Youth 4 Change – Autonómia

Development Training

The aim of our programme was to strengthen local youth communities and encourage cooperation between Roma and non-Roma young people. We implemented inclusive development programmes in six towns in Hungary and Romania, involving secondary school pupils aged 14–20. The young people produced creative artwork, which we turned into films as part of an awareness-raising campaign. We promoted these in the media with the help of influencers.

Unlike our previous work, in this programme we invited two groups of pupils from markedly different social backgrounds in each town to collaborate on a joint creative project. Whilst our earlier creative projects focused on developing labour-market skills, this time the focus was on strengthening inclusion, social awareness and active civic responsibility.

During the project, we produced methodological materials demonstrating how young people’s inter-ethnic attitudes can be shaped and how creative tools can be used to combat hate speech and discrimination. We distributed these materials online and promoted them through training sessions for teachers and youth workers.

The video and the music were produced by young people from Miskolc participating in the Youth 4 Change project.

The reports were made at the film premiere and exhibition opening of the Budapest mentees.

For almost half a year, the youth of the Polytechnic of Economics and the Deák Ferenc College worked on a project dealing with social problems such as gender differences, discrimination and education. In the summer of 2024, they not only exhibited their works in the Városmajori Park, but also invited everyone who came to the event at the legal wall there to a community booing.

The film shows the processes and mentees of the “Youth 4 Change” project in Budapest.

Mentees from Gyöngyös wrote texts, made pictures and created audio material on topics important to them. Their work has also resulted in a book and an exhibition. They and the trainers who worked with them talk about what this unusual adventure meant to them. The book is available here: https://t.ly/X8uwF You can listen to the audio files here: https://t.ly/HGrFB