Amidst a context in which different European countries struggle to integrate the high number of immigrants and refugees who have crossed their borders in the previous years, WomInCreativePower (WIPC) targets one group who require particular attention given their greater tendency to be marginalized within the migrant population: migrant and refugee women. Facing a twofold barrier on the grounds of cultural/linguistic, as well as gender disadvantage, this group is often times impeded from participating in economic activities and, consequently, from socially integrating the communities in which they have settled. Nonetheless, as women amounted for around one-third of all asylum seekers in Europe over the period 2015-2017 (EWSI Editorial Team, 2018), initiatives to integrating women are fundamental within the overall efforts to integrating migrants in Europe. WICP addresses the specific issue of supporting the full integration of migrant and refugee women into their receiving communities by investing in the development of skills related to entrepreneurship and to the creative sector. This approach emerges from the perception that self-employment and entrepreneurship represent a promising pathway for migrant women to access the labor market, as it has the potential to support increased gender empowerment and equality while profiting from skills they might have previously acquired (EWSI Editorial Team, 2018). WICP’s main methodological approach will deploy the notions of inclusivity, diversity, and collaboration in Creative and Cultural Industries (CCI) by encouraging migrant and refugee women to develop their creative (artistic and/or cultural) ideas into work, inclusion and self-fulfillment possibilities. The resort to this specific approach is based on the goal of simultaneously promoting inclusiveness and respect for cultural, ethnic, and language richness. Thus, the project seeks to make an important contribution for the full integration of migrant and refugee women in their receiving communities and labor markets, while respecting and highlighting the specific skills they can bring into their new environments.This methodology will be deployed throughout the project’s four outputs and the achievements of its results, which include:- Mapping and Analytical research gathered in a final report, which will identify the needs of migrant and refugee women regarding their economic and social integration into their host communities. This activity will include interviews with at least 5 experts and desk-research.- Mentorship training format for entrepreneurial and business skills to improve the ability of migrant and refugee women to undertake self-employment initiatives particularly through innovative platforms (e.g. Instagram). Mentorship in entrepreneurship: entails a relationship among equals and seeks to transfer knowledge, skills and technical tools between the “mentor”, represented by an experienced professional, and the “mentee”, a less experienced professional, in order to enhance professional and personal growth. The mentorship training format will be tested with 10 individuals in each country (40 in total).- Tandem training format aimed at encouraging collaboration and co-creation in an interactive manner to develop creative, linguistic and socio-cultural skills. The training format will be tested with 10 individuals in each country (40 in total);- The elaboration of 20 videos that will reflect the stories of women who gave gone through the integration process in EU countries;- The elaboration of a board game, which can be used to support the integration process of migrant and refugee women in a sustainable and endured manner after the end of the project's duration.Finally, in order to increase WICP’s outreach and related benefits, most of its results will be available in English and Arabic, languages which are often more accessible for its target group. This integrated approach will allow a participatory effort towards promoting social and economic inclusion of migrant and refugee women.

