Special call Ukraine
Following the decision of the Council of Europe’s Joint Council of Youth on 12 October 2022, the European Youth Foundation (EYF) has launched a special call to support young people from Ukraine. This initiative responds to the current needs expressed by the Ukrainian authorities and stakeholders in the field of youth. Furthermore, in May 2023, the Programming Committee on Youth decided to continue the call and allow for applications to be submitted both for pilot activity grants and for international activity grants. The special call includes two types of grants available:
Starting from end of October 2024, the EYF waived the obligation for applicant organisations to ensure co-funding for their proposals for international activity grants. No co-funding is needed when applying for an international activity grant within the special call in support of young people from Ukraine.
Projects can be submitted at any time until the funds are exhausted. The special call is open.
Approved projects
(update 21 October 2024)
So far, there have been 43 projects awarded, for a total amount of €652 215 involving 3 516 people (total number of beneficiaries). Out of these projects, 26 were proposed by youth organisations from Ukraine. Five were international activites, 38 are pilot activities. The projects approved were as follows:
Organisation: "Development and Initiative" (Dnipro, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14 934)
Bridges to Europe
The project addresses the disconnect among Ukrainian youth from European identity through a series of workshops and discussions around European values, on topics including democracy, human rights, environmental action, equality. There will be 6 thematic days organised during a period of 3 weeks, attended by a total of 35 participants. After the learning phase, participants are expected to implement follow-up events and to create a video.
Organisation: Association des Etats Generaux des Etudiants de l'Europe (Warsaw, Poland) (grant awarded: €21 340)
European School on How to run a youth NGO!
The project comprises of a training in Warsaw, Poland on NGO management skills (HR, finances, project management, etc.) for the group of Ukrainian participants and participants from Europe. The training is followed by 2 dissemination events in Ukraine and in Europe , organised in partnership with the National Youth Council of Ukraine, where trained participants will share what they have learned. An online workshop is also planned.
Organisation: "Development and Initiative" (Dnipro, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €15 000)
Empowering Ukrainian Youth for Community Resilience
The project focuses on a capacity-building training in Ukraine on leadership skills.
Organisation: YWCA-YMCA Central (Stockholm, Sweden) (grant awarded: €15 000)
United rising to the new horizons
The project addresses the challenges faced by young Ukrainian refugees through different actions including leadership development workshops, cross-cultural activities exposing participants to Swedish history and traditions, and mental health support sessions. These efforts aim to foster social inclusion, empower youth to take on leadership roles, promote empathy and tolerance, and enhance personal well-being.
Organisation: Kherson City Association of Young Roma (Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €15 000)
Roma Youth Renaissance: Empowering the Next Generation
The project seeks to boost Roma youth participation in Ukraine, through training 15 young Roma activists on advocacy skills, and implementing an awareness raising campaign.
Organisation: Zolotonosha city Youth NGO "Youth Development Center" (Zolotonosha, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14 195)
Mental health and well-being program for a small community “Healthy Minds"
The project seeks to support trauma informed youth work 5 rural youth communities in Zolotonosha Ukraine. This will be done through a 4 days camp to train 20 young leaders from these areas, who will then implement actions in their communities with the support of mentors and using "workshop boxes" containing board games, materials for workshops, etc.
Organisation: Education 360 (Kyiv, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €15 000)
"Free and Brave" - program of psychological support and empowerment of IDP youth in Kyiv region
The project addresses mental health issues and to promote empowerment of IDP youth in the region of Kyiv, Ukraine.
Organisation: Junior Chamber International Youth (Kyiv, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14 930)
Youth Trajectory: Defined - Ukrainian youth IDPs empowering for social interaction and participation
The project will aim to engage young internally displaced people in Ukraine in 4 local communities, addressing active citizenship and youth participation through a series of 5 workshops for 12 participants each, using a boardgame, an awareness raising campaign through 5 videos promoting youth participation in local decision-making and a final forum to disseminate project learnings and train 30 participants to duplicate the workshops using he boardgame.
