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Month: February 2025

Choose-life: Implementing a Drug-(ab)use Prevention Program & Shaping Youth Policies with Disadvantaged Young People for Psychosocial Well-being Promotion

Written by Veronica Charalambous on . Posted in Projects & Initiatives, Youth, Rights & Inclusion.

The rise in social challenges, particularly affecting vulnerable youth, highlights a gap in social policy implementation, especially in providing supportive services and educational opportunities outside traditional settings. Drug abuse remains high across the EU, it prompts a crucial consideration regarding whether to continue criminalizing and further marginalizing young people engaged in such risky behaviours, or to first seek understanding of the underlying reasons. The Choose-life project aims to conduct a drug-ab(use) prevention program though a biopsychosocial lens & advocate for inclusive social policies for/with disadvantaged youth, while empowering youth workers, building better life chances and encouraging mindful choices.

The development of the Choose-life toolkit will include healthy leisure practices for young individuals with fewer opportunities. At the same time, youth workers social workers and educators will also be involved and trained through the Choose-life Curriculum and Manual. Young participants will have the opportunity to join capacity-building activities, trainings, job shadowing opportunities and to be part of the local Youth Choose councils in Italy, Portugal, Poland, Greece, Cyprus, Serbia and Belgium. People aged 13-18 years old will have the opportunity to be part of an International Youth-camp in Poland. 

Primacenters – Local Employment Eenters to Support Migrants’ Socio-economic Integration in the Primary Sector

Written by Veronica Charalambous on . Posted in Projects & Initiatives, Youth, Rights & Inclusion.

Primacenters’ goal is to promote multistakeholder efforts for the effective socio -economic integration of migrants, both women and men, in the primary sector, by developing and piloting tailored and effective support services and mechanisms in the field. It builds on identified needs and gaps and engages a diversified group of organizations in a collective effort to support migrants’ effective integration and decent working conditions in the primary sector by working with both the migrants and the employers. Its strategy is branched in 5 strands of interventions:

1) Networking & knowledge gathering to mobilize key stakeholders, create local networks and consolidated knowledge in the field,
2) Development of focused employment support mechanisms & tools to provide focused support and upgrade current practices,
3) Capacity building to increase key stakeholders’ ability to intervene in the field and apply the developed mechanisms,
4) Primacenters’ establishment and piloting to put the developed mechanisms in practice, provide “job and offer” mapping, matching and reference services, informative, support, training and referral services, community-based activities and control mechanisms for employers and migrants and assess their impact,
5) Advocacy & awareness raising to contribute to improvements in the policy frameworks, seek for mechanisms’ official adoption and raise awareness of employers, migrants and local communities on key issues around the topic.

Download e-Leaflet here (EN)

CARDET Supports Green School Network Tree-Planting Initiative in Cyprus

Written by Veronica Charalambous on . Posted in Blog.

In a significant step towards promoting environmental awareness and sustainability, students from Agios Antonios Lyceum participated in a tree-planting event at D Primary School in Limassol on January 31st, 2025. This initiative, part of the Green School Network, led by Global Education and the North-South Centre, aims to engage youth with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Approximately 20 enthusiastic students from Agios Antonios Lyceum planted around 15 trees in the school yard, using digging and planting tools provided by their school. The event was part of a broader campaign that included similar tree-planting activities across high schools in Cyprus, Greece, Syria, and Tunisia. The overarching goal is to educate students on environmental preservation and raise awareness of the importance of the SDGs.

Before planting, students received an introductory session on SDGs 4 (Quality Education), 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and 13 (Climate Action), along with hands-on guidance on proper tree-planting techniques. Following the event, an online meeting was held with international collaborators, allowing students to share their experiences and best practices with their peers from other countries.

In Cyprus, the initiative was led by CARDET, highlighting the Centre’s commitment to fostering environmental consciousness among the younger generation. This tree-planting event not only enhanced the school’s greenery but also instilled a sense of responsibility in students, empowering them to contribute actively to a sustainable future.