DIGI-YOU Reflections: From Digital Foundations to GenAI in Ružomberok
Five days, six countries, 20 youth workers, and one shared mission: to prove that youth work can confidently lead the way in the digital age.
We have just concluded DIGI-YOU (DIGItal empowerment for YOUth workers), an intensive Erasmus+ Mobility of Youth Workers hosted by IKReON in Ružomberok.
By the end of the week, we didn’t just walk away with new digital skills; we walked away with a completely transformed mindset.
Participants arrived wondering how complex concepts like Artificial Intelligence and blockchain could possibly fit into their daily work with marginalized youth. They left with actionable strategies, clear frameworks, and the confidence to implement them.
Participants: 20 (18+)
Countries: SK, RO, IT, EL, FR, EE
Location: Ružomberok, Slovakia
Duration: 5 activity days
A Dynamic Learning Environment
To keep the energy high and the learning practical, our activities were spread across some of the most dynamic spaces in Ružomberok. Vila Efekt served as our welcoming home base and the venue for our morning foundational sessions. For our thrilling Virtual Escape Room challenge, we took over spaces at the Catholic University (KU) of Ružomberok to test our digital problem-solving skills. Finally, our practical, hands-on afternoon sessions took place at IKReON’s brand new office within the LeanUP Co-working space—an agile environment perfect for prototyping and strategy building.
Day-by-Day Recap
- Day 1 – Building Foundations in Digital Youth Work
- Day 2 – Creative Applications of Digital Tools
- Day 3 – Integrating Emerging Technologies
- Day 4 – Exploring Secure Data Management
- Day 5 – GenAI for Strategic Planning
- Day 6 – Conclusion and Future Collaboration
The Journey of the Week
Day 1: Building Foundations in Digital Youth Work
We started by establishing a baseline and building a cohesive team. Through Digital Speed Networking, the diverse international group quickly connected and broke the ice. In the afternoon at LeanUP, we dove straight into exchanging best practices in a Digital World Café and prototyped new solutions in a collaborative Digital Tools Hackathon.
Day 2: Creative Applications of Digital Tools
We moved from basic digital literacy into creativity and teamwork. To test our problem-solving skills in a high-energy environment, we headed to the Catholic University (KU) of Ružomberok for a thrilling Virtual Escape Room challenge about AI Literacy. Afterwards, participants learned how to leverage digital storytelling to engage young people, applied gamification principles to create educational youth work games, and mastered virtual collaboration tools like Miro and Trello to streamline their NGO operations.
Day 3: Integrating Emerging Technologies
This day was all about optimizing organizational impact. Teams explored how to unlock free digital resources for NGOs, audited their current websites, crafted actionable social media strategies, and learned to harness data analytics (like Google Analytics) for evidence-based decision-making.
Day 4: Exploring Secure Data Management
Led by our Greek partners from Gridustry, we demystified complex tech to focus on security and transparency. Participants explored secure data management tools, learned how to protect sensitive information when working with vulnerable youth, and discovered new digital methods to track and report their NGO’s social impact transparently.
Day 5: GenAI for Strategic Planning
The climax of the week was our deep dive into Generative AI. We explored how AI can be used for strategic NGO planning, content creation, and simulating project management scenarios. Youth workers learned how to write effective prompts to save hours of administrative work, allowing them to focus more time on the youth themselves.
Day 6: Conclusion and Future Collaboration
Before departures, we consolidated our shared experiences. Youth workers reflected on the exchange’s impact, discussed insights gained, and strategized ways to sustain connections. We harnessed the momentum generated during the training to plan continued cross-border initiatives.
What’s Next?
The most significant shift we witnessed was the realization that emerging technologies are not a threat to the human-centric nature of youth work—they are powerful amplifiers.
The ideas generated in the DIGI-YOU project aren’t staying in Ružomberok. We are currently compiling all the methodologies, AI prompts, and best practices explored during the week into the Digital Toolkit for Youth Workers. This open-access resource will be shared soon via our website, SALTO-YOUTH, and the Erasmus+ Dissemination Platform.
A massive thank you to our amazing partner organizations: Asociatia Pas Alternativ (RO), UliXes APS (IT), France Culture Connection (FR), Gridustry (EL), and MITTETULUNDUSUHING VITATIIM (EE).
Special thanks to Vila Efekt, the Catholic University of Ružomberok, and LeanUP for hosting our vibrant sessions, and to the Erasmus+ programme for making this mobility possible.
Co-funded by:
