<< Background >>The PACIFY-D project will be working towards providing innovative training opportunities to young people and establishing Country Info Points as local learning centres for youth education, developing guidance on the organisation and support of the operation of such environments. The purpose is primarily to strengthen democratic attitudes through civic engagement and civic participation. At the same time, the proposed project aims at addressing the needs below:NEEDS OF CITIZENS / YOUNG LEARNERSThe proposed project’s innovative aspects include targeted learning opportunities, specific skills development, and access to information. It will also contribute to increasing young people’s awareness of international relations/cooperation and representative democracy, as well as the role of diplomacy, foreign missions, and European values. It also encourages young men and women (especially those from diverse educational, social and geographical backgrounds) to actively participate in democratic processes by offering them the rare opportunity to engage in different types of diplomacy. The project aims at fostering young people’s active participation in their local communities’ social and political life, while promoting social inclusion, intercultural dialogue, knowledge and recognition of diversity and promotion of tolerance.More specifically, the Young Local Ambassadors will engage in non-formal learning activities around public diplomacy, also using cultural diplomacy tools, such as:•The arts including films, dance, music, painting, sculpture, etc.•Promotion of national languages lessons•Exchanges: scientific, artistic, educational etc.•Literature: book clubs showcasing national literary production•Broadcasting of news and cultural programs•Promotion and explanation of ideas and social policies, as well as engage in culinary diplomacy activities (organisation of food fairs, national cuisine workshops etc.). Among the resources to be used for these activities are Europe’s cultural collections online, including Europeana, the European Film Gateway, and material from the European Capitals of Culture.NEEDS OF PARTNERS, NGOs and CSOs.The proposed project aims to meet the needs of the partner organisations and the targeted NGOs and CSOs on the organisation and sustainability of CIPs as forward-looking learning (and intercultural awareness-raising) centres. This next step is identified as a unique opportunity and a way to engage with their beneficiaries and target groups. It will be achieved through the provision of training sessions and a guide on how to develop Country Info Points in targeted cities and regions as educational/cultural spaces. This is particularly important as it complements the need for the provision of alternative, informal or non-formal, educational activities to young people across Europe.<< Objectives >>PACIFY-D aims to:•Strengthen young people’s sense of initiative, by participating in the social and political life of their communities, while volunteering to foster intercultural dialogue, knowledge and recognition of diversity and promote tolerance.•Educate young people on issues of diversity, cultural differences, political representation, the conduct of international affairs/diplomacy•Confront interpersonal and intergroup/national stereotypes and enhance intercultural understanding as a means to promote better-integrated societies across Europe.•Promote better knowledge about the situation of young people and inform youth policies in Europe and beyond.•Enhance transfer of knowledge between young people from different ethnic backgrounds/countries, between Civil Society/Youth organisations, and between young ambassadors/ex-pats and policymakers in target countries.<< Implementation >>The project is based on a participatory approach and partner ownership and this is reflected in the way the work will be conducted. Tasks have been allocated to partners according to their expertise to ensure that the best use of resources is achieved.Under PR1, the project will embark on both secondary and primary research comprising extensive desk research and focus groups to support the mapping of good practices as regards practices using Youth Centres and cultural activities to encourage civil participation. In that sense, providing lifelong learning opportunities and skills will collectively lead towards strengthening local communities. Finally, to design and build the training programme, the partnership will rely on internal expertise but will also open the design to the views of the target group and of professionals in the field of training, diplomacy and intercultural relations, ensuring thus the applicability of the trainers’ training. The curriculum developed for the PACIFY-D project, will support and complete gaps in life-long learning education related to intercultural relations and will simultaneously encourage and strengthen democratic attitudes and contribute to the active participation of young people in the social and political life (including international relations). The consortium will ensure that the curriculum will be competitive and will draw attention from both youth learning providers and CSOs involved in international and (inter-)cultural relations.PR2 will be the phase of the development of CIPs as learning centres: The methodology and blueprint for the