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Description
In a county with the second lowest voter turnout among young people and the second largest number of young people emigrating abroad, young people from rural and small urban areas do not trust politics, do not know the role of the active citizens in the community; moreover, the term active citizen is completely foreign for most of the people, and above all, the adults around the young, either parents or teachers, disapprove the small tendencies of those young people who want to do something different.
Getting involved in volunteer projects is often seen as a waste of time, both by adults and by young people. They do not know the relevance and impact of civic involvement in the personal development of young people or in the consolidation of an inclusive community. Adults in the community believe that the only concern for young people should be school and work. Empowering Youth Academy brings active citizenship in the youth trend, in the community trend. It involves and empowers young people in solidarity and volunteering activities, in advocacy and civic involvement projects, in developing a culture of active citizenship. Then, through dedicated events, they present to the community and other young people about the relevance of active citizenship, about the impact on their lives and on community development, in creating a community that most people hope. What handful of young people can do, and what many more than that can do. Empowering Youth Academy is a context, a framework that brings tools, resources, people empowering young people to active citizenship, to strengthen a democratic culture and civic involvement among people and young people in the community.
Summary of project results
In a county with the second lowest voter turnout among young people and the second largest number of young people emmigrating abroad, young people from rural and small urban areas do not trust politics, do not know the role of the active citizen in the community; moreover, the term active citizen is completely foreign for most of the people, and above all, the adults around the young, either parents or teachers, disapprove the small tendencies of those young people who want to do something different. Getting involved in volunteer projects is often seen as a waste of time, both by adults and by young people. They do not know the relevance and impact of civic involvement in the personal development of young people or in the consolidation of an inclusive community.
Due to the implementation of the project, a team of professionals were set up for creating a learning, development and practice framework for civic competences, dedicated to young people from Onești and surrounding community, which attracted hundreds of young people in dedicated activities. Empowering Youth Academy has become a reference name in the community when it comes to refer to young people, in this regard is the fact that the project team has been invited to debates with representatives of the local administration for developing a youth strategy and also, the local authorities offered sponsorships for youth activities. Civicon Festival, an activity in the project, has become part of the immaterial heritage of the municipality of Onești. The project followed the empowerment of 45 young people, high school students from Valea Trotușului area, who in the first part of the project learned what it means to be an involved citizen, how a democracy works and what you can do for a better community.
Then, for 10 months they experienced the leadership itself, mobilizing hundreds of members in the community. Constituted in 5 teams, they mobilized hundreds of young people and adults to volunteering projects and actions, worked on increasing the awareness of the community vis-à-vis the relevance and the need for civic involvement, through civic workshops, forum theater, Public Speaking events, Focus groups, a festival of active citizenship, Civicon, a gala of volunteering, a fair of non-governmental organizations and exhibitions with young local artists. The project offered the context for the development of a team and the development of a know-how, which would ensure a context of continuous civic involvement and learning in the community in Onești.