“Democracy and human rights education through NFE activities”

In a rapidly changing world, the need for informed, engaged, and responsible citizens is more crucial than ever. Youth workers play an important role in shaping the attitudes and actions of the next generation. Democracy, human rights, and active participation in civic life are fundamental pillars of a just and equitable society. However, many young people lack access to the knowledge and tools they need to become active citizens who can contribute positively to their communities. 

The need for active and informed young citizens is more critical than ever. Democracy and human rights are the fundamentals of fair and equitable societies. They enclose the principles of justice, equality, and individual freedoms that form the foundation of an inclusive world. This training course is designed to equip youth workers with the essential knowledge and skills about human rights and youth participation, required to empower young people in their local communities; by making them active citizens who understand the importance of human rights, democracy, and civic participation.

The training course is continuous educational opportunity for youth workers, implemented by Youth Power Germany in 2023 and 2024.

The training course is developed in line with the Youth Goal 9: Space and Participation for All and contributes to:

Ensuring equal access to everyday decision making for all young people from different backgrounds.

Increasing youth participation and thus equal representation in the electoral process as well as in elected bodies and other decision-making organs at all levels of society.

Providing youth-friendly, relevant, comprehensive information, also developed by and with young people, in order to enable youth participation.

This training course will be based on non-formal education and learning-by-doing methods. Participants will develop their understanding and knowledge about human rights and existing realities in their local communities. They will also get more information about the Erasmus+ programme and different opportunities for youth workers offered through this program. Furthermore, they will develop a deeper understanding of decision-making processes, ways in which young people can contribute to policy-making processes, and co-management as a concept for connecting relevant stakeholders. The last days of the training course will provide an opportunity for participants to work on the development of follow-up multiplication workshops in local communities and have open space for networking and the creation of initiatives and projects in the future. 

Objectives:

To develop knowledge and skills of participants in fields of: human rights, citizenship and education, democracy, voting, and youth participation.

To create an understanding of participants about the definition, importance and principles of decision-making, co-management and policy-making. 

To develop and further improve the knowledge of participants about the Erasmus+ program, Youthpass, and recognition of learning through models of key competences. 

To empower youth organisations and their youth workers to develop, implement and evaluate local level activities on human rights education and youth participation.