PACIFY-D model that will be developed by the project, will facilitate the development and operation of forward-looking learning centres based on international relations and (cultural) diplomacy, and will provide a model to be adopted and further followed by both youth learning providers and CSOs involved in cultural relations but also in a cross-sectoral way covering diplomacy and international relations aspects. Under PR2, the project will pilot-test the adaptation of public spaces used by project partners into forward-looking learning centre focusing on Young Local Ambassadors. The transformation of the local spaces to CIPs via the use of methodologies developed will contribute to further familiarise communities with EU culture and values, as well as foster social inclusion, and promote the civic participation of young people. The participants of the CIPs will enjoy the opportunity of a blended learning model including both taught modules and real-life activities. The merits of blended learning are widely acknowledged; this approach gives the opportunity to learners to accommodate learning in their own needs, widens up participation, and is considered pivotal for enhancing (esp. young) learners’ competences.PR3 will develop a policy handbook, including a final report on the YLA programme and best practices on CIPs, as well as concrete policy recommendations for the more successful inclusion of young people in the political life of their regions/cities, and in the decision-making process.<< Results >>The expected results of the proposed project during the project’s life are:•R1: Training programme for YLAs in developing skills – This output aims at developing and providing a) the training material for Young Local Ambassadors (YLAs) in the learning centres/Country Info Points; b) Piloting of YLA programme curriculum & evaluation; and c) the development of digital modules. The material will be prepared in both English and the native languages of the consortium implementing countries (Hungary, Italy, Spain, Greece, where CIPs will be established). This result aims at promoting active citizenship and raising intercultural awareness among youth in Europe, by supporting them in the development of key skills for the labour market;•R2: Guide for development of Country Info Points (CIPs) & Piloting – This result aims at designing and providing all the necessary information, methodology, and management plan for establishing and piloting CIPs as forward-looking learning centres that will provide non-formal learning opportunities to participants. The Country Info Points this project will use will be located in Hungary, Italy, Spain, and Greece (consortium implementation countries). This project result will allow us to test the effectiveness of the set-up of CIPs as learning centres, their operation, the variety of training opportunities and activities developed under R1, and lastly the interaction of young participants in CIPs with other stakeholders, such as local authorities, diplomatic missions, as well as international and cultural organisations;•R3: Policy handbook (report & best practices on CIPs, policy recommendations) – Following the piloting of CIPs under R2, a report on the operation of the four piloting CIPs will be produced, including lessons learned and best practices that could be replicated elsewhere. Feedback by all stakeholders involved and the YLAs themselves will be incorporated in the handbook and inform policy recommendations on increasing young people’s civic engagement with people across different countries and leading to a positive impact on their attitudes towards inclusion and democracy. The outcomes from R2 will be used from the partners to design and develop a policy handbook, which will be freely available online in English and all the consortium languages upon the completion of the project, and which will be presented in the final conference in Brussels.Key outcomes of the project will include the following:•Empower youth and increase employment opportunities through training, skills development, and civic and social participation.•Promote active citizenship and raise intercultural awareness among youth in Europe, by supporting them in the development of key skills for the labour market.•Educate the public and decision-makers about foreign nationals (esp. youth)’s culture, needs, and desiderata for better integration into local societies.•Engage with local and ex-pat communities.The expected results of the proposed project after the project’s life are:•At least 80 young men and women benefitting from the curriculum and training material for YLAs;•At least 80 youth trainers/workers benefitting from the guides provided;•At least 4 local authorities gaining experience and knowledge/expertise to run similar learning programmes for civic engagement among youth;•More than 8,000 people reached at the European level through the awareness and dissemination activities;•5 Multiplier events with at least 200 participants; and 1 Multiplier event as the final dissemination event with at least 15 international and 100 virtual participants.•The project’s website, which will contain all the Training materials, the Guide for the development of Country Info Points as non-formal learning centres, as well as the Policy handbook (including best practices on CIPs and policy recommendations).

