Bucharest, December 3rd, 2020 – The„Almost Adult” project conducted by The Social Incubator Association prepares young people between 18 and 26 years old, in the child support system, for better social and professional integration. 90 young people from Prahova, Argeș and Dâmbovița county participate in this complex training program. The initiative is financed with RON 164,000 by Vodafone Romania Foundation through the Good Deeds Fund – Edition 2020 and takes place between September 2020 and September 2021.
“Almost Adult” started in Prahova county with an online module for 30 young people who participate in introductory and knowledge meetings to form the necessary basis for their future activities: non-formal education workshops for self-knowledge, personal development, employability and preparation for entering the labor market. The team that caters for the young people consists of trainers, psychologists, vocational counselors and mentors (volunteers). They also organize individual sessions of vocational counseling and career development in which the young people are guided to prepare the necessary documents to obtain a job (CV and letter of intent) and in which educational or professional options are pursued according to vocational reports: access to test platforms and to job portals, identifying potential employers, exploratory visits to employers and applying online for a job.
“Institutionalized young people, who have reached the age of majority, are forced to face life by themselves. They step into the unknown, unprepared for an independent life, in a world full of challenges and temptations. Supporting those in vulnerable situations has always been a priority for Vodafone Romania Foundation. We are happy to fund The Social Incubator Association’s project, so necessary for young people in the transition from childhood to adulthood”, said Angela Galeța, director of the Vodafone Romania Foundation.
“We often receive messages from young people asking for our help. Most of the time, the lines we receive are short, with punctual requirements, but beyond the words one reads the cry which hides so many needs and fears. Following such a message, we designed the Almost Adult project, as a response to the fears that young people have when they are forced to leave the child protection system. We know that 90 young people are only a small part of a whole, but we put all our hope in them, in their strength to overcome obstacles, to learn and inspire other young people in similar situations to believe in the power of togetherness and in a better future”, said Adriana Preda, managing director of The Social Incubator Association.
Every year, more than 3,000 young people leave the institutionalized state protection system unprepared for an independent life. They are among the most affected categories of young people, at risk of social exclusion, and face a number of problems such as poor development or even lack of skills for an independent life, emotional and behavioral problems, lack of skills needed to integrate into the labor market, a low level of education. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the problem of finding a job has worsened, with many young people being laid off or having major problems accessing a job. Thus, any intervention that increases the degree of employability and provides individualized support to that effect is extremely relevant and useful.
The Vodafone Romania Foundation is a Romanian nongovernmental charitable organisation, established in 1998, which operates separately and independently from the company’s business. In over 20 years of activity, Vodafone Romania Foundation has funded 1,168 programs conducted by 745 non-governmental organizations across the country, in the health, education, social services industry. These projects had more than 3 million beneficiaries – children, young and old people, physically, socially, or economically disadvantaged people. So far, Vodafone Romania Foundation invested EUR 31 million in projects conducted by partner non-profit organizations. More details about the foundation’s programs are available at fundatia-vodafone.ro, http://jurnaldebine.fundatiavodafone.ro/ and www.facebook.com/fundatiavodafone.
The Social Incubator Association was established in April 2014 to determine a real and sustainable change in the lives of vulnerable young people in Romania (especially those who have left – or are about to leave – the child protection system, aged between 16 and 26), offering innovative social solutions for these young people. It is a personalized, one-to-one approach, offering young people a complex package of skills that facilitates the transition to adulthood and ensuring of independence. The association’s most recent projects with community impact are:
Lifelong Roadmap: a project to increase the awareness about the institutionalized young people, that involves telling the story of the daily life of 10 young people who have left the protection system and learn to make their voices heard, to step firmly and walk their own way, to write new chapters in their lives with smiles, hope and success.
Good in my career: vocational platform that supports young people in capitalizing on their individual potential, through vocational tests, counseling sessions and mentoring to discover the right career.
Details about the association’s projects and campaigns are available at www.asociatiasocialincubator.org and on the social networks:
www.facebook.com/asociatiasocialincubator, www.instagram.com/thesocialincubator , www.linkedin.com/company/asociatiathesocialincubator