Organisation: Terne bersha (Pantaivka village, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €15 000)
Transform the Community - Establish an Effective Youth Council
This project responds to the needs for capacity building of the members of the newly created local youth council in Pantaivka, Ukraine, with a focus on Roma Youth inclusion.
Organisation: Ludwig Wolker e.V. (Berlin, Germany) (grant awarded: €10 000)
Empowered - Connecting Youth, Building Bridges for Change
The project aims to empower young people in relation to democracy and intercultural dialogue. The project includes a one-week youth exchange in Berlin, uniting participants from Germany, Poland, and Ukraine under the coordination of a multinational team. The intercultural program, led by activists, aims to empower attendees through workshops, discussions, institutional visits, and a comprehensive three-day democracy training. The project will lead to the creation of better awareness about young people from Ukraine, and more partnerships.
Organisation: Human Rights Foundation Ukraine (Kyiv, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €15 000)
Youth Voices for Social Cohesion and Community Peace
The project focuses on increasing youth leadership and youth participation in democratic processes for peacebuilding and reconciliation in war affected communities. The project has few phases, namely: a training for 20 youth leaders who would later on take part in the organisation of follow up activities - 4 regional strategy planning workshops and 4 regional evaluation round tables in Sumy, Chernihiv, Cherkasy and Zaporizhzhia regions.
Organisation: International Falcon Movement Socialist Education International (international grant) (grant awarded: €25 000)
Beyond Boundaries: The Realities of LGBTQI+ Ukrainian
The project aims at supporting young Ukrainian LGBTQI+ refugees in their intersectional challenges (being refugees from minority groups) and building the youth organisations’ capacity to advocate for and support Ukraine and Ukrainian LGBTQI+ refugees, and to create tools to explain the challenges of Ukrainian LGBTQI+ refugees and showcase the support systems available to them. The project includes a meeting of 20 young people from Ukraine and other countries to learn from each other and learn how to become an advocate for LGBTQI+ refugees’ rights. Following the meeting local awareness raising actions are foreseen.
Organisation: International Federation of Liberal Youth (international grant) (grant awarded: €19 435)
The Political Engine - EUkrainian Youth shaping Liberal democracy
This project consists of a political education meeting for young activists to better understand political ideologies, in relation to populism, and specifically in relation to the situation in Ukraine, and equip participants with tools, including AI generated ones, for stronger youth engagement for democracy.
Organisation: Human Rights Education Youth Network (international grant) (grant awarded: €15 955)
Log in HRE
The project focuses on supporting youth workers to increase their skills on doing human rights education digitally, also in respect to the specific situation of young people and educators from Ukraine. The project includes a training course for 28 youth workers, and the development of a MOOC. The project focuses specifically on the consequences of the war in Ukraine on human rights.
Organisation: Humacoop - Amel France (Krakow, Poland) (grant awarded: €15 000)
Game-Based Psychosocial Support Program for Refugee Children from Ukraine in Poland
The project focuses on social and psychological support to Ukrainian children who have become refugees in Poland. It includes of reintroducing elements of playing and games in children's daily lives.
Organisation: Alternativi International (Bulgaria) (grant awarded: €15 000)
Inclusion lab
The project includes multiple awareness raising activities using different format (including a human library, a study visit, a roundtable with experts and public authorities), 6 training courses for 10 young refugees from Ukraine (on leadership, discrimination, mental health, civic engagement, employability and entrepreneurship), and a final conference about young refugees in south-west of Bulgaria, to support their integration.
Organisation: Public organization Radekhiv Center "Youth Initiative" (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14 950)
Strengthening the capacity of Youth Centers in small communities
The project responds to the need of quality youth work in the Lviv oblast where currently about 30 youth centres operate. The main activity is training for youth workers from rural youth centres in this region, on youth work skills and competences. The project makes reference to the work of the Council of Europe on youth work. Following the training, local initiatives will be run by the trained youth workers.
Organisation: Young Community (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14 100)
Strengthening youth involvement to increase community resilience with the help of innovations
The project consists of a participatory process of youth engagement in community issues, through a gamification of the participatory actions in the community and a project idea competition. Through this project, the NGO will develop the youth dimension of participatory budgeting and support some of the local project ideas young people come up with.
Organisation: We are the Future (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14 822)
Young leaders for local change
The aim of the project is to increase youth participation at local level. Within the project, a five-day training course for 33 young people from the Dnipropetrovsk region will be organised on how to engage with young people and support their participation.
Organisation: Non-governmental organisation “Centre of Initiative Youth” (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €15 000)
Youth Resilience Lab
The aim of the project is to strengthen the resilience of Ukrainian youth leaders, youth workers and young people in the context of war. This project includes a three-day training on mental health and wellbeing, with a follow-up phase.
Organisation: TENET CENTER FOR SOCIAL TRANSFORMATIONS (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €15 000)
Building Resilience: The Roma Youth Movement Initiative
The project consists of responses to the exclusion of Roma youth in Ukraine, exacerbated by the war. The project includes research, the creation of a network of Roma youth ambassadors and an information campaign to raise the issues of Roma youth to public attention. The project aims at empowering and revitalising the Roma youth movement in Ukraine, contributing to their long-term inclusion and recognition in Ukrainian society.
Organisation: Non-Governmental Organization “Feminist Workshop” (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14 664)
Teenage Club “Girls* can!”
This project promotes integration of internally displaced girls in their new communities, while supporting them and building capacity on their rights and activism. The project includes a series of educational and capacity building session, for example on activism and feminism, including LGBTQI+ activism.
Organisation: Romanian Angel Appeal Foundation (Romania) (grant awarded: €14 580)
Laboratory for initiatives and joy
The project includes a series of workshops for Romanian and Ukrainian youth, as activities to spend their free time, connect with the community and to learn about each other’s values and cultural practices. The aim of the project is to use art and cultural activities as a means to promote inclusivity, social cohesion, and personal development among the participants and the broader community.
Organisation: Velodacha (Fiesole, Italy) (grant awarded: € 14 650)
Bookmoblile: Ukrainian Tales on Wheels
This project responds to the need of young Ukrainian refugees in Italy to maintain cultural ties with Ukraine and also integrate in the local society. In response to this need, the NGO will establish a mobile library of Ukrainian books, organise events and workshops on language, cultural identity and well-being for Ukrainian refugees residing in Tuscany region, Italy.
Organisation: World Organisation of the Scout Movement (international grant) (grant awarded: € 23 302)
Pathways to Collaboration: Cultivating Dialogue and Peace Education
This is a four-day training course for youth workers from the network of WOSM on how to develop adequate youth work interventions in the context of the Ukraine refugee crisis. The project aim is to leverage and expand an active network at European level that will be able to address, identify and adapt to the current Ukrainian refugee crisis, as well as to any future humanitarian crisis that may come.
Organisation: Stowarzyszenie Kre-Aktywni (Lodz, Poland) (grant awarded: € 15 000)
Ukrainian - Polish integration
The project addresses the need for cultural and economic integration of young Ukrainians who came to Lodz, Poland, by offering business mentoring, language classes, cultural awareness workshops and film screenings. There are 5 objectives, related to language skills, employability, cultural awareness, tolerance and support for young people to choose their career path. The project includes workshops, production of awareness raising materials, language classes.
Organisation: Ukrainian centre of international relations (Ukraine) (grant awarded: € 14 600)
aWARe Youth: Association of Young Ukrainian Internally Displaced People
This project tackles the situation of young internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Ukraine, and includes a series of participatory initiatives that will build the way to create an association of young IDPs in Ukraine, as well as a series of podcasts to increase international visibility of the situation. The project aim is to develop the capacity of relocated organisations and unite them for joint advocacy campaigns. Activities listed are roundtables with IDPS from the most affected regions (to understand their needs), meetings with stakeholders, a final conference in Kyiv, as well as podcasts with young IDPs to raise awareness internationally about their situation.
