Hypothesis 3: The potential offered by digital formats in international youth work is cur- rently not being lifted to the maximum. As outlined in the results section, this is particularly the case when it comes to the possibility for young partici - pants to contribute their media skills to a digital project, yet also applies to the way in which online sessions can be designed to be more activating. Young peo - ple should not just be asked to state their preferences regarding online tools for the project; they should also be invited to use these tools to help design the online sessions. This allows them to bring their skills and inter - ests to the table. The study also showed that, as confirmed by the in - terviewees themselves, the type of digital skills they acquired was primarily of the instrumental variety. In future, skills acquisition should be leveraged more ef - fectively so that other types of media skills can be de - veloped during a digital project, too, such as the ability to reflect on one’s personal media habits or creative work with media. Finally, unlike an in-person exchange, digital settings are country-neutral. This can produce some interesting opportunities, such as a shift in focus towards country- unspecific, personal differences and commonalities. Success factors • The digital space occupied during a project is designed with due care. This means that team leaders consider ahead of time what principles should apply when designing the digital settings (e.g., host principle, thematic sessions, country neutrality). • Participants’ experience and media skills are seen as a valuable resource that they are invited to con - tribute during the planning and implementation of a project.
staff to keep the technical equipment at the venues in good order. The technical equipment used by the venues and participants also plays an important role. Ideally, a range of different technical equipment should be available to all participants. Institutional resources are also important, such as stable internet access. Fi - nally, financial resources are highly relevant. The team leaders expressed a desire for a larger budget for soft - ware solutions that meet the specific needs of interna - tional youth work projects. They also called for the easy provision of tools as well as for a more flexible budget to account for any unexpected expenses. Success factors • Sufficient resources are provided that meet the differing needs of the partner organisations. Care must be taken to address the following identified differences between the partners: • Differences in internet access and technical equipment • Differing opinions over the methodology to be used in digital settings • Differing ideas around the relevance of data privacy • A specific methodology is in place that enables intercultural exchange and informal interactions online and that encourages lively communication among the participants. • In the run-up to the digital project, team leaders have taken part in training that meets their specific needs. During the study, the team leaders called for training in the following areas: • Interactive, creative and playful digital met - hods that go beyond basic approaches • Opportunities to try out methods themselves • Dialogue with other team leaders working in international youth work • Advice on various issues including data priva- cy When designing training courses, consideration should be given to the needs of team leaders with fewer digital skills.
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