What we do with the European Union
Think Tank AlterContacts support the efforts of the EU to shape a safer and better world for all.
Through effective multi-stakeholder partnerships and civil society initiatives, we contribute to making Europe greener, more digital, and more resilient with a special focus on empowering youth, small businesses and reviving rural areas.
GRANT PARTNERSHIPS
We are open to participating in EU Grant applications as a contributing partner. Our identification numbers are PIC 893270382 and OID E10277518. If you'd like to receive our Partner Identification Form (PIF), please email to info@altercontacts.org.
Think Tank AlterContacts is part of the consortium that in June 2023 was awarded the ERASMUS+ grant for Centres of Vocational Excellence (COVE). The project "AI-powered Next Generation of Vocational Education Training" (AI4VET4AI) is dedicated to equipping VET students with digital skills and allowing them to choose their career path. It will continue until 2027. The consortium consists of 26 partners. Among others, the University of Amsterdam, Technische Informations Bibliothek Leibniz, Universita degli Studi di Napoli. It is coordinated by the English University College Algebra, Croatia.
Think Tank AlterContacts got awarded the ERASMUS+ Grant for KA220-HED with the project PREVIEW - Promoting Resilience and Employability in uniVersity. The implementing consortium includes the University of Sassari, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, University of Salamanca, Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli University, Mediterranean Pearls, and Asociaţia de Dezvoltare Intercomunitară Harghita. It is led by the National Research Council of Italy.
Awards and Recognition
The co-founder of Think Tank AlterContacts, Julia Skupchenko, was awarded the Break 2022 Fellowship for the project "mOther Earth" to revive rural Spain. During the fellowship in October 2022, we carried the fieldwork in the village of Silleda in the region of Galicia, including open interviews with local youth, sustainable entrepreneurs, civil society organizations, and an event at the primary school of Silleda involving 260 children.
National Finalist of the Netherlands 2021
On 30 March 2021, the Lockdown Economy initiative by the Think Tank AlterContacts was chosen by the Dutch representatives in the European Parliament as the national finalist from the Netherlands for the European Charlemagne Youth Prize 2021. For its contribution to promoting European and international understanding and providing role models for young people living in Europe and offering practical examples of Europeans living together as one community. The press release from the EU is here.
Participation in the EU activities
The image courtesy of the European Parliament Multimedia Centre: EP-168068A_LEVELUP. European Youth FORUM - LEVELUP! 2024
Level Up! I care, I vote 2024
European Youth Parliament has selected our co-founder, Julia Skupchenko, to represent the Netherlands at the Level Up event, which took place on 12-13 April 2024 at the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) and the European Economic Social Committee (EESC). It brought together 1300+ youth activists from across the European Union and the key decision-makers related to youth policies.
Think Tank AlterContacts has taken part in the online consultation on the EU Voluntary Review of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by the European Economic and Social Committee.
European Youth Event in Strasbourg 2023
Every year the EYE (European Youth Event) brings together at the European Parliament in Strasbourg and online thousands of young people from all over the European Union and the world, to share and shape their ideas on Europe’s future. The submission of the AlterContacts Young System Thinkers was chosen among 200+ applications. Our proposal was to host an interactive workshop on "Solving EU Housing Crisis: Let’s Create Rural Alternatives for Youth."
Level Up! Accelerating change 2022
On 28-29 October 2022, our co-founder, Julia Skupchenko, participated in the Level Up event for the EU youth activists. She had an opportunity to share what Think Tank AlterContacts does for community activation with the members of the European Parliament, the European Commission, and permanent representations of national governments. As a follow-up to the event, she has initiated an Alumni Group where 1200+ young activists can stay in touch and support each other's projects.
The goal of our project is to create opportunities to cover basic needs (food, shelter, medical support) for self-employed people who lost their source of income due to the pandemic. That will be done by enabling the government to outsource remote office tasks to freelancers and self-employed through existing freelance platforms. Our proposal was submitted to the European Commission during #EUvsVirus online Hackathon 24-26 April 2020.
Past Projects
An international program to revive rural areas worldwide by mobilizing local youth and contributing to a green, digital and resilient recovery of their economy. It is officially recognized and published by the United Nations as the SDG Acceleration Action #SDGAction46967.
This program includes initiatives dedicated to Digital Health and Safety and the socially meaningful application of digital technologies. It was started during the COVID-19 pandemic when confinement made digital a defining part of our lives.
It was a prototype of the global online ecosystem of entrepreneurs and freelancers with the goal to equip starting entrepreneurs with tools and skills, and connecting them to each other. Having mentors in Europe, North and Latin America, and Asia, in 2019 we hosted over 20 free events helping 150+ entrepreneurs on three continents.
#MyFirstJob #TenYearsIn
In January 2020 we tested a new campaign #MyFirstJob #TenYearsIn. In this campaign, we ask people with over ten years of experience to share, in a short video, what is the reality of the job like. It is aimed at children who are deciding which profession or education path to choose. In most cases, it will define their lives, ability to support themselves financially and find fulfillment in what they do. We make this choice early on, often having an illusion of how the work-life is going to be. The more people contribute with their videos, the more children will have an idea of what is right for their future.