Rising Rooted (KA153-Mobility of Youth Workers)

''We tell stories in order to live.'' //Joan Didion

Stories shape how we see ourselves, others, and the world. Unfortunately, many of today’s narratives focus on division, ego, and disconnection from nature. In this era of disinformation, division, and distrust, all of us – youth workers, trainers,change makers - we have the power to rewrite these stories, creating more inclusive and connected futures.

Non-formal education is already making a meaningful impact on the young people and the future of our society, but its impact can grow if we tell better stories that reflect our visions, values, and programs. The goal of the project will be to empowere youth leaders, mentors, and program creators to navigate feelings of limitation and uncertainty in their roles. Through our training course, based on the work of Sharon Blackie and inspired by Joseph Campbell’s insights on myths, we guide youth workers to explore their personal life stories and create their own myths. This process will help them gain clarity about their values and aspirations, providing them with a personal and professional roadmap for overcoming future challenges.

Another element that describes ''Rising Rooted'' is using nature as our learning environment, since it is one of the main tools we use in our work. We need to recognize the small connections between ourselves, others, and the natural world—our actions ripple across relationships, animals, plants, the ocean, and the planet. By experiencing nature with awareness and contemplation, we can uncover the deeper stories it tells, revealing our interconnectedness. As the roots of nature and our understanding of it starts rising, we build a sense of care for all that is life.

And we learn to tell our own story in a way that is empowering, stepping outside of the infinite victim-blame-excuse state, inspiring ourselves and the youth we work with for making a responsible, lasting change for the benefit of all.

Rising Rooted is a chance for youth workers to master the use of storytelling in their youth work activities to create a profound, meaningful learning.

The key objectives of the project are to:
1. Provide a safe environment based on non-formal education for 27 youth workers (+3 team members) to personally explore the eight myths presented by Sharon Blackie in her book If Women Rose Rooted.
2. Help every youth worker develop their own personal myth and a road map for possible future phases of their professional development.
3. Develop a greater empathy and a stronger commitment to environmental preservation and sustainability among the participants by increasing their sense of connection to nature.
4. Provide a minimum of two consecutive follow-up activities per partner in order to share the methodology and ideas of Rising Rooted with other members of the partner organization and the youth they work with.
5. Establish a peer support network with all of the participating youth workers that will last beyond the project’s time frame.

In today’s world, few topics are more important than how we live sustainably on this planet. Youth workers have a responsibility to guide young people in understanding their global impact and creating positive change.
We try to understand the roots of our world, starting with what is really important - the story, the vision, the values.

Where: Tukums & surroundings, Latvia
When: July 2025

If you want to join our TC as a partner, send us an e-mail to ainiskuznecovs@gmail.com!