Par – Respostas Sociais Association

Experience

Associação Par – Respostas Sociais is a non-profit and youth organisation based in Lisbon, Portugal. It was founded in 2007 after the growth of Jovem a Jovem (a youth organization founded in 1994).

Par is a Youth organization which means that our beneficiaries are aged between 14-30 and even the staff and members of the Board are between the ages of 20 to 30. Our team is composed of youth workers with experience delivering non-formal education-based trainings to young people and adults of different age groups and backgrounds.

The main focus of our work is the development of personal, social and global citizenship competences, not only with young people but also with other professionals linked to young people’s daily life (for example teachers, youth workers, coaches). We promote projects addressing issues such as inclusion, empathy, intercultural dialogue, media literacy, “glocal” interdependencies, personal, interpersonal and social skills development, human rights, and individual autonomy.

We have work experience in different youth contexts, for example: residential youth centres, schools, sports organizations, youth associations, universities, among others.

As an organization, we believe in the power and importance of partnership work. Thus, not only are all our projects always developed with different partners, we are also a member of several national and European networks, namely: Portuguese Youth Council (in which we occupy a place in the Board at the moment), the Portuguese Non-Governmental Development Organisations’ Platform (where we take part in two working groups), Lisbon Social Network, EPTO – European Peer Training Organisation (with whom we are partnering in a project also).

We invite anyone who is interested in Par to follow us and write directly.

a. Role in the project

Associação Par – Respostas Sociais is one of the implementation partners of the DARE – Day One Alliance for Employment Project.

This means that Par will be one of the 4 partners implementing activities directly with young NEET, being the organization responsible for this application in Portugal.

Our main responsibilities are:

• Project administrative and financial management at the Portuguese level;
• Implementation and monitoring of the communication plan;
• Joint development of the Job and Entrepreneurship Labs, together with the other implementation partners;
• Implementation of the Job and Entrepreneurship Labs in Portugal, which includes providing mentoring sessions for each participant
• Implementation of a system of non-formal learning validation – Open Badges – with the support of one of the expertise partners
• Participation in public events and organisation of events in Portugal

b. Experience with transnational or regional programmes and/or EEA/Norway Grants

DG JUSTICE / Rights, Equality and Citizenship

Programme:

• CRAC – A Child Rights Approach to Combat Bullying in Detention and Residential Care Settings (2016-2018)
• Houses of Empathy (2015-2017)

EEA Grants – Active Citizenship

• JAM – Jovens, Arte e Movimento (youth, arts and movement) (2014-2016)

Experience in the project topic “Youth Employment”

Associação Par – Respostas Sociais, throughout the years, has had a focus on youth employment, visible in different projects:

“Atitudes” project

• Execution period: 2006 – 2007
• Description: Aimed to promote the autonomy and the integration in active life of young people between 13 and 18 years old, living in Vale de Alcântara, in Lisbon. Participants were trained to develop personal, interpersonal and instrumental skills and encouraged to become active citizens.

“Espaça-te” Project

• Execution Period: 2008
• Description: The project, developed in a school, aimed to promote the socio-professional integration of young people living in Vale de Alcântara (Lisbon).

The target group of this project were young people identified as being at increased risk of dropping out of school or social exclusion. Its’ main activities were social and personal skills training sessions and individual psychological support sessions.

Innovation Park Project

• Execution Period: 2009-2016
• Description: Educational training Program aimed to pass on useful knowledge for young people´s professional life in different areas such as entrepreneurship, project financial management or cultural diversity. This project used non-formal education as core methodology. The target group was comprised of university students, members of other youth associations, staff of civil society organisations and also anyone interested in addressing a particular subject.

Ijobs Project

• Execution period: 2012-2013
• Description: This project’s goal was to create synergies between young entrepreneurs from Alta de Lisboa, young entrepreneurs attending higher education and experienced mentors, passing on knowledge in entrepreneurship skills and attitudes that enable them to develop businesses that could revitalize the neighbourhood. The target group were young people between 18 and 35 years old.

Go Go Gadget exchange

• Execution period: 2012
• Description: This Exchange put together 25 young people between 18 and 25 years old to work themes related to youth, social entrepreneurship, creativity and young employability. This project gave young people an opportunity to develop entrepreneurship skills like: marketing and project management, teamwork and creativity.

“JAM-Jovens, Arte e Movimento” project

• Execution period: 2014-2016
• Description: This project focused on working with young people in residential care settings, between 14 and 20 years old. Its’ main goal was on achieving personal and artistic skills development towards greater employment opportunities through the arts.