Project IVI (Asociația Inițiativa Vâlcea Inovează)

Project IVI (Asociația Inițiativa Vâlcea Inovează) is a volunteer-run association in Vâlcea County, Romania — 340,000 people, no technology industry, and for a decade not one student reaching the national IT olympiad. We run free courses in IT infrastructure and networking, Linux and Python, software development and cybersecurity, taught outside school hours in three centres: Râmnicu Vâlcea, Horezu and Berbești. Learners are 14-18, many commuting from surrounding villages, plus adults retraining for technology work. Curriculum is adapted from POLITEHNICA Bucharest, Cisco Networking Academy and Open Education Hub. The model is a relay. Each cohort trains the next: graduates become instructors and open the following centre. Ten of our twelve current instructors came through our own courses. Results: our students ended a decade of county absence at AcadNet, Romania's national olympiad in applied informatics — four finalists and a silver in 2025, then six medals in 2026, two of them gold. One took bronze at the national cybersecurity olympiad. The ITU designated Project IVI as National Organizer for Romania of the Robotics for Good Youth Challenge ; we ran the national tournament and sent the winners to the Grand Finale in Geneva. Two of our volunteers serve as Women in Tech Romania Youth Ambassadors. We hold a formal authorisation from the County School Inspectorate and a collaboration protocol with Râmnicu Vâlcea City Hall. Our young people travel. Delegations from Project IVI have taken part in events in Japan, France, Switzerland and South Africa, and we organised and staffed a national competition under ITU auspices. Our participants are used to competition formats, deadlines, presenting in English and moving as a delegation. WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR We are looking to join youth exchanges as a sending partner. We are not coordinating projects at this stage, and we say so plainly, because coordinators need partners who are clear about their role. What we commit to: participants confirmed by your deadline, complete documentation including parental consents and insurance, an adult group leader from our own team, and our share of the reporting delivered on time. We answer emails. Themes that fit: cybersecurity, robotics and AI, digital skills, rural youth and access to technology careers, employability. Availability: we can only take part in activities between 15 June and 31 August. Our participants are in school for the rest of the year and we do not send during term time. · projectivi.ro