This youth exchange project will involve the participation of 3 organisations from Malta, Germany and Finland that are all involved in providing assistance to persons with disabilities. The project will take place in Dortmund (Germany) and it will involve 16 young persons with down syndrome,3 group leaders, and 9 accompanying persons. The objectives of the project can be listed as follows:1) To promote the notion of self empowerment and social inclusion: the themes of this youth exchange project are 1) equal opportunities in the employment sector; 2) leisure activities for persons with disabilities; and 3) independent living. The basic element of the three above mentioned themes is self empowerment and social inclusion and how our participants can learn from each other's experiences and discuss what policies should be implemented by the local authorities in order to make their lives better. In fact, the German participants will be individuals who are already living an independent life at a centre which has been built for the purpose of accommodating people with disabilities who want to lead an independent life. Therefore, by means of this youth exchange project, our participants will not only discuss the principles of selected themes for this project but they will experience first hand what it entails to live an independent life. We believe that the themes discussed in our project can be taught and promoted to our participants not only through the discussions involved but also through the practical sessions (visits) that we will be doing during this 5 day project. The visit to the Support Employment model will provide our participants with a clearer picture of what it entails to be integrated within the main stream culture of society and receive support to work in an environment which can help a person with disability to grow and develop his skills further. In fact within a Supported Employment structure persons with disability are not segregated but they are given a placement at local companies and other entities where they will perform tasks that contribute directly to the entity for which they are working. 2) To exchange best practices and ideas: in order to keep our participants focused, our proposed activity programme includes a number of discussions which provide the necessary opportunity for the young people involved in this project to express their opinions being targeted in the discussion. Through this experience, the involved participants will meet other young people who suffer from the same disability but who may have different life styles. This mixture is a vital element in our project because it will enable the participants to learn from each other and broaden their views about what they can achieve in life. 3) To establish a better relationship between the involved organisations: all the involved organisations in this project are very much interested in tapping into EU funds in order to organise different projects for persons with a disability. Hence through this project they will establish a stronger link which will possibly lead them to work together in the future. The activities that will be included in th Introductory activities which will be held on the first day and they include an introductory talk by the group leaders and a number of ice breaking games; 2) Discussions which give our participants the opportunity to express themselves and realise that their opinions are valued by others; 3) Practical Sessions which refer to the visits that have been included in this project and which will provide our participants with a practical approach; 4) Evaluation sessions. This project will have a positive impact on all the participants involved because it will help them 1) improve their communication skills; and 2) mingle with other European young people that also face the same challenges in life. In addition, through this project, the participants will be made more aware of the themes that will be tackled in this projects and their rights within the European community. The long term effect of this project is that the participants will be given an opportunity which they will treasure for a life time and which will help them become aware of their potential. They will therefore gain more confidence in themselves and develop their personalities further. Moreover, through this project the participating organisations will strengthen their relationship and this may lead them to work together on other future EU funded project proposals.