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Make the world your home with our coming Edtech and community based deep knowledge in intercultural learning.

This fall YFU Sweden, in cooperation with DigiLek, will start the development of an EdTech solution to YFU´s reowned workshop Coloured Glasses.

Youth for understanding (YFU) is a volunteer-based global nonprofit community. We believe that positive global change and cultural understanding is possible through youth exchange. Through our exchange programs, we offer our participants a journey of their lifetime, either as students or host families. We are a network in over 55 countries, sharing the belief, that what starts with a single person, will over time, influence society and even nations. Through our exchange programs we support personal growth, increased understanding of other cultures, and none the least a deeper understanding of one’s own culture and background. We believe that our programs provide the ultimate reality check to a worldview based on stereotypes. In helping people of all ages to make the world their home, we help them to appreciate differences and embrace similarities. We are a volunteer based organization, with dedicated staff around the world, relaying on over 60 years of experience. YFU has impacted for more than 270 000 students – and their hostfamilies, schools and networks – and more than 70 000 volunteers. 

'Coloured Glasses' refers to the well-known analogy of the sunglasses which represent the cultural filters through which we observe and interpret reality. In Youth for Understanding (YFU), Coloured Glasses has come to refer to a set of workshops designed to build young people's cultural self-awareness, leading them into cultural understanding by introducing them to the concepts of stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination. Coloured Glasses thus often also involves peer-to-peer learning and is rooted in grassroots volunteerism and community building. The fundings from European Commission, Erasmus+ and the partnership with European Education Exchange –YFU has enabled Coloured Glasses to develop and expand worldwide since the start in the 90´s. Such as the European Voluntary Service (EVS) pro-gramme and CGrow.

OUR INNOVATION APPROACH IN EDTECH 

We live in an ever-changing world disrupted by globalization, sustainable challenges and a forceful digital transformation. In Sweden we witness; for the first time ever, a whole generation who grows up in a connected childhood and youth. We know that the future of work is going to look very different, as automation and Artificial Intelligence make many manual, repetitive jobs obsolete. According to the McKinsey Global Institute, robots could replace 800 million jobs by 2030. We are an active part of the global movement who aims to transform education towards a focus on soft skills such as independent thinking, values and team-work. Crucial future skills in helping the kids succeed in the future ahead. “A generation who would never be able to compete with machines” according to Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba Group. Our leading stars are the global development goals in Agenda 2030 for Sustainable development and the Children’s Rights Convention (UNCRC).

Starting in august 2018 we are looking for a school partner in our innovation process to a tailor made solution in implementing Colour Glasses as an EdTech solution. Thus, at this stage we do not offer a single, ready-made solution. The innovation process can result in an advanced and interactive app or web platform (website and mobile application) as well as other technical solutions to support the partners need in intercultural learning.

YFU Sweden and DigiLek will partner in this project. Both situated in Stockholm which makes great preconditions for finding the right EdTech solution. Stockholm now runs number two after Silicon Valley as the world’s largest Unicorn factory with unicorns such as Skype, Spotify, Mojang, King and Klarna. At the same time the social innovation scene will be supported with 150 MSEK from the Swedish government. DigiLek is a selected co-worker at Goto10. A start- and meeting place and a co-working space for internet related knowledge exchange and innovation. It´s initiated by The Internet Foundation in Sweden (IIS). IIS is an independent public-service organization that acts to ensure positive development of the internet in Sweden. They are responsible for the internet’s Swedish top-level domain, .se, and the operation of the .nu top-level domain. IIS is one of the most important stakeholders in Sweden’s development of internet in schools.