Cities of Learning

🎉 To celebrate 30 years of European volunteering, the SALTO European Solidarity Corps Resource Centre has launched a series of surveys for volunteers and former volunteers to share their stories and experiences with the European Solidarity Corps (ESC). 🌍✨

This one is especially close to our hearts because it focuses on competence development! 💡 In fact, from intercultural skills and confidence to civic engagement, over 90% of volunteers report a real impact after their projects. 🙌

Are you one of them? 👀

👉 Share your experience here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScpiY7hngcAj1Yf6V5OGMjM7ER8TqJUoqHuGRkfSFSJ6gURsw/viewform

And if you are an organisation working with ESC volunteers, did you know that the Cities of Learning platforms offer a complete badge system dedicated to recognising volunteers’ achievements throughout their volunteering journey? 🏅📚

Check out our article featuring an interview with one of the system’s designers, Laimonas Ragauskas from Awero, and discover how you can start using it too 👇
https://global.cityoflearning.eu/en/blog/articles/open-badges-helping-to-make-sense-of-volunteers-learning

🤝 Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union 🇪🇺
🌍 Supported by Cities of Learning

Ljubljana has opened BAZA – a new youth centre where creativity, participation, wellbeing, and learning come together. ✨

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝑩𝑨𝒁𝑨 𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒒𝒖𝒆?

🙋 Young people joining the community are invited to complete an online learning module on compassion through the Ljubljana mesto učenja platform. Their learning journey is recognised with digital badges, promoting empathy, active citizenship, and lifelong learning.

💡 Located in the beautifully renovated historic Cukrarna Palace and managed by Mladi zmaji, BAZA is a new space where young people can connect, create, learn, and shape the future of the city together.

“𝐿𝑒𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑒, 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑙𝑑” is their motto, and if you also want to change the world, start exploring their playlist 𝐄𝐦𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 👉 https://global.cityoflearning.eu/en/activities/19559

🤝 Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union 🇪🇺
🌍 Supported by Cities of Learning

✨

AI can feel a little scary sometimes, but like any tool, the key is learning how (and when) to use it effectively. 🤖💡

The Finnish National Agency (Opetushallitus - Utbildningsstyrelsen) has created a fantastic video series packed with practical tips for using AI in education, perfect for youth workers, teachers, educators… and learners too! 📚✨

🎥 12 short videos featuring expert insights from Matleena Laakso, covering topics such as:
✅ Writing effective AI prompts
✅ Enhancing teamwork through AI
✅ Generating AI slides, music and videos
…and much more! 🚀

Check them all out here 🔗 https://www.oph.fi/en/practical-tips-using-ai-education-video-clips

🤝 Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union 🇪🇺
🌍 Supported by Cities of Learning

🎉 2025 marks a major milestone for Youthpass: the issuance of the 2 millionth Youthpass certificate!

Although our focus is , at Cities of Learning we value all tools for recognition of learning, and this achievement shows we're not alone! 🌍

Over the past year, Youthpass has continued to strengthen the recognition of non-formal and informal learning in youth work and volunteering through:
✨ dedicated Youthpass meetings and training courses
✨ collaboration on validation practices in higher education institutions
✨ ongoing development of Youthpass as a tool, including expanding its multilingual accessibility

You can read the yearly overview here 👉https://www.youthpass.eu/downloads/13-62-691/Youthpass%20Overview%202025.pdf

Every certificate, just like every digital badge, tells a story of learning, participation, and personal growth — empowering young people and those who support them every day. Congratulations to the Youthpass team and SALTO Training & Cooperation!

🤝 Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union 🇪🇺
🌍 Supported by Cities of Learning

📣 Mozilla Festival 2026 is now accepting proposals for sessions, labs, talks, booths, and artistic installations exploring this year’s theme: Wilding! 🌱

From community-owned networks and federated platforms to open protocols and collective digital futures, MozFest invites technologists, artists, activists, policymakers, and changemakers from around the world to help imagine and build more open, community-led technologies... and at Cities of Learning, we're definitely speaking the same language!

📍 Barcelona, Spain 🇪🇸
🗓 October 28-30, 2026
⏰ 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲: May 25th 2026 at 14:00 CEST

If your work explores care, participation, transparency, trust, and shared power in technology — this could be a great opportunity to contribute to the conversation!