Organisation: Development center Pangeya Ultima (Stina, Ukraine) (grant awarded: € 14 937)
Reviving Primeval Rusava
The project tackles the lack of local youth participation and lack of leisure time opportunities by the creation of local folklore clubs in Stina, a village in Ukraine and 3 surrounding villages, where young people become active in carrying out local cultural initiatives and produce media content with them. The outputs are 10 media productions on the local heritage (e.g. photo-sessions, audiovisual materials of the recorded songs and dances, stories and poetry) in the digital media format online and during the offline exchange/presentation event organized by young people themselves at the end of the project in Stina.
The aim is “to mobilize and empower local youngsters to uncover and promote the vast cultural heritage of the participating village communities while filling in the gap of extracurricular activities for young people which will lead to leadership skills development, unity around the common cause and formation of self-identity around the common folklore topics.”.
Organisation: Active youth community (Lviv, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14 922)
Building bridges towards peace
The project tackles the need for supporting young people to develop peace building and reconciliation skills in the context of the war, through a training course followed by local awareness raising actions. The aim is “to equip active young people living in the Lviv region, yet originally coming from both this region and other regions in Ukraine, with essential knowledge and skills about peacebuilding and conflict management in order to empower them to act as young peacebuilders within their communities”. The main activities are a five-day training course for 25 youth leaders in Lviv (Ukraine) focusing on building knowledge about peacebuilding and reconciliation, tools to prevent and solve conflicts and support the organisation of local initiatives aimed at raising awareness about peacebuilding and reconciliation among the people in Lviv region.
Organisation: Plast – National Scout Organization of Ukraine (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14 995)
Trainings on project management
The project addresses the lack of youth participation in public activity in times of war, by supporting 100 young people between 15 and 18 years to learn about project management and implementing as a result at least 12 socially beneficial projects in their communities. The main activities are a series of training and follow-up mentoring for young people to implement local projects. The project will reach out more than 300 young people, and have a local impact.
Organisation: Public organization Radekhiv Center "Youth Initiative" (Ukraine) (grant awarded: € 14.810)
Rights of youth in times of war
The project tackles the issue of young people’s entrepreneurship and rights related to work, mostly in Western Ukraine. The NGO mentions working, among others, with disabled young veterans and internally displaced people. The project aim is to help youth affected by war to find opportunities to improve their situation in the field of protection and protection of their rights and promote the development of local youth policy in this direction.
Organisation: Public Organization "Development and Initiative" (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €15.000)
Focus on youth: Youth radicalization in times of war
The project responds to the problem of radicalisation of young people given the continuous media consumption of violence related to the war. The NGO proposes a five-day training course with a non-formal education approach, where participants will be able to learn about youth radicalization in interactive form, after which participants will develop their projects and implement follow-up activities related to radicalisation prevention and media literacy. Through this, the NGO addresses youth radicalisation in the Dnipropetrovsk region and motivates youth workers to focus their activities on this topic.
Organisation: Promote Ukraine asbl (Brussels, Belgium) (grant awarded: €13.840)
Children-UA by Promote Ukraine
The project tackles the lack of access to professional opportunities for Ukrainian young refugees in Brussels, as well as language and cultural barriers and the lack of understanding of the Belgian educational and labour system. The project includes a summer camp for Ukrainian young refugees living in Brussels, to help them develop skills and gain a better understanding of the labour market, to increase their employment opportunities.
Organisation: NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION OKHTYRSKIY YOUTH CENTER (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €15.000)
Informational-resource space
The project addresses the need for meaningful youth spaces and activities in Okhtyrka. As the city was heavily damaged by the war, the youth center wishes to try to restart youth work activities. The project aim is to create technically equipped "Informational-resource space" on the basis of the Okhtyrka Youth Center, where during June-December 2023 will be provided series of civic activism trainings for 30 young people of Okhtyrka community. The main activities are related to establishing the space, training activities, but also leisure activities for young people, such as a mindfulness program, psycho-emotional and leisure activities to balance their emotional and physical health.
Organisation: Active Youth Community (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14.880)
Activating human rights
This is a human rights education project, with a specific focus on gender issues, and proposes a training course and follow-up actions on this topic. The aim is to raise awareness on human rights and promote gender equality and inclusion in Dnipro by educating active young people on the scope of their rights and ways of protecting them. The project phases include preparations, a five-day human rights training and local follow up actions.