Through a comprehensive perspective that includes the most relevant social and political connections, the project aims to address the proposed topic from a double standpoint, namely, an analytical as well as a public policy perspective. We start from the idea that since the second half of the last century culture has experienced a profound mutation, through which its position and role in the social dynamics have been transformed. Whereas it was previously confined to a purely superstructural position, it now constitutes an essential basis of today’s society. In the context of cultural digitization and globalization the entire cultural ecosystem has changed, which has radically altered - and at the same time, intensified - the relationship between cultural identity, cultural heritage and cultural expression. This transformation has occurred both at the level of the professional cultural sector as well as in society as a whole. The new challenges and the new potential of culture, where these three pillars - cultural identity, cultural heritage and cultural expression - intertwine, will be considered in the work of the platform along three axes: 1. Cultural memory 2. Cultural inclusion 3. Cultural creativity These are designed to research debates relating to heritage in the institutions and practices of cultural memory; how the focus on diversity and inclusion impacts on the practices of memory institutions, including on stakeholders and networks; what this reconfiguration contributes to new or post-national oriented narratives about identity and European values; and how heritage, cultural diversity and creativity relate in the context of huge cultural transformations such as the ones represented by digitization and cultural globalization.

COVID-19 pandemic is a global challenge that poses serious and multilevel concerns. There is already an ongoing discussion on the indirect and direct impact of the pandemic on the environment. Several studies and reportages focus on the positive effects, as pollution and greenhouse gas emissions have fallen across continents (M. Zowalaty et. al., 2020; S. Lokhandwala et. al., 2020), but already environmental stakeholders have spotted the dramatic effects of the COVID-19 to the oceans and the life below water (A. Kassam, 'More masks than jellyfish': coronavirus waste ends up in ocean, retrieved from theguardian.com). In particular, the surge of the COVID-19 pandemic led to the increased use of plastic medical and protective equipment, such as single-use gloves, masks and aprons. Much of this equipment must be discarded after use to limit the spread of the virus. Joffrey Peltier, member of the environmental organisation Operation Mer Propre in France, came across large quantities of latex gloves, face masks and bottles of hand sanitiser in the Mediterranean sea upon exploration (C. Koryn, Another Side Effect of COVID-19: The Surge in Plastic Pollution, retrieved from earth.org). This development indicates a new kind of pollution that adds to the already existing plastic problem and poses environmental, economic, health and aesthetic problems. Youth could undertake a pioneer role in the area and lead activities aiming at raising awareness on the ocean protection and the pandemic relevance to the plastic litter. According to the UN environment programme, “we must invest in promoting actions by youth”, as this will enable us “to build the momentum to address the challenges of tomorrow” (Three reasons our oceans need young people, retrieved from unenvironment.org). Also, EU in the framework of its Coastal and Marine Policy encourages youth to act as Ocean Activists. At the same time, organisations and authorities across the globe utilize arts and visual arts in the field of youth and youth work. For instance the Canadian Ministry of Education (of the Saskatchewan province) recommends the implementation of activities with young people aiming at creating visual art works to express perspectives and raise awareness about a topic of concern to youth.Aim of the OCEA(n)RT project is to boost youth participation to address plastic -“COVID-Waste”- litter through visual art works in Sweden, Greece, Cyprus and Spain. At the same time, targeted dissemination and advocacy activities will take place in Belgium and UK. OCEA(n)RT consortium has set the following objectives:▪ Extend the competences of at least 240 youth workers, working/collaborating with CSOs, youth and environmental organisations, cultural and creative sector grassroots, in order to foster their ability to enhance youth participation and to motivate youth to address pandemic relevance to plastic litter through visual art works.▪ Enhance access to CSOs, youth and environmental organisations, cultural and creative sector grassroots to relevant roadmaps and good practices to ensure youth participation in ocean protection activities and actions to address pandemic relevance to plastic litter.▪ Support at least 120 CSOs, youth and environmental organisations, cultural and creative sector grassroots’ to raise public awareness, to lead and contribute to the development of youth policies that promote active participation of youth in the fight against marine and “COVID-Waste” litter.The added value of implementing this project transnationally, is that it will promote the exchange of experience, learning and/or good practices between different organizations for the joint creation, testing and dissemination of the capacity building programme, the guide and the toolkit for CSOs, youth and environmental organisations, cultural and creative sector grassroots, that can help address a common challenge across the partner countries, the EU and the globe, in line with the key principles and EU’s priorities, as well as, the European Green Deal and the 14th Sustainable Development Goal (SDG14).

