Young people from the World Wide Voices Group at Donegal Youth Service recently went on a one night residential to Galway City. The intercultural group have been working on an employment project since October.
The project aims to bridge the gap between the young people and local employers. It gives the young people an opportunity to meet people who currently work in the careers they are interested in. This gives them a unique insight into the reality of their chosen profession, and advice on how to achieve their career goals. The group are also working on improving their job seeking skills, and looking for summer jobs locally.
The purpose of the residential was to decide which local employers they would like to invite to their workshops, to work on their interview skills, and as a team-building exercise as the current group has only been meeting since September.
The group also got to experience the festive Galway Christmas Market on Eyre Square before returning to Donegal the following day.
Preliminary evaluations have indicated strong learning around interview skills, and a high level of satisfaction with the project so far. Two local employers have spoken to the group so far, with several more planned over the coming weeks.
The World Wide Voices group has been around for over 10 years. Projects are decided by the participants, and previous years they have worked on the European wide No Hate Speech Movement, Show Racism the Red Card, other anti-prejudice campaigns, and immigration issues to name just a few.
This project has been made possible thanks to funding from the Department of Justice and Equality Communities Integration Fund. The World Wide Voices project meet weekly on Wednesday evenings in The Loft.
For more information or to get involved contact The Loft @ Donegal Youth Service, 16-18 Port Road, (074) 91 29630, www.donegalyouthservice.ie or find them on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter.