Digital youth work
The focus of the project is improving communication in youth organizations, engaged in solving the problems of various groups, incl. with fewer opportunities, by implementing new digital approaches in their daily practice and achieving a more successful and sustainable social interaction and change.
By implementing this project, we wanted to improve youth organizations’ digital behaviour, teach them how to effectively use a mix of tools to communicate causes and engage like-minded people, and realize the specifics and role of the online space. Our idea was to train the organizations’ teams, incl. people from groups in a vulnerable situation, thus motivating them to implement and transform youth work in order to be adequate to the new realities, and to have their messages reach those they are intended for more successfully.
The project comes in a situation, complicated by COVID-19, wherein it is even more necessary to develop the digital skills of youth teams, so they can be flexible and so that youth work does not suffer from the social isolation, but rather adapts to the conditions, without losing touch with the target groups, follows and implements practices, overcoming social inequality, occurring in the digital environment.
Digital youth work
The focus of the project is improving communication in youth organizations, engaged in solving the problems of various groups, incl. with fewer opportunities, by implementing new digital approaches in their daily practice and achieving a more successful and sustainable social interaction and change.
By implementing this project, we wanted to improve youth organizations’ digital behaviour, teach them how to effectively use a mix of tools to communicate causes and engage like-minded people, and realize the specifics and role of the online space. Our idea was to train the organizations’ teams, incl. people from groups in a vulnerable situation, thus motivating them to implement and transform youth work in order to be adequate to the new realities, and to have their messages reach those they are intended for more successfully.
The project comes in a situation, complicated by COVID-19, wherein it is even more necessary to develop the digital skills of youth teams, so they can be flexible and so that youth work does not suffer from the social isolation, but rather adapts to the conditions, without losing touch with the target groups, follows and implements practices, overcoming social inequality, occurring in the digital environment.
Training design that provokes
To fulfil this goal, an intensive 6 days practical training was provided to help youth workers develop a complex of skills and increase their digital toolkit, specific to the civil sector and necessary for effective digital communicators. The tools were presented in the process of creating a logically consistent digital campaign for promoting a cause, social change or activism, which gave them a specific goal, borrowed from real organizational practice.
Implementing the innovative training program (which included various methods, incl. coaching, improv exercises, storytelling, experiential learning, etc.) aimed to increase youth workers’ motivation to do youth work, somewhat lost as a consequence of the social pause due to COVID-19, increase their digital competences and their preparation as digital communicators – a key role, especially in the current situation.
The project provoked rethinking of an organization’s digital communication behaviour entirely and offered options for a better promotion of the activities and results, to achieve transparency of the organization’s work, visibility in the public space, sustainability and public authority, created a favourable environment for exchanging experience, information and resources, of good digital practices in youth work, demonstrating innovative tools and approaches for digital inclusion of youths with different profiles.
Training design that provokes
To fulfil this goal, an intensive 6 days practical training was provided to help youth workers develop a complex of skills and increase their digital toolkit, specific to the civil sector and necessary for effective digital communicators. The tools were presented in the process of creating a logically consistent digital campaign for promoting a cause, social change or activism, which gave them a specific goal, borrowed from real organizational practice.
Implementing the innovative training program (which included various methods, incl. coaching, improv exercises, storytelling, experiential learning, etc.) aimed to increase youth workers’ motivation to do youth work, somewhat lost as a consequence of the social pause due to COVID-19, increase their digital competences and their preparation as digital communicators – a key role, especially in the current situation.
The project provoked rethinking of an organization’s digital communication behaviour entirely and offered options for a better promotion of the activities and results, to achieve transparency of the organization’s work, visibility in the public space, sustainability and public authority, created a favourable environment for exchanging experience, information and resources, of good digital practices in youth work, demonstrating innovative tools and approaches for digital inclusion of youths with different profiles.
Training results
The logical framework and activities in the program, followed the idea of developing complex digital competences, which can be expressed in a specific and visible result – social campaigns, often implemented by organizations, working for social change.
The training program is designed with the expert support of professional communicators and journalists. An accent was placed on the storytelling modules, as it is an effective communication approach for empowering, inclusion and attracting supporters.
As a result, we believe we have contributed to the increase of motivation in youth workers, activating social interaction, regaining a sense of the mission they carry, changing the focus toward other important social problems; we also aided their overcoming of the negative impact of the COVID-19 pause in youth work, charged the youth workers with ideas and enthusiasm.
The participants learned to see the “big picture”, the context, so they can analyze, monitor and manage communication processes. We provoked them to put themselves in the other person’s shoes, so they can accept diversity – which is key to working with sensitive topics and groups. We clarified the fundaments of strategic communication planning, its stages and ways to measure the effect. We introduced the concept of digital storytelling as a tool for impact. We introduced them to various digital tools – online resources for digitalizing, creating, processing and disseminating content, as well as principles for using a comprehensive digital media mix, incl. social media.