<< Background >>A(rt)ction for Climate Change’ project was born out of all partner’s shared vision to contribute to the fight against the most pressing issues of our time, that is climate change. Acknowledging the drastic consequences that this environmental challenge might have in the lives of all living species, this project can be seen as a challenge-born solution towards contributing to a more sustainable future by capitalizing on the influential power of arts and green entrepreneurship to raise awareness about environmental issues and foster positive behavioral change. In an educational, ambassador-like scheme, we aim to put visual artists been at the heart of green environmental movement and help them to play a major role in raising awareness on climate change and encouraging sustainable social, economic, and environmental practices worldwide.At the same time, the project addresses the needs of artists who wish to use their work of art as a tool to raise environmental awareness and trigger change. From the very start of the project, the expert partner Artit highlighted the needs of artists to a) belong to a wide community with like-minded artists who share the same vision, b) use their art as a tool to influence the world, and c) learn business basics and entrepreneurial practice to be able to grow their influence and grow professionally. The combination of the need to fight climate change, together with the artists’ need to belong to a bigger community and be trained on how to trigger environmental change is what makes the essence of A(rt)ction (i.e. Art and Action) for Climate Change. This essence is no other than the aspiration to make young artists fight climate change via entrepreneurial ways – making the new ‘green actors of change’. More specifically, via our combination of educational project result, we plan to foster and strengthen young artists’ sense of initiative by promoting green entrepreneurship. The combination of education and applied education will also help us to foster and creative learning among youth and train young artists and youth workers to become true agents of change and help in addressing the challenges of climate change. Based on the preliminary but in-depth interview with artists which was carried out by Artit, we will provide a solution to the artists’ and youth art workers needs by helping them to a) enable behavioral changes for individual preferences, consumption habits, and lifestyles, and b) develop sustainability as well as the digital competences of educators who work with artists. At the same time, as climate change is a global phenomenon that needs united efforts, the need for community development of like-minded artists around will also be an integral part of A(rt)ction for Climate Change. As the name A(rt)ction indicates, visual artists around the EU will combine their efforts to use their art to act and influence the world to switch to more environmentally friendly habits, thus stimulating and support Intercultural dialogue and knowledge exchange between people across the EU who strive for a better world. So far, the project results that have been developed are directly linked to the preliminary needs analysis of our target group, especially to the five above mentioned quotations from the interviews. In the case of the curriculum for example (R1), the modules included are meant to offer/be used as a solution to the needs of the artists who have highlighted the need to a) enhance their business know-how and entrepreneurial skills so as to use their art to raise awareness and b) to be able to use digital solutions and innovative tools. Along the same lines, the educational platform (R2) will be an applied digital solution that relates both to the need to a) belong to a wider community and b) collectively “create work of art for a higher purpose”.<< Objectives >>‘A(rt)ction for climate change’ is a multi-dimensional project that will enable behavioral changes for individual preferences, consumption habits, and lifestyle by training and educating young visual artists and youth workers on how to be true agents of change and green entrepreneurial practitioners. We aim to achieve this via three educational project results, ie: R1. the Artists as Green Actors of Change’ Curriculum;R2.the Green E-learning Platform & Cross-cultural Network for Collaboration’;R3.the ‘Artists for Climate Change Toolkit’, and the;R4.the E-book for Young Artists/Actors of Change.During the implementation of our project and immediately after its completion, the consortium expects to see the fruitful outcomes of our project across the EU. All project results will lead to foster and strengthen young people’s sense of initiative by promoting green entrepreneurship and creative learning among youth as well as educate young artists and youth workers to become true agents of change and help in addressing the challenges of climate change. Other immediate outcomes include the increase of quality innovation and recognition of youth work (of art) as well as the productive knowledge exchange, and the stimulation of intercultural dialogue with people across Europe, including those living in rural and remote areas. In the long run, we expect the educated/trained ‘Actors of Change’ to continue to inspire environmental behavioral change individually and collectively by applying the curriculum material into their creative practices. This will