On 27 August 2021, Oksana Vasyliaka, First Deputy Director at the Coordination Centre for Legal Aid Provision, met in Kyiv with participants of the training seminar on preventing and combating discrimination in youth policy and youth work with the involvement of young people. The training seminar takes place in the framework of the Council of Europe Project “Youth for Democracy in Ukraine” in cooperation with the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine.

Participants of the training seminar are young people from diverse social backgrounds facing discrimination, specialists of national, regional and local authorities, institutions, representatives of youth organisations and organisations working with youth.

During her presentation, Oksana Vasyliaka dwelled on the activities of the free legal aid (FLA) system in Ukraine and stressed the openness to cooperation with organisations and institutions cooperating with youth from different regions of Ukraine. Among others, she mentioned:

• The official website of the FLA system is available at: https://www.legalaid.gov.ua
• To obtain free legal aid, call 0 800 213 103
• The reference and information platform of legal advice is available at: https://wiki.legalaid.gov.ua
• More information on PRAVOKATOR legal clubs can be found at https://www.legalaid.gov.ua/pro-systemu-bpd/pravovyj-klub-pravokator/

In conclusion, of her presentation, Oksana Vasyliaka also encouraged attendees to participate and promote among young people information on the possibility of becoming a volunteer in the field of free legal aid provision.

To do this, complete the following stages:

• Fill out the candidate's application at: https://cutt.ly/hlq3RxH.
• complete an e-course “Basic Volunteer Activities”: http://academy.legalaid.gov.ua (to register, enter data matching the information in the candidate's application).
• obtain an online certificate on successful course completion.

As a reminder, on 26–29 September 2021, Kyiv hosts a training seminar on preventing and combating discrimination in youth policy and youth work aimed to promote the prevention and counteraction to discrimination in youth policy and youth work at the local, regional and national levels involving young people faced with such discrimination. Objectives of the training seminar include:

• Facilitate awareness of the value of diversity and equality
• Bring to the attention the Council of Europe tools and standards on combating discrimination against young people
• Help understand and comprehend the issue of discrimination of young people, ways to identify, prevent and combat it
• Research the needs of young people faced with discrimination based on various grounds
• Analyse gaps and good practices in combating discrimination through experience exchange
• Promote the development of sensitive policies for the functioning of youth centres, youth programmes
• Based on the training model, research how to involve various groups of young people faced with discrimination in the development of programmes and projects

Specifically, the training agenda presupposed the review of the National Strategy for Creating a Barrier-Free Environment in Ukraine until 2030. The Strategy is designed to create a barrier-free environment for all population groups, ensure equal opportunities for every person to exercise their rights, receive services on an equal footing with others by integrating physical, informational, digital, social and civic, economic and educational barrier-free environment into all spheres of public policies.

It is expected that the results of discussions held during the training will be later used to develop and implement an action plan for Strategy implementation. In addition, training program presupposes elaborating best practices with the involvement of young people faced with discrimination; recommendations concerning the contents of training programmes for the staff of youth centres at the national, regional and local levels in Ukraine and in the framework of the “Youth Worker” State Programme.

The training programme has been developed under the “50/50” model where everything is based on co-management. “50/50” is the ability to create an atmosphere of cooperation between authorities and organisations representing the interests of diverse groups of young people and feel the spirit of partnership that prevails in the Council of Europe youth sector. The programme of the training seminar is focused on the way to increase the involvement of young people from diverse backgrounds who are faced with discrimination in the shaping of youth policy and youth work at the central and local levels and in promoting the best practices in preventing and combating discrimination.

During the training seminar, participants will learn and discuss legislative norms, new initiatives and best practices for preventing and combating discrimination with a focus on the youth sphere.

Participants will review the Council of Europe's standards and educational resources on youth and counteracting discrimination, in particular the Compass Manual on Human Rights Education.

The training seminar is organised by the Council of Europe Project “Youth for Democracy in Ukraine” in cooperation with the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine.

The Project “Youth for Democracy in Ukraine” is implemented within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2018–2022 and is based on previous experience and efficient bilateral cooperation between the Council of Europe and the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine as part of the Framework Programme on Cooperation between the Council of Europe Rights and the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine in the Field of Youth Policy in 2016–2020.

Read more about the Council of Europe's project and resources in the field of youth at: https://www.coe.int/uk/web/kyiv/youth-for-democracy-in-ukraine