Seven partner organizations from six countries — Belgium, Spain, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Albania — joined forces in the project. Strengthening the human dignity of young people in the EU and the Western Balkans, with a clear goal: to enable young people from EU countries and the Western Balkans to connect, learn and grow together, regardless of geographic or economic barriers. Looking at the first period of implementation, this goal was achieved with real and measurable results.

What have we achieved? — 28 online sessions in five program areas, in which 274 participants from all six partner countries took part. The activities covered youth leadership, human dignity and EU values, critical thinking and media literacy, participation in hybrid projects and intercultural dialogue — all in an online format, making them accessible to young people who otherwise have limited access to international learning experiences.

Each partner brought something of their own. World Youth Alliance Europe coordinated the project and, together with SSM JIE, realized Academies for young leaders focused on public advocacy, using his experience in connecting young people with EU values and education on human dignity. In Bosnia and Herzegovina BRAVO organized two Winter Academies — structured programs that provided participants from the entire Western Balkan region with practical tools for civic engagement and youth leadership.

The field of media literacy has come to life with the work University of EPOKA in Albania, who designed and implemented a series of expert seminars on topics ranging from civil dialogue and data protection to the impact of artificial intelligence on the information we consume every day. AMJE from Spain joined in with his own event on audience responsibility in a time of information overload. He rounded off the intercultural dimension KVRP from Kosovo, who hosted Intercultural Conversations and opened the space for participants from all six countries to dialogue about identity, common values and building bridges across borders.

Connecting the online and real world — The special value of the program was represented by hybrid projects, which directly connected online participants with existing live events, including international conferences on leadership in Zagreb and Brussels. Young people from six countries joined the conferences and workshops virtually — showing that quality intercultural learning does not require physical travel and opening doors for young people who might not otherwise be able to participate. The sessions of the Certified Training Program on Human Dignity and EU Values were held in small groups, which enabled in-depth discussions on basic rights, solidarity and democratic values. Dividing the larger sessions into smaller ones was a deliberate decision by the partners and enabled the participation of more young people than the original format would have allowed.

Impact and reach — In addition to the figures on the sessions, the first period brought concrete results: developed skills and competences of people working with young people, increased social inclusion and acquired soft skills of young people, including young people with fewer opportunities, from three countries participating in the program and three countries not affiliated to the program. The activities had a pronounced informal learning component aimed at intercultural learning, peer exchange of experiences and recognition of the competences developed by young people. In order to extend the influence beyond the circle of direct participants, the consortium published press releases and newsletters during the period and ran a continuous campaign on social networks.