Youth workers from Armenia, Belarus, Denmark, Estonia, Greece, Russia, Sweden, the UK and Ukraine have come together this week in the New Forest for a conference; ‘how to use Outdoor Education as a tool for European Citizenship’.

WAYC working in partnership with UK Youth has been awarded a grant through the Youth in Action Programme to deliver the training course.  The course is running from 23rd – 29th November at Avon Tyrell, the UK Youth Activity Centre.

The idea of the course is to show how outdoor activities can be more than just fun but can also be educational and to look at how to do these activities in a safe way.

The week is also exploring the link between active citizenship and outdoor education, promoting various benefits such as health, environmental impact and intercultural dialogue. The training is aimed at international youth workers and leaders who wish to engage young people in outdoor education but need a theoretical tool kit to develop an informed praxis with subject areas such as risk assessment and non-verbal communication.

After the course it is hoped participants create their own projects that engage local young people using non-formal education techniques. It is hoped that the partners will be able to conduct future projects together utilising the concept of youth exchanges.

Chris Rumble, Training Organiser said, “we are delighted to have received the funding from the Youth in Action Programme to host this exciting and educational course.  The project will encourage the development of invaluable partnerships and the use of outdoor education as an important youth work tool.”