"DIGITAL RURAL GAME project aims to promote in low-skilled adults the acquisition of digital competences and other soft skills needed to eliminate the digital gap in rural areas in Europe. The expected results are:- Identified the gaps and needs among low-skilled adults in rural areas in partner countries. - Develop an interactive online game to improve digital skills in low-skilled adults in rural areas. - Created a handbook for educators and low-skilled adults in rural areas for a correctly use of the game and improving digital skills in rural areas of Europe. In addition, with the achievement of the results described above (which are related to the intellectual products that will be developed during the execution of the project), we can contribute to achieving the following challenges:- Reduce the digital gap in rural areas in Europe through gamification and non-formal and informal education- Promote lifelong learning in rural areas as a tool for socio-economic development and the fixing of the population of rural Europe emptied.The achievement of the objectives of the project will allow low-skilled adults to access the new jobs that digitalization will bring, minimizing the risks of long-term unemployed and helping to fix population in the most disadvantaged rural areas.To this end, the project aims to develop materials that support professionals in the field of adult education in search of employment or that seek to improve their employment status. These materials will be based on the concept of ""gamification"", a learning technique that moves the mechanics of games to the educational-professional field in order to achieve better results, either to better absorb some knowledge, improve some skill, or reward specific actions, among many other objectives. This type of learning gains ground in training methodologies due to its playful nature, which facilitates the internalization of knowledge in a more fun way, generating a positive user experience.By the end of the project, the consortium will have developed support materials for adult educators so that they can train digital skills and other soft skills through an online game of low-skilled people in rural areas.In addition, it will contribute to promoting lifelong learning, raising awareness through the Project of the importance of continuing to be trained in spite of one's age."

An increasing number of European countries is implementing online civic and commercial services to enable easier, cheaper and faster administrative operations for citizens. The future trend is obvious: the demand of such services will increase significantly and so will the implementation by governments and businesses. Even though e-Government and e-Commerce offer a myriad of benefits, taking advantage of such services requires a certain amount of digital skills and know-how, which disadvantaged groups of people often lack.The objective of My e-Start is to equip disadvantaged groups of people with skills necessary for using the most common e-Government and e-Commerce services in their countries and ensuring a positive (first) e-experience as well as a sense of digital achievement. My e-Start is focusing on a group, which is particularly vulnerable to digital exclusion, namely the elderly, those with low levels of education and training and those with a migration background.The main output of the project is the development of an extremely simple online course and a user-friendly e-platform adapted to specific needs of the target group. Both the online course and the e-platform will put a particular emphasis on the use of ‘easy language’, simple instructions, clear visual elements and well-structured content to avoid confusion and overstress of the target group. The aim of the online course is to provide disadvantaged groups of people with very basic knowledge about common e-Government and e-Commerce services in their countries (e.g. e-banking, tax declaration, e-card) and how to use them. To ensure an implementation of the course in different contexts and environments, My e-Start will design and develop a comprehensive manual for adult educators and/or training providers working with the target group and intending to implement the online course into their curricula. The explicit aim of My e-Start is to contribute to digital inclusion of disadvantaged groups of people and address the increasing digital gap by designing, developing and promoting sustainable and tailored products, which are widely applicable and highly impactful. The project consortium consists of experts, who have vast experience in areas including adult education, digital competence and the inclusion of disadvantaged groups. During the whole duration of the project and beyond, partners will ensure an extensive dissemination and valorisation of the project through established national and international networks of key stakeholders to guarantee high visibility and a widespread effect.