<< Background >>According to the new skills agenda for Europe close to one fifth of young Europeans struggle with using digital tools and handling information and data in everyday life. The European Commission have said that Media literacy, our capacity to access, have a critical understanding of, and interact with the media has never been as important as in today's society. The global relevance of Media and Information Literacy has increased yet more significantly in recent times and in light of the COVID-19 crisis the need for literacy around health and wellness information and misinformation is forefront. In India, the United States and Brazil, fact-checking and media literacy organizations have been training citizens to confront the new coronavirus “infodemic.” Workshops have happened online, many employing a train the trainer model with attendees cascading their new knowledge to peers. Fact checkers in Spain have inadvertently come under fire as WhatsApp limited it’s message forwarding feature to limit the spread of COVID-19 disinfomation through chat groups, prompting a misinformed backlash from the public. At the same time cloned versions of the BBC and CNN news sites originating from Russia are pushing disinformation such as the idea that Ebola and Coronavirus are man-made pathogens.The approach and content of MIL must change, forced to adapt to the rapidly evolving challenges confronting young people in, among other matters, managing and interpreting the exponentially-growing volumes of information directly targeting them on social media, as well as development in the traditional media sector itself. The scale of the challenge for government institutions and educators is enormous.<< Objectives >>The Project Objectives are to assist youth and young people across Europe to better deal with the expanse of digital information and misinformation targeted towards them in relation to health, mental health, wellness and wellbeing by providing a skills set, a self assessment tool and a course directed at youth, alongside an accompanying kit for youth workers and educators. We will learn from the media response to the Covid19 crisis by collecting Best Practice from across Europe and beyond. We will build on the existing innovative DigiComp framework and extend it to encompass media, information and data literacy competences. The project outcomes will enable youth, young people and those who work with them to better understand, access and interact with information media relating to health and wellbeing in informed and agentive ways.<< Implementation >>The activities to be carried out during the project are;A literature review, Interviews with target group and stakeholders and best practice analysis feeding into a report extending the DigComp Framework taxonomy with new competence statements for facing the rapidly evolving challenges in MIL.The research, design and delivery of a self assessment tool.The design, testing and delivery of a MOOC covering the 5 Competence areas of DigComp 2.1 and the extended competences elaborated in the project. The MOOC will be specially adapted to the context of health and wellness information and misinformation.Research, selection and collation of open source and creative commons licensed materials and software to support MIL education and the creation of an adaptible toolkit for youth workers and educators<< Results >>The expected project results are;A research paper analysing the results of the interviews and best practices. New MIL competence statements.A web based self assessment app for use in a youth work context or by young people.An open Infodemics course (MOOC) for young people and educators.The MIL in a Crisis toolkit for youth workers and educators comprising a directory of open-source resources, software, OERs, best practice exemplars in MIL education and a white paper highlighting the project results.

The COVID-19 outbreak had tragic effects over our societies and economies, leading to the loss of a number of jobs and hindering opportunities for many young people to integrate the labour market in the near future. It also urged a worrying rise in the amount of waste disposal of single use materials such as PPE, as much as 129 billion face masks and 65 billion gloves every month (Scientific American, 2020). And, while reduced traffic in European cities have led to a drop in air pollution, this is likely to quickly rebound unless lasting structural changes are created (Carbon Brief, 15 Apr 2020). Thus, while COVID-19 forced our societies to a halt, it also posed an opportunity to challenge systemic unsustainable practices. But, in order to start reverting environmental degradation, our societies must implement long-term measures, which fundamentally demand AWARENESS BUILDING, MINSET CHANGING, and the CREATION OF SUSTAINABLE AND CIRCULAR ALTERNATIVES. In this matter, the CREATIVE SECTOR has the potential of offering solutions to promote circularity in the use of resources. Additionally, EDUCATION is crucial to transparently disseminating knowledge and to prompting the change of mentalities in an enduring manner. Finally, educating today’s YOUTH and involving them in the process of creatively conceptualizing circular practices is key to empowering youngsters to lead the journey towards a more circular future.In this context, YOUCREATE acknowledges that the CCIs represents the entering sector for many young people into the labour market, and that the triggering of a green and circular economy demands creatively developing alternatives to unsustainable practices. It also recognizes the role of EU projects as innovation drivers, however identifying the wasteful character of some practices of EU project conceptualization, management and dissemination.YOUCREATE therefore builds on the notion that CREATING BRIDGES between the CCI and the CE can be resourceful to improving the future of our planet, societies