always be done in support with the consortium, as we aim to continue this project after its completion. Based on principles of psychology and particularly to that of social identity theory, we expect the youth artists that will have be trained to influence other youth groups to be more environmentally friendly and switch to more conscious habits. By doing so, youths' civic participation will be increased, making them active members of the EU who are striving for a better environment while at the same time developing their entrepreneurial, digital and green skills. The results of the project will have a significant and long term impact on stakeholders and society too. The public will be influenced by the work proceeds by the ‘Green Actors of Change’ artists hence their behavior towards the environment. The environmental-related artworks produced during the project but also after its 2-year duration will displayed and promoted to the public to use the influential power of arts to trigger change. This will be done through the virtual exhibition platform (part of R2). Taking into consideration that climate change is a horizontal priority (and challenge) globally, across industries and sectors, local authorities in each country that of the Ministries of Arts & Culture and the Environment will be able to take advantage of the project results and incorporate them into their green and career guidance policies.<< Implementation >>All project activities will aim to achieve the objectives of A(rt)ction for Climate Change. Having delved into the needs of the target group and the challenges of climate change, all partners have agreed to proceed to the following project results and activities: Starting with creating the design, Development and Piloting of the ‘Artists as Green Actors of Change’ Curriculum (R1), the first activities, concern the development of the research research methodology and the implementation of questionnaires and interviews with our target group(s). We will then continue with the development of the curriculum's macro and microstructures, in order to develop a final comprehensive curriculum with inter-connected themes, related to the topic of climate change and how young visual artists can fight against it. The final activity for R1 shall be the piloting of the curriculum. This will be done in order to test our content before it is distributed widely. Regarding the next result (R2), the activities will start by the design and development of the platform and the transition of the curriculum into e-learning material. The curriculum will then be assembled into one cohesive course and the interactive platform will be ready to be tested and piloted. Following this, we will create the ‘Artists for Climate Change Toolkit’ (R3) which will be directed to Youth Workers & Art Professionals. The activities involve: Content collection, Evaluation and review of collected content, organisation of resources and lastly, a final review, synthesis and publishing. The last result is the creation of the ‘How to become a Successful Green Social Entrepreneur/ Actor of Change book/e-book for Young Artists(R4). To create it, we will first define the gaps and the added value of the e-book and will later develop its content and proceed to the final review, synthesis, and publishing. To achieve the above, we will carry out three Transnational Meetings in Greece, Cyprus and Spain, and will also run multiplier events in all partner countries.To maximize the impact of our project results and succeed in achieving the expected short- and long-term outcomes, we will also develop the following additional material results: •Project plan: will be developed by the leader 'ORGANISATION EARTH' to serve as an evaluation and monitoring tool. The plan will include all the activities and tasks accompanied by indicators.•Partnership Agreements contracts: 'ORGANISATION EARTH' will draft the partnership agreement contracts for all partners to sign, securing rights and duties of all partners, including administrative and financial payments and regulations.•Project website: All outputs, material, news, events or workshops and activities happening during the project will be marketed via the website. The Dissemination Leader, Artit will be responsible for the development and maintenance of the website.•Dissemination and Sustainability plan: developed by Artit to serve as a common guideline and information tool for the communication and exploitation of activities that the consortium will implement, to maximize the impact of dissemination.•Dissemination materials & log: A variety of materials will be produced, (including digital and leaflets, posters, and articles), to reach as many people of the target groups as possible.•Each partner will report its dissemination activity occurring during the project. The dissemination log will help to keep track of the project’s impact and number of people and target groups reached.