Centrs MARTA

(Re-GROUP)

Nr. 2020-2-LV02-KA205-0032012
2020-2023

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When children move into early adolescence, they begin to take on new gender roles, often reinforcing socially and culturally conventional gender norms related to being women or men. These roles have an impact on the decisions that people in early adolescence make in relation to sexual and interpersonal relationships, which can affect their health and wellbeing throughout the rest of their lives. Gender norms and beliefs have significant implications for both girls and boys in terms of child marriage, early school leaving, pregnancy, HIV and sexually transmitted infection risk, violence exposure, depression, physical violence, substance abuse and suicide. Such differences are socially, not biologically determined. Mental health issues need to be addressed as part of adolescent well-being and in order to ensure health throughout people’s lives, it is crucial that countries address gender inequality, violence and healthy relationships in early adolescence. 

 To answer these identified needs, through the adaptation and piloting of the Youth Group Methodology (YGM), developed by MARTA Center, as well as through qualitative and quantitative research in the field of youth well-being and violence, the project Re-GROUP has set as objectives to:  - reduce risk factors for youth (ages 12-18) to become a victim or a perpetrator of violence; - build capacities in the field of youth work by adding to relevant research and adapting a culturally specific methodology thus prevent violence toward and among youth; - expand the size and impact of youth violence-preventing actors through training, popularization and multiplication of the methodology; - through broad consultation and cooperation with many local actors, create data-backed policy recommendations for each reality; - through further local activities and international cooperation within and after this project, take part in achieving Sustainable Development Goals #4, #5 and #16.

Youth Group methodology manual description can be accessed and downloaded here.

The project, comprised of four project partners from EU countries

• Latvia: MARTA Centre https://marta.lv/en
• Bulgaria: The Future Now association https://tfn-bg.com/#/en/
• Romania: The Romanian Center for Innovation in Local Development (CRIDL) https://cridl.org/
• Spain:  Asociación Mundus https://asociacionmundus.com/

Project, during its 28 months of implementation, directly engaged more than 250 youth workers, educators and more than 400 young people (aged 12 to 25)
More than 10 000 decision and policy makers, and other professionals whose daily target group are adolescents in the project countries and the EU have been engaged inderectly throughout project timeline.

This was done through the following activities:

- Adapting and piloting the YGM in several communities in each partner country;
Youth Group methodlogy can be accessed in English, Latvian, Romanian, Spanish and Bulgarian languages.
Summary of the Youth group methodology and its achievements through this project can be accessed here.

- Conducting two international youth worker trainings, which improved competences and supported research efforts for the project;

- An extensive qualitative and quantitative research on the well-being and violence in youth in the partner countries was conducted.
Research report can be accessed and downloaded in Latvian, English, Spanish, Romanian, Bulgarian

- Policy Recommendations were created together with a wide network of actors in the field of youth, with which to address the policy framework, as it relates to youth and their well-being (including violence prevention).
Policy Recommendations can be accessed and downloaded in Latvian, English, Spanish, Romanian, Bulgarian

- Promote the topic and the project results across youth and youth workers’ communities across Europe (via 4 National Multiplier events, an International conference and many informal meetings with stakeholders, as well as with a broad online campaign).

 The impact of Re-GROUP has spaned across the following target groups:

- Youth workers, who participated in the Re-GROUP activities have increased their capacity for working in relation to gender equality, violence issues and youth sexual education. Participants have improved awareness of all forms of violence, experienced among and towards youth, and gained concrete methodologies, to prevent and combat it.

 - Youth (as direct beneficiaries) have gained competencies of building healthy interpersonal relationships through experiencing YGM; gained understanding and knowledge when, how and where to ask for help and search for support mechanisms for victims, perpetrators and/or bystanders of violence among and towards youth. The application of YGM also has led to numerous other positive results in youth.

 - Intervention sites of YGM implementation have raised awareness and increased sensitivity towards violence, acquired methods and educational tools on how to address a variety of topics, important for youth, and support them in creating and maintaining healthy relationships.

- Policy makers have been engaged through dissemination activities and presentation of national policy recommendations were invited and advised to critically analyze existing situations in local and national level and take needed steps towards combating violence among and towards youth. 

The Re-GROUP project partners are highly motivated to create worthwhile products and activities for this topic and will work to provide the best possible assistance to youth workers and educators, as well as the best strategically-aimed guidelines for policy makers and for the future of Europe!

Project Start Date: 2020-10-01

Project Total Duration: 28 months

Project End Date: 2023-01-31

Project is co-founded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union and administrated by Agency for International Programs for Youth Republic of Latvia.