Youth Development Fund Successful Applicants Announced

Sail Training International is proud to announce the successful applicants of the Youth Development Fund for 2020…

The Youth Development Fund was launched in 2019 to encourage the development of more effective Sail Training programmes for young people from disadvantaged social backgrounds. Its purpose is to support organisations – preferably nonprofit – to deliver Sail Training programmes that will reach young people from а mixture of backgrounds, particularly those from a disadvantaged background and offer one or more of the following:

• Improve trainees’ personal, social, or educational development
• Enhance international friendship and understanding
• Demonstrate replicable models of innovation and good practice in Sail Training

The funding will also achieve one or more of the following:

• Increase the number of young people participating in Sail Training, particularly those who enjoy fewer opportunities
• Encourage a structured approach to the management and outcomes of sail training programmes
• Encourage effective partnerships between sail training operators and other agencies/partners/organisations working with young people over the long term and provide credible evidence of how far the stated outcomes have been achieved

The Winners

• Sail Training Association Latvia: €8,400
• Leeuwin Ocean Adventure Foundation Limited: €5,000
• Sail Training Association of Queensland and their South Passage Adventure under Sail Programme: €5,000
• Challenge Wales: €6,600

Sail Training Association Latvia

Sail Training Association Latvia (STA Latvia) organises the programme “Latvian Winds’ Tribe”. The programme aims to engage with young people from remote Latvian areas and bring them meaningful leisure time activities that will improve the level of inclusivity within Sail Training provided by STA Latvia.

The project will also look for new ways to engage with young people not only during the sailing season, but also during the winter season when there is no active sailing activities in Latvia. The programme activities will include: three sailing-related land-based social events for 50 young people, two sail training trips in Tenerife for 12 young people and long-term staff training for 11 STA Latvia crew members.

STA Latvia aims to establish long-term collaboration networks with municipalities, youth centers, Non Governmental Organisations and social service providers through the programme in different regions. This will help them to reach even wider youth audiences.

Leeuwin Ocean Adventure Foundation

Leeuwin Ocean Adventure Foundation receives funding for their programme delivering Sail Training experiences to drought affected communities. The programme will take young men and women from severely drought affected areas to participate in a seven day voyage on the Sail Training Ship Leeuwin II in March 2020 sailing from Albany to Fremantle.

Leeuwin Ocean Adventure works and has a long fruitful relationship working with schools, local governments and community groups to provide programs accessible to young people from financially disadvantaged rural and remote backgrounds.

The unpredictability of weather conditions in Australia, exacerbated by climate change, have a significant, ongoing and increasing impact on the mental health and wellbeing of rural and remote communities. Being at sea will represent one way of offering preventative intervention to address the deteriorating mental health of adolescents.

Sail Training Association of Queensland

Sail Training Association of Queensland will undertake an eight day voyage for a combined group of 22 Japanese and Australian youths. By bringing together young people from different cultures, this voyage will offer the benefits of a traditional sailing experience and help those taking part to develop an understanding of foreign cultures. This an opportunity not readily available for two island nations.

The young trainees who will sail onboard the schooner South Passage will consist of Japanese young people affected by natural disasters and Australian migrants. The project will be a joint project together with the International Sail and Power Association of Japan.

Challenge Wales

Challenge Wales have received funding for their Stepping Stones programme – six one and a half day accredited voyages aimed at disadvantaged 14 – 25 year olds and those struggling to enter the workforce. Each trainee will have an opportunity to gain accreditation in teamwork (through Agored Cymru), have the opportunity to make new friends and develop confidence through Sail Training activities.

The programme will include numerous teamwork activities, provide life skills training and provide environmental education, including a focus on understanding the issues surrounding single use plastics. Trainees will come from one of the following groups:

• At risk of exclusion from education
• Young people in care and care leavers
• Homeless or at risk of becoming homeless
• Those with learning disabilities and Mental Health Issues
• BME community members
• LGBTQ community members
• Young people with parents in prison
• Financially disadvantaged people

After the voyage the programme will use the Outcomes Wheel model to measure the progress of participants. Following this, they will then work with a partner group to reflect on the experience and share learning outcomes.

Other valuable applications were received from the following organisations:

• Atyla
• Challenger Trust
• Sail Training Association Belgium
• Young Endeavor