Young Innovators Lead the Way at the GO GREEN Hackathon
Donegal Youth Service (DYS) recently collaborated with partners to host an intensive, high-energy hackathon, bringing together young people from across the county to solve real-world environmental challenges.
As the lead partner in this ambitious Erasmus+ initiative, DYS is at the forefront of a six-country European collaboration designed to transform eco-anxiety into entrepreneurial action.
Innovation for a Greener Future
During the event, participants aged 15–29 worked in teams to tackle local environmental issues. In the true spirit of teamwork we had the opportunity to collaborate with ATLIC to bring together young people from a total of nine countries to brainstorm innovative solutions for the blue economy.
The Pyramid of Learning in Action
Guided by expert mentors and youth workers, the teams moved through the stages of the GO GREEN learning path:
- Awareness: Identifying a critical environmental problem in their community.
- Competence Building: Learning how to apply social and digital skills to create a viable solution.
- Entrepreneurial Spirit: Developing a business model and a pitch to present their ideas to a panel of judges.
What’s Next?
The ideas born at this hackathon are just the beginning. The partners have reflected on the experience and gathered valuable feedback from participants which we will use to improve and refine the GO GREEN resources. Next, we are getting ready for the second Hackathon in Hungary.
Are you ready to GO GREEN? If you missed the hackathon, there are still plenty of ways to get involved in our upcoming training cycles and community events. Follow us on Facebook for the latest updates or email us at una.quinn@donegalyouthservice.ie
Funded under Erasmus+ KA220-YOU – Cooperation partnerships in youth (KA220-YOU)
The GOGREEN project aims to develop a learning model which supports the development of sustainable entrepreneurship skills for young people.
The GOGREEN team consists of partners from 6 European countries:
- Ireland: Donegal Youth Service Ltd
- Slovenia: Heart of Slovenia Development Center and Kickstarter Cooperative
- Hungary: Közép-dunántúli Regionális Innovációs Ügynökség
- Bulgaria: Vyara Foundation
- North Macedonia: SOU Kuzman Josifovski-Pitu Prilep
- Spain: Formación para el Desarrollo e Inserción
Why We Exist
The GOGREEN project aims to empower young people to engage in social and sustainable entrepreneurship. Using the Pyramid of Learning (PoL) model, we provide a non-formal education framework that helps young people develop the necessary competencies to address real-life environmental and sustainability challenges.
An education toolset with innovative learning approaches will also be designed to support youth workers, ensuring that young people receive the guidance and resources they need to succeed.
Where We Operate
GOGREEN is an international project with partners in six European countries: Ireland, Slovenia, Hungary, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, and Spain. Each partner will collaborate, share knowledge, and contribute to developing the Pyramid of Learning model to support young people in their local communities.
When We Are Active
For the next two years, each of the partners will be collaborating and sharing their knowledge and learning with each other to develop the PoL and encourage young people to engage with sustainable development in their local communities. Updates and progress on the project can be followed on our social media pages:
