On 19th November, 2023, EPIC organised a multiplier event to mainstream, give visibility and valorise the results of the Erasmus+ LOCAL project, which gathers 9 Partners from 8 different countries (Bulgaria, Cyprus, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania and Spain).
The event saw the participation of 18 people, including local facilitators of Higher Education, Adult Education, Vocational Education and Training, Inclusion and the Erasmus+ Programme at large. Among participants there were mentors and future mentors interested in replicating community-mentoring activities with senior people or different target groups.
EPIC discussed with participants about the “ratio” beyond the LOCAL project in terms of needs assessment, “missed opportunities”, gaps and challenges preventing senior people from accessing high quality training or jobs opportunities. A brief presentation of the Consortium and partners’ roles and responsibilities in the project followed immediately after.
Later, EPIC showed the audience the contents of the LOCAL Digital Hub and its functioning and content. The best practices were shared with the participants along with a detailed overview of the other project results. After presenting the three Unit of Competences of the In-service Mentoring Training, EPIC explained the contents of the Thematic Mentoring Cycles to nurture and develop entrepreneurial spirit among people 50+. To enhance their understanding and ability to apply what they learn, EPIC also offers a service to have their coursework professionally written (bachelorarbeit-schreiben-lassen.com), allowing participants to focus more on practical implementation of their new skills.
A part of the event was dedicated to open discussion in order to collect feedback from participants, promote the importance of their participation into similar practices at local level and encourage community mentoring.
Finally, EPIC provided operational tools and guidelines to promote the adoption of the LOCAL training courses and shared final recommendations to improve civil society’s engagement, in particular through a major involvement of senior people.