Insights into Digital Transformation in the Youth Field Supported by the EU Youth Programmes

The report „Insights into Digital Transformation in the Youth Field Supported by the EU Youth Programmes“ explores for the first time series of questions related to the understanding of digital transformation in the European youth field, and at the same time it aims to provide new insights into how digital transformation can be fostered and supported in the EU Youth Programmes. To what extent and in what ways has digital transformation been present in the EU Youth Programmes? What can we learn from the Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps officers, beneficiaries, trainers, and youth workers about their experiences of digital transformation and the type of support they need for this part of their work?

The report comes at a time when digital transformation has become one of the horizontal priorities for the EU Youth Programmes (Erasmus+ (E+) and European Solidarity Corps (ESC)) for the 2021–2027 period and one of the new priorities at EU level. Digital transformation is defined as an inclusive multi-stakeholder process encompassing the co-design, implementation, and utilisation of people-centred digital technologies with and by young people, youth workers, and other relevant stakeholders. On account of its rapid-paced and disruptive nature, digital transformation brings on novel opportunities and challenges for the European youth-work sector (check the full definition of digital transformation in the context of the European youth sector here).

Digital transformation is an important topic for the National Agencies, who play a crucial role in supporting the beneficiaries of the EU Youth Programmes. Currently, however, there is only quite limited information on what digital transformation means in the specific contexts of the Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps Programmes