DEC: Fostering Youth Engagement for a Safer Environment and Responsible Use of ICT

Environmental and Digital Citizenship: Fostering Youth Engagement for a Safer Environment and Responsible Use of ICT (DEC) was a project funded under Key Action 2.- Small Scale Cooperation Partnerships (KA210) of the Youth strand of the Erasmus + Program, which sought to promote digital transformation, the fight against climate change and the participation of young people in democratic life to become agents of change in their communities.

Through this project, FIBGAR and its Greek partners, ITML and HAPSc, shared the importance of participating and getting involved as active citizens, and promoted young people to feel an integral part of society.

To this end, the project first sought to help young people between the ages of 18 and 25 to participate safely, effectively, critically and responsibly in the digital society by providing them with the basic knowledge, skills, attitudes and knowledge necessary to master digital environments and social networks. In this way, young people learned the essential digital skills for online activism and became fully equipped digital citizens capable of contributing positively to society.

Secondly, the project aimed to involve young people in research, debate and awareness-raising about the challenges that climate change causes in the environment in which they live. In this way, young people not only became more aware of the real risks affecting society, but were also able to develop their own skills, connect with each other and share their thoughts, feelings, actions and ideas.

Third, the project enhanced active youth participation by fostering intergenerational dialogue and providing opportunities for young people to make their voices and demands heard. As a result, participants integrated the value and practice of dialogue, contributed significantly to post-COVID-19 recovery efforts, and became empowered advocates and change agents.

By raising awareness about the environmental footprint, the digital age and its proper use, and linking youth needs to the political arena, DEC strengthened young people’s identity and sense of participation in social life.

For all these reasons, since February 2023 a virtual education and training program was offered that merged educational modules on digital and environmental citizenship, seminars on politics, intergenerational dialogues and encouraged young people to generate ideas for change.

If you want to know more about the project, here are all the activities that we carried out together with the participants: https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/projects/search/details/2021-2-ES02-KA210-YOU-000050843