and youth. The project perceives that this is especially true when targeting youth from different cultural backgrounds, given their creative and innovative potential, and when empowering them with educational tools and connecting them with the field of EU projects. This bridge is also opportune to building awareness and knowledge about CE, CCI and EU PROJECTS, while DEVELOPING SKILLS that will aid our youth’s transition into working contexts. It is also key to prompting new and transferrable perspectives among youth workers around EU project development and management. Finally, the project will deploy a participatory methodological approach in the development of its outcomes, involving youth and valorising their perspectives and needs in all of its stages.More specifically, the project seeks to: • raise awareness to using the creative and digital tools within the CCI regarding the ideas of CIRCULARITY and ECO RESPONSIBILITY; • deliver sustainable working instruments based on innovation and CREATIVE SKILLS within project conceptualization, management and implementation;• EMPOWER youth workers and young people and prompt their familiarity with the CCI by building their skills and capacity to make EU projects more environmentally responsible through education and training; creativity and environmental responsibility; and cooperation and solidarity; • encourage transnational COOPERATION and intercultural interconnections, and the exchange of sustainable practices between young people, youth workers and organizations;Along these lines, YOUCREATE'S EXPECTED RESULTS AND ACTIVITIES are the following:- 1 transnational report containing reflections and basic information about environmental issues, the CE, CCI, and EU projects pre- and post-COVID (interview 2 environmental experts; roundtable with 32 youngsters and 8 youth workers overall);- a manual for trainers introducing innovative narrative-based learning techniques;- a digital training composed of 6 modules;- a learning and teaching activity with 12 youth workers to learn how to utilize the manual and digital training;- a testing activity of the digital training with a workshop to develop creative new ideas for circularity within EU projects in each country with 20 young people in total;- 8 videos in total displaying the activities and reflections of the project;- an “EDUcreateBAG” collecting the videos and all ideas and practices identified and developed during the project, available online. Contributions will still be possible after the end of the project.- directly reach at least 100 individuals/organizations per country and 900 indirectly with the EDUcreateBAG;- 1 dissemination activity per country (4 in total) to share the project’s outcomes and collect feedback from at least 25 individuals within the target groups per partner (100 in total). - to directly outreach a total of 180 young people/youth workers throughout its activities.

<< Background >>2020 and 21 have been disrupting years in many aspects: the COVID-19 outbreak has disrupted our economies, our mobility, and especially our livelihoods and health. But while many things have changed since the start of the pandemic, the threat of climate change has not. In fact, 2020 has seen the worsening of heat waves, ice loss, wildfires, floods, and droughts throughout the world.In addition to this, the prospects of gender equality might also see a setback due to the pandemic. A study by the EU (2020) explores the effects of COVID-19 on gender equality, including the role of healthcare workers (of which 76% are women in the EU) who are at greater risk of infection, domestic violence (which reports have spiked by 20-40% in the EU), the impact of quarantine on feminised sectors of the economy (e.g., tourism and hospitality), the additional unpaid labour upon women more than on men as a result of lockdown and additional domestic load, as well as the access to maternity, sexual and reproductive health services. All of this does not only directly harm women’s health and wellbeing, but also compromises their ability to undertake paid employment during and after the pandemic. The study further highlights that like all crises, “whether caused by disease, natural disaster, climate change or conflict”, “COVID-19 has significant direct and indirect effects on women and other genders” and may therefore exacerbate gender inequalities while threatening the progress for women and girls within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). And, in parallel to this, 2020-1 have seen the growing concern with the threat of fake news and of polarization both related to politics and digitalization. This years have also seen the increased feeling of loneliness and the growing distance from human interaction, and of not having the opportunities for networking as well as fewer opportunities to finding jobs. When it comes to younger generations, sometimes referred to as “the lost generation”, they are bound to face hard situations, none of the least include negative effects on their mental health exacerbated by isolation and exclusion from the labour market. For this reason, young women and girls are in a position of grater vulnerability to experience oppression and negative effects from factors which are exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, while these pressing issues might make the environmental threat seem secondary, this couldn’t be further from the truth. As 2021 sees the earliest peek of the cherry blossom season in Japan since records began 1,200 years ago, it is clear that the effects of the increase in temperature associated with global warming and urbanization have not been haltered with the pandemic. In this context, this project recognizes that sustainability is strictly linked with the need to adopt concrete actions to cancel the economic, legal, social, and cultural discrimination between genders. It also acknowledges