🔗 For info and applications: https://appv2.sessionboard.com/submit/mozfest-2026/84f42512-cfc7-421a-9ded-00bfb65cf4d4

On Europe Day we celebrated , and the Dutch Cities of Learning took a very original approach by celebrating... the importance of bees! 🐝✨

With Maartje Simons from Life on Marzj and Kai from Black Wishker Cult, Sandra Zoomers organised a day full of activities about what our world would look like without bees, and how we can help keeping them safe - and of course, with lots of to be earned!
The European Commission's Pollinator Park VR experience was one of the highlights of the day, and dozens of people took part. Because, as Sandra mentioned, "bees are nature's ultimate diplomats. They don't care about borders and by helping others (pollinating), they ensure that our entire system keeps running. That is precisely the solidarity that makes Europe so beautiful!"

What a nice way to remind ourselves that working together we can make a huge difference and that, just like bees, we can become pollinators and bring about positive change! 🐝🐝🐝

🤝 Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union 🇪🇺
🌍 Supported by Cities of Learning

🇪🇺 𝑯𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝑬𝒖𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝑫𝒂𝒚! 💙

Did you know that many EU institutions in Brussels and across Europe are open to visitors today, completely free of charge? 🏛️✨
It’s a fantastic opportunity to discover more about the policies, initiatives, and people shaping our shared European future.

But there’s another powerful way to help shape the future of the EU: by contributing to the 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐄𝐔 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲! 👥🌍

The current Strategy runs until the end of 2027, and the European Commission is now inviting citizens to share their ideas and priorities for the next phase. Your opinion can truly make a difference! ✨

🗣️ Make your voice heard here:
https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/16252-EU-Youth-Strategy-post-2027_en

⏳ 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞: 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟔𝐭𝐡

Let’s build the future of Europe together! 🇪🇺💫

🤝 Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union 🇪🇺
🌍 Supported by Cities of Learning

🚀 Exciting news!

The Awero team, in the framework of the Erasmus+ KA2 LearnINN project, has officially launched a series of webinars focused on digital youth work and innovation! 💻✨

These sessions are designed to empower educators and youth workers with the tools they need to navigate today’s ever-evolving digital landscape. 🌍

🎥 Missed the live sessions? No worries!
You can now access the recordings and even gain recognition for your learning through our Digital Youth Work platform 👉 https://www.digitalyouthwork.net/

🎙️ From digital youth rights to using podcasts in youth work, there’s something for everyone... and plenty of opportunities to learn and grow!
Dive into the resources today and stay tuned for upcoming sessions!

🤝 Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union 🇪🇺
🌍 Supported by Cities of Learning

Remember 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐓𝐇 𝟑𝟔𝟎?

This Erasmus+ project continues to bring Europe and Africa closer 🌍, creating new opportunities for young people through and a strong partnership of 12 organisations across both continents.

Last week, during a partnership meeting, the team had the opportunity to meet with representatives from the European Commission and EACEA — a meaningful step toward strengthening collaboration and building lasting bridges! 🤝

👉 Stay tuned for more updates, and check out CODEC, Awero and Jumpin Hub to learn more!

🤝 Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union 🇪🇺
🌍 Supported by Cities of Learning

A couple of weeks ago, our Erasmus+ 𝐕𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 project brought us to Turin 🇮🇹, where partners came together to exchange best practices, explore new ideas, and experiment with innovative approaches to using VR and AR in youth work.

In collaboration with Fondazione LINKS, we also had the opportunity to present the project to Italian stakeholders, sparking inspiring conversations about the future of immersive learning.

It was a creative, energizing, and truly rewarding experience! ✨ We’re excited to see how VR and AR will continue shaping the future of Cities of Learning... 🌍

Curious to learn more or explore VR learning pathways? Keep an eye on this space 👉 https://vr.cityoflearning.eu/en

Project partners: Madiba Cooperativa Sociale, Awero, Breakthrough Foundation, CODEC, SIRA IMPACT HUB, Think Forward C.I.C.

🤝 Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union through Agenzia Italiana per la Gioventù - AIG 🇪🇺
🌍 Supported by Cities of Learning