NEET U Re-mobilizing experienced and resourceful seniors as NEET brokers to help young people change depressed NEET situations Social innovations do not happen by themselves. Throughout their life cycle, they need to be supported and nurtured if they are to make an impact on society and the economy. Empowering people, driving change – social innovation in the European Union, European Commission, 2011 CHALLENGE The multiple innovation perspectives of the NEET U are linked to a number of emerging social needs and innovation debates across Europe, well described and well documented in the Commission’s 2011 paper: Empowering people, driving change – social innovation in the European Union. This document represents and details the Commission’s 2020 social innovation policy and is the project’s key policy reference. More precisely, the project’s innovation is a contribution to transforming such emerging needs into emerging opportunities of change: EMERGING SOCIAL NEEDS - the need to re-engage seniors of all ages and backgrounds in the production of economic and social value - the need to mobilize available and qualified resources in the communities to offer NEET youth powerful ways out of the social depression - the need to find new solutions to existing and emerging social challenges not addressed by the open market and not sufficiently addressed by public services - the need to engage users, clients and citizens in creating such solutions, in this case NEET youth - the need to create social change dynamics to respond flexibly to the fast changing global and local economies and labour markets and to offer NEET youth life change competences EMERGING CHANGE OPPORTUNITIES - recognizing social innovation as a driver of and contributor to economic development - recognizing that social entrepreneurship goes far beyond establishing a private company and embraces all sorts of initiative-taking, whether for profit or not - recognizing that social innovation cannot happen to but with people, and that social innovation needs top-down as well as bottom-up initiative-taking to be successful - recognizing that social innovation includes a wide range of challenges, from child services to greening the economy NEET U’s innovation is to put social innovation to work. PROJECT MISSION The project is one of the first attempts in Europe to systematically put the 21st century social innovation agenda to work: how can social change be brought about through new citizen-driven alliances in the communities, through mobilizing available resources for important needs and without putting additional pressure on public services? Experienced and resourceful seniors: NEET youth NEED YOU! The NEET U project combines two of the most important social and educational challenges in 21st century Europe – re-activating the overwhelming social and educational potential of the increasing number of experienced seniors in society to help counter the dramatic increase in depressed social situations among young people – with the mission to generate social and educational value from the dynamic interaction between these two “out of economy” population groups. NEET youth situations across Europe is approaching dramatic proportions and neither public authorities nor private stakeholders seem able to mobilize the needed resources to efficiently counter this situation and to offer NEET youth the long-term capacity building they really need. Therefore available, qualified, yet unexploited resources in the communities must be activated and mobilized to contribute to finding ways out of those depressed social situations. NEET U is born out of this mission, prepared through several successful European initiatives identifying the unexplored potentials of bringing together experienced seniors and NEET youth. PARTNERSHIP The NEET U consortium brings together 9 partners from 7 European countries, including practice partners, knowledge partners, a special social innovation partners and an experienced quality partner. The project is coordinated by Pistes Solidaires from France. OUTCOMES The project will produce and share the following key outcomes: SENIORS AS NEET BROKERS - www.NEET-U.eu I AM A NEET BROKER – WHAT R U? PORTFOLIOS OF SENIOR SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURING POLICY PAPER – LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE SENIOR-NEET YOUTH ALLIANCES POLICY PAPER – EUROPEAN FUNDING AND SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURING FIRST EUROPEAN NETWORK OF THE SENIOR-NEET YOUTH ALLIANCE THE SOCIAL NEET BROKER 10 PDF for large-scale dissemination PERSPECTIVES This flagship perspective resulting from the project is the first platform for a European network, not simply missioned to share experience but to offer capacity building for social change services driven by seniors in interested communities, and to create further European initiatives in the fields of senior NEET brokering and social innovation driven by citizens.