Organisation: Champions Factory Sports Club (Bulgaria) (grant awarded: €15.000)
Together for Ukraine
This is a two-stage project that uses sports as a tool for integration of young Ukrainian refugees in Bulgaria. The need is to integrate the young Ukrainian refugees who are now resident in Bulgaria. Whilst the state provides minimum humanitarian aid, the NGO wants to contribute to the social integration through sport activities. The aim is to facilitate the social integration and inclusion of young Ukrainian refugees in Bulgaria through sport. The project includes the training of 20 coaches on how to use sports for integration and 10 sport activities for groups of Bulgarian and Ukrainian youth. A Manual will be produced as final output.
Organisation: Youth for Change civil society development NGO (Armenia) (grant awarded: €14.706)
Together with Ukraine
The project focuses on employment and minority rights for young Ukrainian refugees in Armenia. The aim is to create a more inclusive society by integrating young people from Ukraine into the labour market and promoting minority and employment rights. The project includes a six-day training course on employment rights and skills to enter the job market for 30 young people from Ukraine, mentoring/coaching and the publication of brochures and video with instructions about the Armenian labour market, employment rights and minority rights.
Organisation: 3.5 percent (Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14.720)
Youth research group on brain drain
The project will provide a training to youth workers on data collection and develop a national study among young people about the brain drain and the presence of young people in the country. The project includes capacity building on social research for youth leaders; national research; presentation of results. The need for this project is explained through the lack of information regarding youth in the country, especially after the war started – brain drain was already an issue in Ukraine before the war, and more young people have left the country.
Organisation: Society Initiatives Institute (Lviv, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14.227)
SkillUP to social inclusion
The project will contribute to building inclusive societies in Ukraine, by developing competences of 25 activists, educators and youth workers and equipping them with creative education tools, such as improvisational theatre and storytelling, for working with internally displaced youth and young people with fewer opportunities. After the training, participants will implement follow up activities in their communities. Several outputs are foreseen: visibility tools (including a project video with footage from the activity and testimonies), and a brochure for social inclusion.
Organisation: NGO Non-formal education for youth (Dnipro, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €7.435)
Ukrainian Young Peacebuilders
The project supports young people from Ukraine to use peaceful tools that build social cohesion. The project includes a five-day peace camp, for young people, especially those who are internally displaced in Ukraine. These young people are sometimes not welcomed by local residents, so more non-violent communication skills and conflict transformation skills are needed among them. Also, in the context of the war, young people need opportunities to seek for a future of peace. The project will provide young people the chance for a positive activity based on human rights and peace and will increase their self-confidence. Also, the project will train young people to use non-violent communication and be respectful towards differences.
Organisation: Youth for Equality (Trnava, Slovak Republic) (grant awarded: €11.500)
Power of Mental Health
The project is based on the need for preventative mental health activities for young people, given the context of the war. The project aim is to organise activities that will benefit the mental health of Ukrainian youth through the tools of art and culture and present these works on a local level to the community. The NGO will carry out initial research into the issue of mental health of young people from Ukraine, then a series of art therapy workshops for young people. Finally, the arts produced in the workshops will be shared in a public exhibition.
Organisation: Young Men’s Christian Organisation (Plzeň, Czechia) (grant awarded: €14.960)
Building Youth Employability Competencies of Ukrainian refugees in Czechia
The project aims at increasing the employability of young Ukrainian refugees in Czechia, mostly in the Pilsen area. As part of the project, an information website for young Ukrainian people about the Czech labour market will be set up. Over 160 young people from Ukraine will be equipped with skills to apply for jobs in the country. Additionally, cultural events will also be organised to foster integration and intercultural dialogue.
Organisation: Smart Point Uzhhorod (Uzhhorod, Ukraine) (grant awarded: €14.826)
Training Camp for Ukrainian Youth Activists
The project consists of a training course for young local Ukrainian youth activists (both from Ukraine and displaced, living in Slovak Republic) to build their skills in running their own youth activities in their local communities. The programme of the training course includes seven days with sessions on project development, combined with leisure activities.
EYF Statute
