eine solche Herausforderung, der sich jährlich tausende junge Menschen in Österreich stellen und damit nicht nur einen wertvollen Beitrag für die Allgemeinheit leisten, sondern auch sich selbst persönlich weiterentwickeln.

Zu diesem Thema „Kompetenzentwicklung in freiwilliger Tätigkeit“ organisierten die Berater^® in Kooperation mit der Österreichischen Kinderkrebshilfe am 23. Februar einen Themenabend. Die Kinderkrebshilfe fördert freiwilliges Engagement ehemals krebskranker junger Menschen und ermöglicht diesen, sich aktiv einzubringen.

Im farbenfrohen Ambiente des Top-Lokals wurde das EU Projekt „VALLEY“ präsentiert, an dem die Berater® als Projektpartner beteiligt war. 16 jugendliche Survivors diskutierten im Anschluss an die Präsentation über Kompetenzen und wie man deren Weiterentwicklung erkennen kann…und wo und wann dies passiert.

Weitere Informationen: valley-eu.org

We at die Berater® do a lot of transnational projects. Networld is a special one. The project is funded by the European Commission’s Danube Transnational Programme (DTB) and has just started with a kick-off meeting in Kobarid/Slovenia, a hotspot of the southern war front and now and forerunner in WW1 peace work. It is special for three reasons:

Networld pursues the multiplex (multiple and complex) aim to

• Preserve constructional heritage of World War 1, i.e. trench systems, fortifications, war cemeteries and other military and civilian sites and buildings from decay
• Develop and market sustainable cultural tourism strategies based on this heritage
• Find new ways of reaching (young ) people with peace and history education offers on World War 1, making use of new technologies and informal learning Events

Networld will be an immense learning field for the institutions and people involved.

No less than 14 partner institutions from the Danube region plus 10 strategic, supportive partners from a total of 11 countries will work together in the coming two and a half years. These partners are very diversified – municipalities, reginal development agencies, museums, universities, training providers, NGOs – and will bring in their quite different backgrounds, experiences and approaches.

Networld, at last, is an excellent example that the European Union is about something else than imposing silly bureaucratic rules. Through a project like Networld the EU fosters a joint memorial culture on one the most painful events of the last century, instead of indulging in separated national(istic) remembrance and cravings for revenge. At the same time, sustainable regional development is enhanced. And peace and prosperity have indeed always been two fundamental pillars of the European idea and badly need to be held high in our times of populist discontent and Derogation.

Volunteering is one of the most appreciated and experienced activities that young people choose to feel part of the community. In this way a variety of experiences can be gained through volunteering activities – on the other hand competences and qualifications are earned which can be useful for ones’ professional career. The Erasmus+ project VALLEY developed new resources to identify and to recognise skills and competences developed by young people during their volunteering experiences.

These resources and the validation methodology were presented in the final VALLEY conference on February 16 in Marseille. The hosting partner “Eurocircle” invited young volunteers and experts from more than 40 organisations to share their experiences and to discuss about the benefits of volunteering in terms of social integration, civic participation and discovery of hidden talents.

One highlight of the conference was the ceremony of the VALLEY award and the presentation of the winners. The VALLEY award was announced to look for more initiatives and activities that promote the development of competences in youth volunteering in an innovative way. “And the VALLEY award goes to…”:

• Groeiboekje (“Book of growth”) by Jeugddienst Don Bosco, Belgium
• The Leadership Development Assessment by AIESEC, Austria

Find more about VALLEY, the event and award winners under valley-eu.org and Facebook!

Contact us: m.satke@dieberater.com

We are happy to announce that we take part in the EU-Project Janus+, which is about learning and assessing soft transversal skills in work-linked trainings. The project aims to optimize the success of pathways, to prevent from dropouts and to favor employment integration and professional mobility.

More information will follow soon!

Kick-off for New Horizons Project

A long-term disease or a severe accident can have a big impact on ones’ personal and /or professional life. Often health problems make it impossible for those affected to return to their old workplace.

The New Horizons project addresses to trainers, consultants or caches who work with long term unemployed people who suffer from health problems. The project work aims at the development of supporting material to improve the qualification of those professionals.

From November 7-8 the partner consortium met for the kick off meeting in Volos (GR). Partners from Bulgaria, Spain, UK, Greece, Cyprus, Ireland and Austria will cooperate together for the next two years to develop inovative products to increase the employability of disabled persons. Learn more: www.newhorizons-eu.org