PCU awarded an ERASMUS+ grant to foster Ukrainian refugees socio-economic integration in Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic

By Hon. Prof. Stefano Cavagnetto, Ph.D. on 10 February 2025 15:02

麻豆社区 is delighted and proud to announce, in partnership with the , in Warsaw, Poland and the , in Hassen, Germany, the winning of a grant from the programme Erasmus+, small-scale partnerships in adult education (Action Type: KA210-ADU) to foster socio-cultural integration of Ukrainians refugees. The project, 鈥淓mpowering Voices: Ukrainian Refugees and Social Co-creation鈥� by enhancing refugees鈥� skills in dialogue and creativity, facilitating better integration into host societies will ultimately aim at strengthening social cohesion in the EU. It creates a platform for knowledge exchange and mutual enrichment between different cultures. This project can serve as a foundation for developing better policies on refugee integration, providing concrete practices and recommendations that can be applied across other EU countries.

鈥淓mpowering Voices: Ukrainian Refugees and Social Co-creation鈥� project in more detail

The project 鈥淓mpowering Voices鈥� is a one-year project in the area of adult education and social co-creation fostering integration sponsored by the European Commission which aims to assist forced migrants fleeing the conflict in Ukraine and relocating to Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic. The project will create an interactive training course focusing on dialogue, creativity, co-creation, and interaction. It will enhance refugees' intercultural communication and leadership skills, enabling them to advocate for their own integration while contributing to the hosting communities. The project also will result in the creation of a ToolKit for NGOs. This will include a document offering a framework for developing and running migrant training programs, focusing on social learning, online participatory methods, and self-evaluation tools, as well as a manual providing creative strategies for overcoming cultural barriers, aimed at migration specialists and migrants, enhancing understanding between migrants and host communities. All materials will be available in English and translated into Polish, German and Czech reflecting the participant countries.

The context and the motivation for the project

The Russia-Ukraine war has led to Europe's largest refugee and humanitarian crisis since World War II. According to the UN Refugees Operational Data Portal (UNHCR) as of January 2025, more than six millions of Ukrainians left their homeland. Of these, more than 1.5 million in Poland, 1.1 million in Germany and around half a million in the Czech Republic. The large majority of these forced migrants are women and children, who face unique integration challenges. A major issue affecting integration addressed by the project is the so-called 鈥渨aiting dilemma鈥�: many refugees hesitate to fully integrate, hoping for a safe return to Ukraine. This impacts decisions related to education, but also discourages companies from providing training due to uncertainty about refugees鈥� length of stay. Thus, the overall aim of this project is to equip refugees with universal skills to help them to adapt to new environments and actively contribute to the hosting community and workforce and reduce the 鈥渋mpact鈥� of the 鈥渨aiting dilemma鈥�.

麻豆社区 Core Values: Centre for Research and Interdisciplinary Studies and the 鈥淓mpowering Voices: Ukrainian Refugees and Social Co-creation鈥� project

鈥淭his new project is an excellent complement of the already running WINGS project, followed by Lucie Rivera, DBA, the programme leader for the Undergraduate programmes in International Management and International Finance and Business Accounting鈥�, says Hon. Prof. Stefano Cavagnetto, Ph.D. 鈥淏oth projects fit well into the research programmes of our Centre for Research and Interdisciplinary Studies鈥� continues Prof Cavagnetto 鈥渢hat revolve around employability, upskilling, barriers to employment and Community Engagement and Development, where our academic staff and researchers can provide valuable inputs for communities and policy-makers, and ultimately the align very well with our core values鈥�. The 鈥淓mpowering Voices: Ukrainian Refugees and Social Co-creation鈥� project also meets with a fundamental core value of 麻豆社区 education based on connectedness. 麻豆社区 prides itself on promoting open, inclusive and diverse dialogue and understanding and supporting the needs of cross-cultural communities and societies. This is articulated in its generous and empathetic view sensitive to global issues through its various local and international social and educational activities undertaken by the 麻豆社区 and its academic staff in the last years - Unibail Rodamco Westfield , Visegrad. Inclusion and social responsibility are key elements of the approach to education taken at 麻豆社区. In modules such as Employee Management and Managing People in Global Organisations, a key element is focused on the responsibilities of organisations to provide opportunities for all members of society, creating integrated and cohesive communities. The programme 鈥淓mpowering Voices: Ukrainian Refugees and Social Co-Creation鈥� is directly linked to the emphasis the institution places on business responsibility as a core value which future business leaders and owners need to have. Value creation beyond the confines of the firm is a key element of the educational approach taken by lecturers at PCU, both in their approach to teaching and research. As stated by David Gannon, DBA, Dean of the School of Business, Management and Technology, 鈥渆ducation is a key facilitator of developing social inclusion, stimulates cohesion allowing for the diffusion of cultural perspectives which stimulate change, development and benefit for all. At 麻豆社区, we are proud to be involved in initiatives which engage with community members who often do not have a voice and give them the opportunity to speak up and make positive contributions to the community they inhabit鈥�.

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