<< Background >>Workplace well-being is one of the hottest topics in professional/industrial and academic settings during the past one and a half year, following the emergence of the pandemic situation, as employees have seen their lives turn upside down, both from a personal and a professional point of view, with a negative effect on their well-being levels. More than ever before, following the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, employees were exposed to an even bigger burden while working from home, with extra responsibilities added to their already busy lives.Results from recent studies (e.g. Deloitte, 2020) are concerning: For many workers, the pandemic is upending their work/life balance and affecting their physical and mental health, and some are questioning their current and long-term career prospects. Some have cited working longer hours because of the pandemic and others are juggling extra care-giving responsibilities as a result of pandemic-related consequences (i.e., school closures, caring for relatives) while also working full-time. Thus, the project’s topic is more relevant and of great importance than never before, as it affects individuals, families, organisations and the economy at large. Workplace well-being relates to all aspects of working life, from the quality and safety of the physical environment, to how workers feel about their work, their working environment, the climate at work and work organisation. The aim of introducing wellbeing programmes is for workers to feel safe, healthy, satisfied and engaged at work. Workers well-being is a key factor in determining an organisation's long-term effectiveness. Many studies show a direct link between productivity levels and the general health (physical, psychological, mental) and well-being of the workforce. n a recent study by LCP, it was reported that 3 in 5 Brits are currently worried about their workplace wellbeing due to the lack of support from employers during the pandemic. In a post-Covid corporate landscape, where many businesses have seen drastic changes to their workplace lifestyle and location, employee wellbeing has never been so important.Studies show that a happy and healthy employee is more likely to perform and engage within the business, providing stronger value production for the company as a whole. Thus, the company benefits, both at a short and long-term basis and the development and investment in well-being programmes should be seen as a necessity and not a luxury. It has been estimated that mental health problems affect more than a third of the population every year, the most common of them being depression and anxiety. Mental and behavioral disorders were responsible for 4,1% of all deaths in 2018, 7% of EU’s population in 2014 reported having chronic depression and in 2015 14% of all hospital beds in the EU were psychiatric care beds (EUROSTAT, 2018). Each year 25% of the EU population suffers from depression and/or anxiety. Consequently, up to 50% of chronic sick leaves are due to depression/stress and the cost of mood disorders and anxiety in the EU is around €170 billion per year (WHO, 2018). Every individual spends a large proportion of his/her life in their workplace, subsequently what happens at work affects significantly their emotional and physical well-being and vice versa. A large body of research has confirmed the link between well-being and job performance (Metcalfe et al., 2008). A significant number of individuals experiences stress-related mental or health issues that affect their productivity, job satisfaction and well-being (Baptste, 2007; Gorjian & Finkelman, 2016; Metcalfe et al., 2008; Turner et al., 2002). According to the Sixth European Working Conditions Survey conducted by Eurofound (2017), one-third of workers in the EU, work with tight deadlines at high speed. With growing high demands on employees, the negative influence on workers’ mental health is continuously rising and especially burnout is becoming an important issue .<< Objectives >>Despite existing good practices, management of workplace well-being is generally not embedded in Human Resource policies in organisations, nor supported by national policies, especially in SMEs. The EU supports and promotes the well-being approach; however, it lies in the power of each organisation in Member States to adopt this notion and to create such policies (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2013). These skills and strategies related to workplace well-being are not usually adopted by companies or in-company VET trainers, even though most of them are extremely simple, thus it is important to develop a compact source of information to impart the knowledge of the HR community of Europe.Through new approaches that have emerged after the COVID-19 pandemic, we aim to contribute in ehnancing people’s well-being at individual level but also improve company productivity and generate economic growth at national and EU level. A recent article published by the Harvard Business Review stressed how the pandemic exacerbated the burnout syndrom of thousands of employees at a global level (https://hbr.org/2021/02/how-the-pandemic-exacerbated-burnout?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=hbr&utm_source=linkedin&tpcc=orgsocial_edit) and in another article also published by HBR (02/2021, provided in Annexes) the researchers of the study presented in 12 charts what COVID-19 has done to our well-being (https://hbr.org/2021/02/what-covid-19-has-done-to-our-well-being-in-12-charts?ab=seriesnav-bigide). Well-being, work-life balance and burnout are all closely linked and our project aims to touch upon these issues through a comprehensive and systematic approach and offer practical and hands-on solutions for the businesses and organisations that want to thrive and grow further in the near future. Special emphasis will be given in prevention strategies for better results. More specifically, our THRIVE@work consortium aims to address these crucial issues by implementing an innovative Training Programme for HR Managers, having also the role of in-company VET trainers (PR2). Also an EU Handbook with practical applications for organisations, with the objective to safe-proof wellbeing in the workplace will be developed (PR1). All project products and actions will be especially designed in order to promote continuous VET training of HR Managers/Officers on well-being programmes and this in turn will sustain and enhance employees’ physical and emotional well-being. In addition, these practices will be beneficial for organisations since it is expected to improve staff’s productivity, efficiency and engagement.TARGET GROUPS: 1. In-company and external VET trainers, HR Professionals, CEOs/Company Owners. AIMS: •Development of innovative Training Programme on well-being programmes, across different industries/areas, based on the PERMA model:oIncluding basic leadership skills and team-building activitiesoMentoring skillsoDesigned to improve work environments oHelp employees to flourish.•Empower HR Managers to develop new knowledge, competences and skills in the fast-changing globalised workplace, through continuous VET training. These people will be able to embrace the benefits of investing on well-being and building a transversal set of skills and competences, which aim to improve the quality of personal and professional life and thus persuade the leaders of organisations/companies to view the development of well-being at work as a priority and not as a luxury. •Practical Handbook for HR Managers (in-company VET trainers).Our project will offer the necessary content, tools and methodologies to in-company VET Trainers to develop organisations that have ingrained in their culture the notion of well-being. THRIVE@WORK aims to approach the matter systemically by involving all relevant stakeholders in order to encourage radical changes in organisations regarding stress prevention and enhancement of well-being matters<< Implementation >>Our onsortium will use evidence-based and scientifically proven methods deriving from Positive Psychology’s principles and specifically Seligman’s (2011) PERMA model (P-Positive Emotion, E-Engagement, R-Relationships, M-Meaning, A-Accomplishment). THRIVE@WORK aims to also emphasise on team-building, leadership skills and mentoring, since a Leader/Mentor has the power to shape and positively alter the attitudes of the team and cultivate a culture of well-being. Successful leaders are expected to inspire motivation, develop a vision that can be shared and accompany the development of individuals (Eurofound, 2017). Our Consortium will prepare material and practical applications to help HR Managers to acquire a variety of new skills that are currently needed in the changing workplace and the future priorities of the HR profession, in order be in a position to handle this top priority issue within their organisation and encourage and promote the notion of well-being and improve the overall working environment. The THRIVE@WORK consortium includes 6 partner organisations from 5 different countries (Cyprus, Belgium, Greece, Italy and Bulgaria), with a multi-disciplinary expertise and VET training experience in the fields of well-being at the workplace, team-building, Positive Psychology, Organisational Behaviour, Human Resources and Leadership Principles.ur approach is broken down into a series of stages incorporating research and analysis, design/planning and development, implementation, testing and evaluation. The PMC will play a major role in ensuring that agreed schedules are adhered to and make whatever changes are required to enhance the work of the consortium along the project’s implementation. The methodology to be employed involves the following key stages:STAGE A: State-of-the-art and development of EU Handbook for HR Managers. This is the initial research to take place amongst the target groups and will involve exploratory, descriptive and explanatory research, conducting both a primary and secondary research study, as a continuation to the preparatory secondary study already conducted by our consortium. The primary research to be conducted involves the design and implementation of a survey research through an online questionnaire answered by our key target group (i.e. HR Managers having the role of in-company VET trainers).STAGE B: Analysis of gathered data: We will conduct analysis of both the secondary and primary data gathered and then produce the EU Handbook for the development of well-being programmes, listing the key findings and practical steps for the utilisation of best practices identified (PR1). The handbook will target VET trainers, HR Managers/Officers, CEOs, Senior Executives, Department Heads etc., which will have an interest in developing comprehensive and current well-being programmes and a more positive organisational culture. This will then be made publicly available through the THRIVE@WORK website and it will be sent via email to a number of relevant stakeholders (public and private ones).STAGE C: By utilising the results from Stage B, the development of the THRIVE@WORK Training and Mentoring Programme will take place (PR2). Once the first version is ready, a Train-the-Trainers Workshop will take place in Belgium. Following this, each partner will implement a pilot training workshop with at least 15-20 participants (VET trainers that are also HR Managers/Officers), to receive valuable feedback from them on the quality of our THRIVE@WORK Training And Mentoring Programme and then finalise it. STAGE D: Development of Online Training Platform (PR3). This phase will involve the development of an online platform (based on planned actions in Stage C), which will be used for the delivery of the online THRIVE@WORK Training and Mentoring Programme, acting as a platform for the exchange of knowledge, ideas, and best practices between in-company VET Trainers that are also HR Managers/Officers.<< Results >>IMPACT (in line with Europe Mental Health Action plan 2013-2020):VET trainers that will study PR1 and PR2 will become more appreciative of this new training area that is projected to grow significantly in the coming years, as global statistics show that the workplace well-being industry was a $48 billion market in 2017 and is projected to grow to $66 billion in 2022. Thus it is expected that there will be high demand from corporations and individuals for these training and mentoring services in the near future. VET trainers will be encouraged to invest in their continuous professional development, through the offering of new training programmes. Also in-company VET trainers will be able to develop comprehensive well-being programmes for their organisations and train their company leaders and their colleagues on the same principles, having thus a multiplier effect.The development of a positive and well-being culture of organisations will be based on actions, policies, procedures and training content, all identified and developed through the THRIVE@WORK project. Senior leadership, beginning with the CEO/General Manager of an organisation and followed by the Team/Department Leaders and HR Specialists, should be able to understand the importance of creating such a culture and thus embracing this aim and making sure all strategic decisions are implemented in practice, over a short and long-term horizon.Also the long-term impact of our project relate to the following positive attributes associated with comprehensive and structured well-being programmes: •Amplify job satisfaction•Reduce workers burnout•Minimize absenteeism and turnover•Eliminate work-related stress and other mental health issues•Improve work-engagement•Elevated work performance •Increase Organisations productivity and profitability.OUTPUTS: • PR1: EU Handbook for the development of well-being programmes• PR2: THRIVE@WORK Training and Mentoring Programme• PR3: Online Learning Platform.For the dissemination purposes, a website will be developed along with the project’s social media pages. A final dissemination event will also take place in each participating country at the end of the project. Organisations with healthy and happy staff enjoy high levels of productivity, performance, engagement and ultimately long-term profitability and competitiveness. Less reported stress-related health issues or days of leave, burnout cases or turnover are expected. Also, improved employer branding of the organisations and subsequently increased talent attraction and retention.

