The “Dare to Take Up Space” project aims to empower those working in youth education who identify as women and/or LGBTQIA+ by providing a space for mutual support, shared trust and collective practice. The aim is to foster autonomy through expression, language and the bodily, vocal and symbolic occupation of space.
Rooted in a feminist and non-formal non-gender educational approach, the project raises awareness of gender inequalities in access to and experience of spaces. It promotes empowerment and shares verbal and non-verbal tools that participants use and pass on to the young people they support.
This training aims to contribute to individual and collective transformation, reaffirming the full legitimacy of each person to exist and occupy space. We consider this process of “embodiment” by educators essential to offer young people - and people of all ages - new ways of living together that no longer replicate gender-based power dynamics, including discrimination, harassment or the devaluation of women and trans people.
The training uses different methods - combining body work, voice and other forms of expression - to build a space of trust, strength and shared empowerment.
ProgrammeKA153-YOU-000277647: Learning Mobility of Individuals; Action Type: Mobility of youth workers
Project number: 2024-3-FR02-KA153-YOU-000277647
Duration: 12 months (01/01/2025 - 31/01/2026)
Partners:
La Fogue- France
Le Tre Ghinee Aps,Italy, partner
Concept
We consider it essential that people engaged in the struggle against patriarchy and in non-formal education share their experiences, open up to practices developed beyond their borders, and transform their stories with new emancipatory practices in order to regain power and action.
In particular, since the legitimacy of occupying a space is part of the gender socialisation (learning of social codes and gender behaviour) that takes place during youth, we consider it urgent to strengthen the capacities of youth socio-educational staff on this issue, so that they in turn can ensure an educational approach to gender equality and support an empowerment process.
The prerequisite for the educational objectives is to provide a favourable framework for the participating persons to strengthen themselves individually and collectively, cultivate trust and mutual support.
Objectives
-Making youth workers aware of issues related to gender inequalities in the occupation and appropriation of spaces (especially public spaces);
-Enable them to experience the process of empowerment and confidence building in order to be able to offer a similar path in supporting young people;
-Collectively adopting a combination of verbal and non-verbal methods in order to bring out and address social issues (such as gender in public space) with greater resonance.
Local activities
Training for youth workers from France and Italy. To offer a week of collective exploration on the theme of space - physical, symbolic and social - for women and LGBTQIA+ people, in a welcoming and safe environment.
From 2 to 10 November 2025, in Lussas, Ardèche, southern France.
Participants: 15 youth workers (people with minority gender identity and sexual orientation) working/collaborating with young people (within associations, socio-cultural centres or informal groups), including young people suffering discrimination on the basis of gender and sexual orientation.
Training structure:
- Knowledge games to break the ice and build trust.
- Shared definition of the rules and organisation of the group.
- Sharing expectations, fears and common goals.
- Presentation of the youth work context and available resources.
- Training on recognising personal limits and active listening.
- Sharing personal stories about gender and discrimination.
- Body and expression activities to get to know oneself and overcome stereotypes.
- Discussion and public intervention on gender, sexism and minorities.
- Preparation and writing of the youth passport with competences to be developed.
- Final evaluation, sharing of experiences and celebratory closure.