Site instruction manual

The youthexchanges.eu website is divided into three main parts:

1. Examples of international exchanges
   
2. About the page
3. Knowledge base

Examples of international exchanges

In the first part of the portal you can find examples of already implemented projects – their detailed descriptions, promotional videos, statements made by both participants and organizers, as well as the effects developed during those projects – including a publication which is a case study of one of the exchanges. If you have already organized an exchange and would like to share its results on our website, please send us a description and selected forms of promotion to the following address: tomek@waznesprawy.org

About the page

In the second tab, we describe the process of creating the portal – we explain how we have prepared the program of “The project’s journey” exchange so as to enable participants to work as effectively as possible on the knowledge gathered here. There we explain the groups in which they worked, how and why we used the design thinking method.

Knowledge Base

The last part, the Knowledge Base, is the most important element of the entire portal. Here you will find all the information on how to organize your own international project. The database is divided chronologically into ten parts:

1. First things first – right now you are here! Later in this block, we explain what Erasmus+ is and what opportunities it offers. You will find answers to the questions of what a Youth Exchange is, who can organize it and what are its basic principles to keep in mind.
2. Partner organizations – if you want to organize an international exchange, you have to find a colleague from another country; an organization or a group that will help you organize and participate in the exchange. We explain how to effectively search for such organizations (because there may be more than one of them).
3. Idea – once you know who you will work with while organizing the project, come up with an idea around which you will build the entire exchange. In order for a project to be financed by Erasmus+, it must meet certain requirements, and we will tell you what they are!
4. Application – one of the most difficult stages of organizing a project. After all, its quality determines whether the exchange will be accepted. We explain what should be described in the application, what to pay the most attention to, how to prepare the project budget and what to do when our application does not receive the necessary number of points.
5. Project preparation – if you have received a positive answer about obtaining financing for the planned exchange, it’s time to get down to work. For a project to be successful, you need to prepare it really well. We describe here all the necessary activities: from planning the work schedule, through meeting with partner organizations, searching for an exchange place, purchasing the necessary materials, to organizing transport to the location where the project takes place.
6. Program – a separate task that should be done well when preparing the exchange is planning its substantive part. Before you prepare the topics of workshops, choose their moderators and methods of working with the group, translate the most important aims of the event and its expected effects into the actual activities during the meeting.
7. Integration – when the exchange finally takes place, its first step is getting to know all participants. We describe in detail examples of group integration methods, such as to really get to know the people with whom we will work, establish common rules, feel at ease with each other and consciously learn from each other.
8. Evaluation – each implemented project should be evaluated, that is, its quality should be monitored on an ongoing basis. After all, everyone wants their exchange to be successful and the participants happy. In this part of the base, you will find detailed instructions on how to talk to the group about their daily impressions, how to properly respond to reported problems and how to act in crisis situations.
9. Results – after the exchange is finished, share the results: it is important that they are sustainable and reach as many interested people as possible who can benefit from their values. We advise how such results can look like and through which channels it is worth promoting them.
10. Settlement – the stage of project coordination that raises a lot of questions. How is project documentation kept? How to spend the money we get from financing? What should be summed up in the invoice? You will find answers to these and other questions in the last section of the knowledge base.