•Progress, Interim, Final Reports and Financial reports: Each partner will provide a full report about all expenditure and all content development and evaluation activities taking place every six months. An interim and a final report will be produced based on the requirements of the project and on the documents provided by the National Agency. All partners will contribute in the reporting phases but ORGANISATION EARTH will have the overall coordination<< Results >>R1. The Design, Development and Piloting of the ‘Artists as Green Actors of Change’ Curriculum R2. The Design, Development and Piloting of the ‘Green E-learning Platform & Cross-cultural Network for CollaborationR3. The creation of the ‘Artists for Climate Change Toolkit’ for Youth YorkersR4. The creation of e-Book for Young Artists on ‘How to become a Successful Green Social Entrepreneur/ Actor of Change’R1. The first result refers to the design, development & piloting of the Artists and Green Entrepreneurship curriculum. The content of the program will be designed to meet the needs of creative young visual artists across the EU whose work is -or has the potential to- be related to the environment (and therefore the potential to raise awareness about environmental challenges at a local, national and EU-level). Examples of this target group include EU professional and non-professional young EU-based artists, who might be painters (botanical, landscape, figurative artists to name a few), photographers, landscape artists and other visual artists working with traditional and non-traditional media. The curriculum shall be a comprehensive, developmental program of inter-connected themes, which will include themes related to: The power of Arts to Trigger Change; Social and Green Entrepreneurship for Artists; The role of Digitization for Sustainability; New Ways to maximizing Environmental Impact through art; Artists in a Digitized World; Becoming Actors of Change for Climate Change, and other relevant modules. R2. The curriculum will be formatted in an e-learning platform, which will be tailored made to the needs of the target group. In contrast to other already available e-learning platforms, our platform aims to combine education with applied education. In other words, put theory into practice. To this end, the project will create a productive e-learning environment in which will be fostering, enriching, and cultivating creative practices, stimulating intercultural engagement, and flourishing of creative mindsets and social action for a sustainable, greener future through theory and practice. R3. The third result refers to the creation of a practical toolkit for youth workers and relevant art professionals, on how to teach young artists to become successful Green Entrepreneurs/ Actors of Change.It is meant to offer practical advice and guidance regarding creativity and how to develop it in order to raise awareness for environmental issues, with a special emphasis on visual artists and how to develop their creative practice to inspire behavioural and influence people to switch to more environmentally friendly habits. The toolkit will embody multi-disciplinary input from famous artists of different cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds as well as the input of achieved academics, green-market experts, and environmentalists on the topic. The content on the toolkit will be of different forms including stories, case studies, inspirational quotes, best practices etc, coming in both digital and physical format. Depending on the content collection, it will take the form of a book, guide and/or handbook(s).R4. The e-book will be created to meet the needs of youth artists whose work is (or could be) used as a means to inspire action to switch to more environmentally conscious habits. It will offer practice advice and guidance regarding arts and green entrepreneurship, with a special focus on how to teach visual artists to use their art to raise awareness for green issues, with a special emphasis on visual artists and how to develop their creative practice to inspire behavioral and influence people to be more environmentally conscious.

Within SoPHIA, the consortium aims at creating a Social Platform, a vast and diverse community of stakeholders from different fields and disciplines interested in interventions in historical environment and cultural heritage sites in Europe, that will work together towards the definition of quality standards and of guidelines for future policies and programmes. With the constant active participation of the social platform, our work on the research and policies developed in this field will be organized around four main analytical dimensions – social, cultural, economic and environmental impact - which constitute perspectives to identify the most important challenges and opportunities linked to cultural heritage interventions in Europe. We will structure the analysis through a targeting process in two stages: a first exploration of the general topic and the current situation as regards policies, assessment and quality of interventions, including best practices, and the creation of a draft holistic impact assessment model; and a second moment that involves going into specific topics in depth by analysing specific case studies selected during the first phase to confirm or adjust the first phase findings. The second stage will analyse case studies with the model based on 3 axes: people, domains and time. The final step of the project will consist in synthetizing the findings against the results of the analyses performed and drafting recommendations for both practitioners and policy makers for the future of good quality interventions in cultural heritage. The analysis and policy papers will focus on European heritage, however, the final aim is to propose models and standards that can potentially be applied internationally.