LINK - LINKing Seniors to Digital Media Literacy, Democracy and Diversity

<< Background >>European societies are ageing. In 1950, only 12% of the European population was over age 65. Today the share has already doubled, and projections show that in 2050 over 36% of Europe’s population will be 65-plus years old. Promoting older citizens’ civic engagement and participation has emerged as key topic to society. Especially in a time where major disinformation campaigns are interfering with democratic processes, with 68% of Europeans admitting coming across to fake news at least once a week in a recent study done by the European Commission in 2018. The spread of both disinformation and misinformation can have a range of consequences, such as threatening our democracies, interfering with elections, polarizing debates, and putting the health, security, and environment of EU citizens at risk. As a major challenge for Europe, it requires a coordinated response of all agents in society and a strong focus on education in media literacy and engagement of all generations towards a mindful citizenship.<< Objectives >>LINK Project aimed to create an educational strategy for the senior population, to promote digital media literacy and conscious participation in democratic life, addressing how fake news and online disinformation can affect democracy and the electoral process, and strengthening knowledge and sharing of European Union values.<< Implementation >>The project included the following main activities:- Transnational Kick-Off Meeting in Cascais, Portugal- Observatory of Good Practices and Literature Review- Staff Webinar- LINK Program design- Transnational Staff Training in Madrid, Spain- LINK Pilot Implementation in each partner country- Transnational Study Visit to the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium- Transnational Educational Exchange in Bitonto, Italy- Multiplier Events in each partner country- Final Transnational Project Meeting in Wrocław, Poland<< Results >>The main concrete output of our project is LINK Program educational strategy, composed by:Program Presentation: presents a brief introduction to LINK Program. Key Concepts: provides useful information and theoretical knowledge to support facilitators in LINK Program implementation. Observatory of Good Practices: presents a compilation of Good Practices identified related to the project topics. Transversal Guidelines for Facilitators: gives transversal guidelines about how to implement LINK program with seniors, namely using non-formal education and experiential learning methodologies. Program of Activities: Compilation of LINK Program activities. Program Impact Measurement: Global Impact Measurement Report of LINK Program and tools that facilitators can adapt and use to measure the impact of LINK program implementation with their target group.Project website: http://www.link-project.eu/