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Yesterday, February 8, the Ministry of Education and Research recognized contributors to the youth sector at the "Thanks for Youth" competition. The Tartu Youth Work Center was awarded the title of Youth Center of the Year. The Tartu Youth Work Center stands out for developing youth work both locally within the city, nationally, and internationally. When presenting the laureate title, the center's team's street-based youth work, the development of digital tools and competencies, and the inclusion of young people at risk of exclusion and those with special needs in youth work were highlighted. The center also published a handbook on inclusive youth work. It was also noted that the Tartu Youth Work Center ensures the quality of youth work through network cooperation, supporting the professional growth of its staff and the involvement of young people. Margit Kink, the director of the center, commented that the success is primarily due to an excellent team. She added that thanks to the project for involving young people with special needs, it is...

On January 21-22, the Hack@Youth hackathon for digital tools in youth work took place at Anne Youth Center, where the main prize of 1000 euros was won by the app “Lyfe Eesti”, which provides information on youth centers. Over two days, five teams consisting of youth work and IT professionals developed a variety of solutions, all of which addressed bottlenecks in current youth work. For example, several teams sought solutions to simplify youth registration at youth centers or events. The success of the winning “Lyfe Eesti” team lay in their highly practical approach to simplifying the lives of youth workers and the potential for wider adoption in other regions beyond Tartu. Team members promise to have the first demo with information from Tartu youth centers working by spring. The success of the hackathon was greatly contributed by…

At the beginning of January, Margit Kink took office as the new director of the Tartu Youth Work Center, having previously worked as the head of the Anne Youth Center. Previously, Margit Kink worked for eight years as a continuing education coordinator at the University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy and for a year and a half as a culture specialist at the Elva Rural Municipality Government. Kink notes that the practical experience and skills she gained in her previous positions will support her in her new role. At the Culture Academy, she developed as an individual, learning work culture, teamwork, and taking responsibility, while working as a culture specialist in Elva, she entered the field of youth work. “I hadn’t had much contact with youth work before, but that didn’t stop me – I improved myself through training and networking and caught up,” says Kink. She adds that the official experience gained from Elva…

Due to the societal situation of recent years, the Tartu Youth Work Centre has intensified its focus on smart youth work and digital topics. Since digital youth work has its nuances compared to traditional youth work, it is necessary to make conscious decisions when implementing it. In 2020, Liisi Trumm, the head of Lille Youth Centre, researched the digital youth work competencies of Tartu Youth Work Centre's youth workers as part of her university seminar paper. The study was conducted using the digital competency model for youth workers developed by European Commission experts, according to which a youth worker needs to acquire and develop 34 different digital competencies in their work, grouped under seven different categories. Below, based on sub-competencies, we highlight some considerations for better implementation of digital youth work. Which e-activity carried out by you was…

Every Wednesday in January, sexual health trainings will take place at Lille 9 as part of the Healthy Lifestyle Club! Over four weeks, various sub-topics of sexuality will be explored, self-love will be learned, and the Tartu Sexual Health Clinic will be visited. Youth workers Markos Parve and Sirli Solom invite all young people to educate themselves! First (Jan 5), we will conduct an introductory training where we will generally explore sexuality, discuss consent, and the Sensoa flag system. In the second week (Jan 12), we will learn about sexual minorities, gender identity, and gender roles. In the third week (Jan 19), we will visit the Sexual Health Clinic, where we will gain knowledge about contraception and the physical aspects of sexual health. In the last week (Jan 26), we will discuss self-love and self-respect in more detail. Generally, registration is not required, but for the visit to the Sexual Health Clinic (Jan 19), you can sign up HERE. More information: [...]

Reflect on the past year: For example, make a list of activities that went well this year and that you are particularly happy with. These can be both larger and smaller challenges (e.g., trips experienced, books read, courses completed, enjoyable events). Set specific activities: For example, use months for this. Mark what you would like to do each month at that specific time. You can list both smaller and larger goals. Once the larger goals are set, add smaller goals as well. These could include listening to a podcast, traveling, saving money, healthier eating, exercising, or whatever motivates you! Set a timeline for achieving your goals: Consistently monitor how goal achievement is progressing...

Before we look to the new year, let's take a moment to look back. In the second half of 2021, specifically on July 29, August 28, September 29, November 17, and December 18, joint planning and discussions took place at our youth center. On these days, young people, together with youth worker(s), planned what could be done at the youth center. Many of the young people's ideas have been implemented. From kayaking, sports outdoor activities like orienteering, team tasks promoting nature education, or teaching and trying the ABCs of fishing, etc. On the other hand, it should be emphasized that everyone at the youth center was encouraged to dream big (!) and suggest where they could go or whom they could invite. The author of this text also wants to allow themselves a bit of dreaming and look together into the new year. Already since July, despite…

Liisi Trumm, head of Lille Youth Center. The slogan #teenendalehead (do good for yourself) of the recently concluded Youth Work Week strongly emphasizes the importance of mental health and connects the topic with youth work. How these topics are related can be examined from two aspects: firstly, how participation in youth work helps young people improve their mental health, and secondly, how youth workers themselves maintain their mental health. In this article, I will focus on the latter aspect, to encourage youth workers to take care of themselves. Youth workers are often natural-born saviors who always rush to help when young people have problems. We are ready, trained, and open to solving others' problems. How could it be otherwise, when initial counseling is one of the directions of youth work. However, youth work is not...

Today, November 17, is International Prematurity Day, and Anne Youth Center is joining in by calling for outdoor lighting to be turned purple for one evening. One in ten children is born prematurely, before the 37th week of pregnancy. It has become a tradition that on November 17, the evening of World Prematurity Day, the world is lit up in lilac in honor of premature babies, their families, and all their supporters. Lilac is the color of prematurity, marking the beginning of life and symbolizing optimism. The lighting solution for the house is provided by Sound Group OÜ, whose representative Ülari Toots came up with the idea of joining the charity campaign. Margit Kink, director of the Anne Youth Center, did not think twice when the lighting technician made the offer: "I have seen this concern up close in the families of prematurely born children...