DIGIJEUNES

Digijeunes was set up in response to a lack of NGOs that specialize in utilizing digital science as a means to aid tackling social issues. More particularly, Digijeunes sets out to answer two major policy challenges identified by the European Commission as part of the Europe 2020 strategy to advance the European Union economy, namely (1) Promoting digital literacy, skills and inclusion (2) produce ICT-enabled benefits for EU society. The objectives of the organization can be summed up as follows: • Foster solidarity and social cohesion by encouraging the meeting and sharing of experiences between youth from different social, cultural, economical backgrounds • Shape active citizens, capable of contributing to the emergence of a participatory culture, especially through use of latest forms of technology • Provide disadvantaged youth with opportunities for education and/or professional growth, especially in the domain of the digital and media industries • Weaken the boundaries between formal and non-formal education on digital science • Promote digital and media literacy and inform the general public about the growing importance of this type of skills and knowledge to face future economic, professional, social, environmental challenges. Our activities privilege a practical and participative component to theoretical and individualistic practices. Our activities include: • Street workshops for youth aged between 8 and 14 years old on collaborative video production / editing, the fundamentals of electronics, robotics and computer programming; • Workshops at community centers, libraries, schools, and fablabs on electronics, programming, robotics, media production, digital citizenship, social networks; • Public debates on ethical and societal issues surrounding the latest forms of media and digital technologies; • Setting up digital itinerant spaces completely free of access, especially in rural areas. • Design and production of pedagogical tools on video production/editing, online content upload, digital science • Taking part in and organizing local, regional and national events relating to digital science and maker education Our target groups - youth workers: we aim to introduce youth workers to maker education, project-based and problem-based learning. In order to reach this objective, we organize training courses and events open to youth practitioners from across Europe. On average, every year, Digijeunes runs two one-week-long events on topics pertaining to maker education, for example: electronic textiles, creative coding, digital fabrication, recognizing the skills and competences acquired by young people involved in maker education. - young people aged 9 to 14 years old: we aim to encourage these individuals to experiment in the field of digital science, in order to empower them from an educational personal and social point of view. - young adults: these individuals are encouraged to turn away from consumerism, to embrace open hardware and open software and to promote a maker mindset within their own communities. We also work with unaccompanied foreign minors, we provide them an opportunity to learn and experiment around digital tech, the objective is to inspire them to pursue studies or professional opportunites in this domain. Our work is also conducive to their integration within the local community that hosts them. - Organizations: we accompany organizations such as youth centres, community centres, implementing projects related to digital technology and maker education. For example, we counsel them about setting up makerspace-like environments, we train their members and volunteers on constructivist teaching methods, problem-based and project-based learning.