Social campaigns – projects with potential
The teams of the participants created 8 projects for campaigns with the potential of being started in a local context. Here they are:
The WINNERS’ social commercial clip. Team ”Youngsters”.
“Change the scenario!“ – Campaign against bulling at schools. Rising awareness how to change the school environment.
Social campaign presentation. Team “Youngsters” – the WINNER
Social commercial clip. Team “Tailors”.
“Do not CLOTHES your eyes!“ – Campaign against stereotypes caused by appearance and clothes.
Social campaign presentation. Team “Tailors”.
“Do not CLOTHES your eyes!“ – Campaign against stereotypes caused by appearance and clothes.
Social commercial clip. Team “Let them dream”.
Prevent the risk of exclusion of young children and not attending Primary School.
Social campaign presentation. Team “Let them dream”.
Prevent the risk of exclusion of young children and not attending Primary School.
Social commercial clip. Team “YOUTH EMPLOYMENTSHIP”.
Social campaign presentation. Team “YOUTH EMPLOYMENTSHIP”.
“Get your skills done and learn to learn“ – campaign to raise the awareness of finding the meaning in professional life of youth people.
Social commercial clip. Team “We don’t give up”.
Campaign for dropping out prevention.
Social campaign presentation. Team “We don’t give up”.
Campaign for dropping out prevention.
Social campaign presentation. Team “The Activators”.
Social campaign. Team “Financial PAL”.
Social campaign. Team “TALK TO ME”.
Violence is violence. The victim of violence can be anyone. We must be sensitive and support each other.
The team of VIA CIVIC Association, coordinator of the “Storify Your Mission for Impact! Youth Worker as a Digital Communicator”, contract 2020-1-BG01-KA105-078385, bears full responsibility for the information, published on the organization’s webpage.
Training results
The logical framework and activities in the program, followed the idea of developing complex digital competences, which can be expressed in a specific and visible result – social campaigns, often implemented by organizations, working for social change.
The training program is designed with the expert support of professional communicators and journalists. An accent was placed on the storytelling modules, as it is an effective communication approach for empowering, inclusion and attracting supporters.
As a result, we believe we have contributed to the increase of motivation in youth workers, activating social interaction, regaining a sense of the mission they carry, changing the focus toward other important social problems; we also aided their overcoming of the negative impact of the COVID-19 pause in youth work, charged the youth workers with ideas and enthusiasm.
The participants learned to see the “big picture”, the context, so they can analyze, monitor and manage communication processes. We provoked them to put themselves in the other person’s shoes, so they can accept diversity – which is key to working with sensitive topics and groups. We clarified the fundaments of strategic communication planning, its stages and ways to measure the effect. We introduced the concept of digital storytelling as a tool for impact. We introduced them to various digital tools – online resources for digitalizing, creating, processing and disseminating content, as well as principles for using a comprehensive digital media mix, incl. social media.
Social campaigns – projects with potential
The teams of the participants created 8 projects for campaigns with the potential of being started in a local context. Here they are:
The WINNERS’ social commercial clip. Team ”Youngsters”.
“Change the scenario!“ – Campaign against bulling at schools. Rising awareness how to change the school environment.
Social campaign presentation. Team “Youngsters” – the WINNER
Social commercial clip. Team “Tailors”.
“Do not CLOTHES your eyes!“ – Campaign against stereotypes caused by appearance and clothes.
Social campaign presentation. Team “Tailors”.
“Do not CLOTHES your eyes!“ – Campaign against stereotypes caused by appearance and clothes.
Social commercial clip. Team “Let them dream”.
Prevent the risk of exclusion of young children and not attending Primary School.
Social campaign presentation. Team “Let them dream”.
Prevent the risk of exclusion of young children and not attending Primary School.
Social commercial clip. Team “YOUTH EMPLOYMENTSHIP”.
Social campaign presentation. Team “YOUTH EMPLOYMENTSHIP”.
“Get your skills done and learn to learn“ – campaign to raise the awareness of finding the meaning in professional life of youth people.
Social commercial clip. Team “We don’t give up”.
Campaign for dropping out prevention.
Social campaign presentation. Team “We don’t give up”.
Campaign for dropping out prevention.
Social campaign presentation. Team “The Activators”.
Social campaign. Team “Financial PAL”.
Social campaign. Team “TALK TO ME”.
Violence is violence. The victim of violence can be anyone. We must be sensitive and support each other.
The team of VIA CIVIC Association, coordinator of the “Storify Your Mission for Impact! Youth Worker as a Digital Communicator”, contract 2020-1-BG01-KA105-078385, bears full responsibility for the information, published on the organization’s webpage.
This post is also available in: 
Български