"EVS short-term for youth empowerment" is a short-term EVS project which aims at enhancing and promoting volunteering as a tool for combining non-formal educational potential, social cohesion of the local community, and social inclusion intervention in favour of disadvantaged group of people and/or at high risk of socio-economic marginalisation. The idea behind this project is based on the awareness that involving new generation in volunteering initiatives represents an opportunity for acquiring practical and cross-sector knowledge that facilitates access to labour market, and, at the same time, a key element for building an European society based on principles of solidarity, multiculturalism, and active participation to community life.In particular, through this project, we aim at targeting as direct beneficiaries a specific group of youngster at high risk of social exclusion, namely first and second generation young migrants, young refugees or “unaccompanied foreign minors”, who, once arrived in Europe, while undertaking language learning programmes provided by Institutions or reception centres, do not have usually the chance to acquire practical professional skills or to socialise or integrate beyond the Institutions where they are hosted.Short-term volunteering experience might help them to acquire the above-mentioned competencies in a non-formal environment, and live in brand-new multicultural contexts where they will be not only beneficiaries but also actors by bringing their cultural richness and diversity.Similarly, we aim at involving youngsters coming from abroad, with socio-economic disadvantages, in volunteering initiatives to be implemented in Italy. Moreover, during these activities in Italy, participation of young “asylum seekers” whose status does not allow them to leave our country will be foreseen.The objective is to stimulate through volunteering the enhancement of both social capital, seen as strengthened interpersonal and social relations within the community, and human capital through increased individual skills and capacities of future generation of European citizens.The project will involve 20 volunteers in total, and 11 hosting/sending organisations from Italy, France, Portugal, Estonia, Greece, Turkey, and Latvia. Each mobility will last from one to two months and volunteers will operate closely with local community.Thus, we believe that the objectives of the project are in line with the ones highlighted by Erasums+ programme and Key Action 1, in particular with reference to:- Enhancement of competencies and skills useful for integrating young people in the labour market;- Inclusion of youngsters with fewer opportunities, fight to social marginalisation and youth unemployment;- Youth participation in building European identity and citizenship, and promotion of solidarity and multi-culturalism;- Enhancement of the role of NGOs and youth workers in socio-educational field.The aim of the project is to help participants to acquire, regardless of specific activities where they will be involved, cross-sector knowledge useful for their human and personal growth, and, at the same time, practical knowledge and skills, directly linked to the envisaged activities, which will improve their employability and ease their job search.The learning process will be characterised by non-formal approach based on “participatory education” , a method which proved to be effective to address the needs of both the volunteer and the hosting organisation.Finally, it should be highlighted the compliance of the project with 2016 annual priority referring to the direct involvement, in the Erasmus+ Programme activities, of young migrants, refugees, asylum seeker and youngsters under international legal protection.