"<< Background >>About 20-22% of the EU population is Neurodiverse, which means that their brain works different. Dyspraxia, Dyslexia, ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), Asperger, Autism, Tourette or Dyscalculia are the most common disorders. As these conditions are frequently co morbid it is difficult to estimate the total number of children and adults in the population who are experiencing some difficulties from one, or a combination of the neurodiversity. Many children never get diagnosed, or do so later in life after years of struggling or at a crisis point in their lives. During the past years, the number of Neurodiverse kids has increased, or at least, those being diagnosed and measured at schools, high schools and Universities. These have adapted and they do have developed and implemented specific procedures for Neurodiverse. But when getting to an adult and to the work world, we find that most of the organisations are physically and structurally set up for ‘neurotypicals’ and neurodiverse experiment huge problems to access a job, from the interview to their daily work.The NeuroPower target group are:-VET Trainers in general,-VET Trainers working with Special Educational Needs,-HHRR Managers from all kind of Organizations,-Managers from all type of Organizations,-Experts in educational & social,-Experts in Special Educational Needs (educational psychologists, clinical psychologists, therapists),-Psychologists and mental health specialists<< Objectives >>""Neurodiversity Power"" project general objective is to help to create or achieve a culture of Inclusion of Neurodiversity, by developing the right roles, the right environment and the right leadership at the Organizations. We aim to raise awareness and understanding of Neurodivergent at work. Five partners from four countries involving VET Centres (ACTA-Ro), Health Foundations (BOSEV-Tk), Innovative SME (IBOXC-Es), HHRR Consultants (CATRO-Bg) and NGO specialized on Social and Economic research (WEBER-Es) participates together in a strategic partnership with the aim to:•Develop basic and transversal skills by implementing a Handbook that includes Methodology, Techniques and Tools at the Organization•Promote unconventional and informal learning to build self-confidence, brake barriers and empower Neurodiversity•Develop a Curriculum programme that enhances Human Resources managers and/or VET Trainers, developing new and creative tools that will improve the learning experience of the skills of experienced entities working with Neurodiverse.•Develop guidelines to help with the Certification of the Organization as a Neurodiversity Inclusive Organization and achieve the ""NeuroPower Quality Seal"".•Create a NeuroPower Hub of VET Trainers that will increase the visibility of the project and the sustainability, being the facilitators to the Organizations on the implementation of the Handbook, training other trainers or helping Organizations to get the award of the Quality Seal.<< Implementation >>The selection and involvement of participants in the different activities of the 'Neurodiversity Power' project will be as follows:1.NATIONAL SEMINARS (Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria, Month 17) and Final Conference (Spain, Month 22)These seminars target VET Trainers, SEN experts, private and public HHRR managers and VET professionals with the aim to share the work and latest developments of the project (IO1 and IO2), and more specifically on the findings and conclusions of the Methodologies Developed. Moreover, it will be an opportunity for other experts and professionals to share their views and experience with the expertise gained from the implementation of the project by the project partners.Target Groups:a.VET Teachersb.SEN experts and professionals (clinical & educational psychologists, experts in social & education)c.HHRR Managersd.Psychologists and mental health specialists2.TRAINING COURSE (Madrid- Month 21)There will be one (1) training course throughout the implementation of the Project.It is expected to have 15 VET Trainers. Target Groups/participants:a.VET Trainers in general,b.VET Trainers working with Special Educational Needs,c.HHRR Managers from all kind of Organizations,d.Managers from all type of Organizations,e.Experts in educational & social,f.Experts in Special Educational Needs (educational psychologists, clinical psychologists, therapists),g.Psychologists and mental health specialists3.TRANSNATIONAL PROJECT MEETINGS (Ankara- M2, Romania- M9, Bulgaria- M16, Spain- M22)Participants:a)Staff members of Neurodiversity Power partners responsible for the technical progressb)Staff members of Neurodiversity Power partners responsible for the financial progress (financial officers)c)Staff members of Neurodiversity Power partners responsible for the communication & dissemination activities4. Activities related to Quality Assurance, Evaluation, Exploitation and Sustainability of ""Neurodiversity Power"" outcomes.<< Results >>We expect to get a Methodology and diverse Tools to train the future trainers, human resource managers or assessors in the Organizatios, in general those who design, develop, facilitate, support, deliver and assess learning at work. The managers from the organization will have specific competences and Skills and so the project will design a Curriculum. Last, for those companies that will implement this procedure we want to develop a ""European Neurodiversity Quality Seal"" so they will be recognized for their work on inclusion through a certification.The results - TOOLKIT - of the project include:-Development of a Handbook to organize the methodologies for inclusion,-Development of a Curriculum Programme with different training modules,-Development of a procedure to implement the methodologies learnt and certificate Organizations as they are a Neuro Inclusive workplace,-Creating an Award ""Neurodiversity Quality Seal"" for those organizations working with the Neurodiversity Power methodology,-Creation of a digital online NeuroPower Trainer´s Hub to exchange information and create awareness,-Testing the training materials in a LTTA in Madrid (Spain ) with 15 VET trainers/HHRR managers,The expected results are:-The ""Neurodiversity Power"" Handbook-The ""Neurodiversity Power"" Curriculum-A proceeding to certificy an Organization on the correct implementation of the Handbook so they can get the ""Neurodiversity Quality Seal""To achieve all of this, results will result in three intellectual outputs:IO1: Handbook - Methodologies, techniques and tools to Manage Neurodiversity at the Organizations IO2: Neurodiversity Manager CurriculumIO3: Neurodiversity Quality Seal: Proceeding to Certify an Organization"

"Young people today are growing up in a globalised world and are processing information from a wider variety of sources than ever before. They need the critical literacy skills to navigate the potential pitfalls when consuming news, particularly when using online sources and social media. Media literacy is crucial for sustaining democracy by knowing which information sources to trust and which media are trustworthy. It is important to recognize and see through propaganda and sometimes “read between the lines”. “No Alternative Facts” addressed this challenge in an adult education context through an innovative train-the-trainer format which aims to: - Provide adult educators (the direct target group) with useful skills and action-oriented methods on how to develop young people’s digital competence - Enhance digital competence of young people 15-25 (final beneficiaries), especially with a low level of education and training - Thus increasing Critical Digital Literacy, especially critical thinking skills, of young adults in the age of ""Fake News"". Adult educators’ professional competence are enhanced by the attitudes, knowledge skills necessary to apply the innovative “No Alternative Facts” approach: In most competence development processes action-oriented and productive methods are most effective on developing critical thinking. Therefore the final beneficiaries, the young adults, will be encouraged to describe their own experience with fake news in the internet in small videos and other multimedia formats and place it on an online gamification environment. After analysing their experiences, the young people themselves develop learning quizzes to test peers about their knowledge of ""Fake News"", Misinformation and Disinformation and how they can be detected. Consequently, the train-the-trainer offer for adult educators will contain the following elements: - Awareness and basic knowledge about ""Fake News"", Misinformation and Disinformation and about tools to detect them (watch websites, analytical methodologies etc.) - Insight into how ""Fake News"", Misinformation and Disinformation is created, can be spread and manipulated in social media - Introduction to game-based learning and quiz-based learning as methodologies for competence development and empowerment - Practical tools for media and quiz production in the classroom In terms of concrete products “No Alternative Facts” developed - A Situational Analysis Report on how young people experience fake news - A Train-the-Trainer Format for adult educators - A Toolbox of resources for Adult Educators - An Online Gamification Environment “No alternative facts” was put into practice in a Transnational Training Activity with 21 adult educators, who then piloted the approach with young people in their respective country. 127 more adult educators and multipliers were informed about the project outputs and instructed how to use them in multiplier (mainly virtual) events, and a total of 432 young people were directly involved in the project. The main outputs will be continued to be offered online after the end of the project via the project website, www.noalternativefacts.net, through the Toolbox of learning materials (including e-learning formats of the training modules), resources and useful instruments, and the Gamification Platform. These have all been designed in a way which makes it easy for adult educators to apply “No Alternative Facts” training and game-based learning opportunities in different adult education contexts and with young and older adults alike. The partnership is led by Apricot, United Kingdom, and has experienced adult education providers from Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, Sweden and Denmark as project partners."