Pilots for a Strong Future

In 2015, over one million people fled to Germany from war and misery. Since then, around 40,000 people from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq or Eritrea have found a new home in the Hanseatic City of Hamburg. Many of them are young people of working age. Successful integration means equal participation in social and professional life. However, many of the immigrants are denied this opportunity from the outset. They bring a lot of potential with them, but in many cases this potential is not recognised or only insufficiently supported. Communication with the authorities, orientation in the professional world, application procedures and language difficulties become insurmountable hurdles for a successful start in society and the world of work without special encouragement and support.

In the project, volunteer mentors with a migration background are trained in Hamburg to become educational and integration promoters who support young refugees in choosing an education and vocational training and help them to overcome cultural and language barriers.

Many of the refugees have been living in Germany for several years and are often confronted with social and professional challenges. Access to education and vocational training and to the labour market in particular is still difficult for many of the immigrants. There is a lack of orientation on further education and training measures, information on counselling services and support in finding a job. Successful integration cannot be achieved without equal social and professional participation.

In the project 10 people are to be trained directly as “pilots”. These will in turn serve as multipliers for the young immigrants, so that about 120 people will benefit from the project every year.

The aim of the project is to train people who themselves have a migration background but have been living in Germany for some time and to provide them with topic-based knowledge in order to become integration and education promoters. The ten “pilots” being trained will be instructed in topics such as career orientation, social counselling and health. After receiving their training, they will be able to help people who have a similar fate to choose a career or training course and help them overcome language and cultural barriers and arrive in their new home country. The “pilots” assist young refugees during their internship in the partner organisation Hanseatic Help and in their search for suitable training and further education offers or individual information about counselling services. Joint activities for intercultural networking are as much a part of the accompaniment as support in dealing with authorities and German courses.

The project pursues the approach that every person deserves a chance to participate in society and to successfully enter the labour market and can make a contribution to society. On the basis of constructive cooperation at eye level, the project promotes an integrative and intercultural exchange. Because the “pilots” have previously experienced a similar situation in Germany, they can use their experience and knowledge to be constructive contact persons for the young refugees and provide them with active help and orientation. For example, they can also form a bridge in case of initial language and cultural difficulties and thus help to solve them. By supporting them in their professional orientation, it is made easier for the refugees to participate in everyday and professional life. The “pilots” therefore play a central role in promoting and integrating them.

However, we still support many other projects in the region.
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