that when we talk about economic recovery, employability, and about creating opportunities for all and for future generations to explore their economic potential and achieve their dreams, we cannot forget about the environmental needs and the threat of climate change. In relation to this, it is noteworthy that there is evidence that female empowerment could mitigate the impact of economic growth through increased efficiency of environmental resources through sustainable practices (PwC, 2008), which can be boosted if we increase young women's resilience by addressing structural oppressions and vulnerabilities. That is why the project brings together younger generations, female empowerment and improved participation, and green principles as we think of ways forward. It is time for young women to explore potential vulnerabilities to build initiative, and to be leaders for their own futures.<< Objectives >>At the core of the project is the idea that young women are especially positioned to creatively and innovatively initiating processes to develop a sustainable new normal that is coped with gender equality and empowerment. But for them to achieve that, it is necessary that they have access to the right tools for them to act as leaders and as change-makers, without compromising other responsibilities and interests. Finally, according to the OECD, gender equality is key to achieving sustainable development, as it has the potential to prompt poverty reduction, public health improvement or female and child mortality rate reduction. For this reason, the project seeks to promote young women empowerment, participation, initiative, critical sense, and their means to achieve socio-economic autonomy as key aspects to collaboratively fighting against climate change. Based on this, this project aims to include young women in all its stages as both assets and beneficiaries. They will be participating in diverse activities that will give them the chance to engage in critical analysis of narratives that tend to further oppress them/sustain unsustainable practices; to build bridges among young women in different countries by sharing stories/reflections/opinions and connecting them through transnational networks; and to participate in the creation of tools that will foster young women initiatives and the development of their potential as leaders and change-makers. With this, the goal is not only to empower the young women as leaders of their own futures, but also to highlight their leadership potential and prompt their employability in a changing and uncertain world.Based on this, this project has two main goals:1)to empower young women to act as leaders in shaping the sustainable new normal and fighting against climate change, acting as change-makers, and exploring their active citizenship and socio-economic potential 2)to promote sustainable internationalization by empowering the EU to act as leader in matters of biodiversity conservation, sustainable practices, and sustainable action – the EU is particularly positioned to doing so given its transnational connections and global soft power.Additionally, it seeks to achieve the following objectives:-encourage critical thinking among the target group and build their initiative and capacity to act as leaders and change-makers and explore their active citizenship-build awareness around the role younger generations and women can play in driving changes to promote sustainability and inclusivity-build awareness around gender roles and inequalities -understand/build awareness around the effects that the changes triggered by the COVID-19 outbreak might have on younger generations and women -utilize informal/non-formal education to promote female empowerment and encourage young women to collectively start the change in themselves and in their communities-build bridges between young women among the partner countries and support the psychological health of the participants by promoting peer-to-peer connections and networking, exploring digital platforms, as well as by utilizing interactive and innovative resources such as reels videos -Explore interactive methodologies such as storytelling as an engaging manner to involve the target group in learning activities.-Capacitate youth workers to keep on transferring the knowledge and experiences initiated within the project to other young women<< Implementation >>This project brings together the power of young women to act as leading forces, the promotion of green and sustainable practices, interactive and innovative methodologies, and collaborative methods to produce results that will be relevant, useful, and empowering for young women and for youth workers. The project targets young women who will be involved in all its stages so that they can speak for themselves and build their critical thinking and their sense of initiative. The implemented activities will be the following:1) social media content analysis and development of reels. In this result, each partner will conduct a limited content analysis exercise of selected post/sources through interactive activities/discussions with 50 young women/representatives of supporting organizations in their national context. The project team will also conduct at least one transnational roundtable with a minimum of one representative of the target group from each partner country. During the second part of the activities/discussions, the partners will support the participants to creatively transfer their opinions and reflections into 5 reels. The main findings will be cross-nationally analysed, and findings will be compiled. 