RAISE Youth

The overall goal of the RAISE Youth project was to contribute to the creation of dignified and productive jobs for young people by using social innovation in rural areas of four countries: Croatia, Bulgaria, Romania, and Spain.

The specific goal of the project was to pilot and promote the innovative RAISE model of (self)employment for young people who are neither employed nor in the education system (so-called NEETs) aged 20 to 29, based on sustainable agriculture in 4 rural regions with high rates of unemployment and depopulation.

Duration: 1 September 2018 – 31 January 2024.

Fund: The EEA and Norway Grants Fund for Youth Employment

Project consortium:

  • GTF – Initiative for Sustainable Growth (Lead partner, Croatia)
  • City of Gospić (Beneficiary partner, Croatia)
  • CSCD – Center for Sustainable Communities Development (Beneficiary partner, Bulgaria)
  • FUNDECYT Science and Technological Park of Extremadura (partner, Španjolska)
  • FACTORY (Beneficiary partner, Croatia)
  • Fema d.o.o. (Beneficiary partner)

The economic structure of rural regions is changing: the share of the primary sector in GDP is in decline, while the tertiary sector grows especially in IT & tourism, which are the main drivers for growth and employment. Countries in South & South East Europe need to create more sustainable models of agro-food production in rural areas in order to stop economic decline and depopulation.

Young people (NEETs – not in education, employment, or training) in the 4 target countries – Croatia, Bulgaria, Romania and Spain – are experiencing unemployment as their biggest problem because it directly affects the possibility of their independence, future planning, building their own skills and abilities. Youth unemployment and NEETs population are highest in rural areas, especially in the 4 target countries. Project will target 2000 NEETS aged 25-29 from rural and suburban areas, at least 60% of them women.

RAISE Youth will create a sustainable transnational framework to pilot and promote an innovative RAISE model with rural NEETs aged 25-29 based on experience of 4 beneficiary countries with very high youth unemployment rates. 4 RAISE Centers will be established as training, demonstration and production centers in rural areas facing depopulation. Through intergenerational mentoring, learning by doing and psycho-social support and mentorship, at least 2000 NEETs will participate, of which at least 200 will gain (self) employment. By piloting and promoting an innovative RAISE Model of self-employment primarily for NEETs aged 25-29 based on sustainable “Working together for a green, competitive and inclusive Europe” agri-business in 4 rural regions with high unemployment rates and depopulation, a new model for youth employment will be created and made sustainable.
RAISE will network and cluster nationally and transnationally the rural youth, including exchanges between countries, but also create a web platform for marketing and crowdfunding/crowdfarming which has never before been used as a tool for sustainable youth entrepreneurship support in Europe. Use of “smart” farming, new technologies, combined with multi-generational mentoring and family and individual learning will create an ecosystem in the rural area more suitable to job creation, as it will take into account a personal approach while preparing a systemic framework (social) enterprise creation, cluster establishment, web tools, crowdfunding, multistakeholder and policy dialogue.

Young people from rural regions of Croatia who participated in the project gained the opportunity to secure sustainable, high-quality employment or self-employment by acquiring new skills and knowledge. Given that Lika-Senj County has the highest proportion of the NEET population in Croatia, the RAISE Youth project focuses on that region, and a RAISE DEMO center was opened in Gospić. During the project's implementation, the need to expand the RAISE model was recognized; consequently, a "Mobile RAISE" program was launched in the Dalmatian Hinterland (within Split-Dalmatia County), and in 2022, RAISE Youth project activities extended to Sisak-Moslavina County as well.

ACTIVITIES

RAISE Youth project in Croatia

  • The RAISE Youth center in Gospić has been operating since 2019.
  • Analysis of the situation and surveying of NEET individuals in the Lika and Dalmatian Hinterland regions
  • Focus groups with interested young NEETs; analysis of the situation of family farms in the Lika region.
  • Education in the field of agriculture, tourism and digital technologies
  • Pre-incubation program
  • Mentoring and individual consultations in the RAISE DEMO center and in the field
  • The first tourist mobile application for the Lika area - Explore Lika
  • Policy Dialogue meetings – Exchange of experiences among stakeholders from various sectors at local, regional, and national levels.
  • Permaculture demonstration vegetable garden in Perušić
  • Study visits with partner countries
  • Crowdsourcing platform - Start.cro
  • Vertical aeroponic farm in Perušić as a demonstration model for sustainable agriculture
  • Implementation of activities in Sisak-Moslavina County
  • Online market of domestic products - Taste LikaPreparation of the RAISE business model