• Mentor International and the TUI Care Foundation launch a global partnership 
• The mentoring programme focuses on increasing inclusion and employability by empowering youth through personal development 
• Approximately 100 local community volunteers in motivational workshops

During the Mentor Germany Youth Summit, which took place in the presence of H.M. Queen Silvia of Sweden, Mentor International and TUI Care Foundation launched a global partnership. The two organizations will team up to run a mentoring program to empower young people from vulnerable communities in Jordan, Germany and Sweden. The program will be set up by Mentor’s national operations and rolled out under the TUI Junior Academy umbrella.

Workshops designed to strengthen self-esteem, social inclusion and parental involvement will support the development of young people and help reduce isolation, improve school results, decrease the risk of destructive patterns and promote a more prosperous life. The project aligns with both with the UN 2030 Youth Agenda for Sustainable Development and TUI Care Foundation’s 2020 development goals. 

“This collaboration gives Mentor the opportunity to make a difference for hundreds of young people. We are also pleased to be working with Mentor Arabia, Mentor Germany and Mentor Sweden as well as so many local volunteers at the same time”says Sara Revell Ford, Secretary General of Mentor International.

The initiative will provide training on the soft skills needed for personal development to complement the hard skills included in a school curriculum. The mentoring program will be offered in schools where students come from socially vulnerable areas, and where school performance indexes are often lower than national averages. Participants will be between the ages of 13 to 17 years and the majority from vulnerable groups in the society. Mentor and TUI Care Foundation will recruit volunteers from the local community, including employees from across TUI Group. The mentoring initiative will run from Autumn 2019 to Summer 2020.

“Improving the life chances of young people and empowering them to reach their full potential is core to TUI Care Foundation´s work in the educational field. Bringing together the school community, families and adult professionals to exchange experiences and solve challenges, is a powerful and inspirational tool to strengthen school-to-work transition. Our initiative builds a support network for youths and brings them into contact with professional and personal experiences they can relate to,” says Thomas Ellerbeck, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the TUI Care Foundation.