2) development of a toolkit that will provide a step-by-step process with methodologies, theoretical modules for empowerment, and exercise for young women. Part of this result will be the Co-creation phase, composed of meetings/surveys with at least 125 participants, which will create a space for collective knowledge to emerge. The toolkit will also be tested with 50 individuals in each country before being finalized and made available in digital format. Prior to the testing phase of the toolkit, a training activity will take place, which will serve to capacitate the 10 participants with necessary knowledge and experience. This will be crucial for them to have the confidence to use the toolkit and to successfully engage the participants of the testing activities and to provide them with adequate support. 3) development of an e-booklet for youth workers. Related to this result, the partners will develop a first draft of content based on the results and experiences collected in all partner countries throughout the project, followed by feedback sessions/trainings with 25 young women/representatives of supporting organizations which will be additional opportunities to collect and improve the content of the e-booklet before it is finalized and made available in digital format.Additional project activities that will be implemented during the project are:-two transnational project meetings. These will be important to strengthen collaboration and cooperation among the partner, as well as to support project management, implementation, and coordination.-five multiplier events (one in each country). These are part of the dissemination and visibility aspect of the project and will also provide an opportunity for the participants to build connections and network.-dissemination and outreach activities. these will be key to inviting participants for the project activities; share information related to the project; and disseminate final results-monitoring & evaluation activities. These will be crucial to ensuring that the project will be implemented in accordance with the timeline, objectives, and final results it seeks to achieve.-Sustainability activities. These are key to ensure the long term impact of the project beyond its lifetime<< Results >>Through the process of co-creation and in close collaboration and with the active participation of young women, the project expects to initiate a process that will place them as the leading forces in the process of creating a more sustainable and inclusive future both as change-makers and as a work force. The project also assumes that, especially in youth work, investing in engaging and interactive learning methods is key. Therefore, as a main result, the project seeks to develop and inspire interactive, engaging, and innovative methodologies/approaches to address young people and to include them in knowledge and content creation. It also expects to result in the creation of collaborative networks among the partners, participating young women and their peers, and youth workers/organizations. Through the activities described above, this project expects to have the following results/outcomes:1. carried out a critical analysis of social media content with 50 young women/representatives of supporting organizations and a transnational roundtable with 5 young women that will lead to the identification and establishment of critical thinking around oppressive/unsustainable narratives and around the main struggles faced by young women mainly connected to the COVID-19 pandemic context and social, economic, psychological and environmental factors. This will result on 5 reels that will create direct peer-to-peer connections and have an innovative outreach among the target group, encouraging broader critical thinking and sharing a sense of identification and belonging; and on a text file that can be resorted to by young people themselves and other interested parties to prompt questioning of gender roles and oppressive/unsustainable narratives, as well as support the built capacity of the partner organization.2. developed a toolkit that will be a collective effort from young women (125 young women/representatives of supporting organizations will be involved in this in total) to other young women that will provide a step-by-step process with methodologies, theoretical modules for empowerment, and exercise for young women, including a storytelling method/approach. This will include selected topics targeted at building a collective effort to promote the socio-economic empowerment of young women and to inspire them to actively support their communities and themselves through sustainable practices and initiatives. The testing of the toolkit with 50 young women/representatives of supporting organizations will result in an improved and provenly relevant/useful material. 3. developed an e-booklet organized in chapters to capacitate youth workers and encourage sustainable impact of the project’s experience. The feedback sessions/trainings with 25 young women/representatives of supporting organizations will support the further collection of content and improvement of a resulting resourceful e-booklet. This will enable youth workers to use storytelling as a learning method; use the toolkit in their activities encourage critical thinking; encourage the promotion of active citizenship and civic participation specially in gender and environmentally related matters; and provide insights for the target group to address and try to overcome the struggles they are faced with. 4. trained 10 members of the staff of the partner organizations to use the developed toolkit and with the project methodologies/approaches.5. disseminated methods and skills for young women build their sense of initiative and become future sustainability and community leaders in shaping the sustainable new normal.6. promoted sustainable internationalization by empowering the young people in the EU, creating a multiplying effect.7. inspired young women to critically observe information and to take the lead in initiatives related to climate change and gender equality, thereby acting as driving forces in their communities towards a more sustainable and inclusive future.