The Youth Collective is a project from the Coca-Cola Brasil Institute that aims to inspire and empower young people from the ages of 16 to 25 that live in low-income communities through professional qualification, self-esteem appreciation and connection with new income generation opportunities.
The project has as its main cause the employability and understands that the process of professional qualification for young people goes way beyond of a job opening. So its methodology works with an approach that encourages protagonism and leadership, strengthening their self-esteem. They are stimulated to work on practical projects about marketing, sales, communication and event production in their communities. Besides the theoretical, practical and playful contents, the project also has a virtual learning platform that can be accessed in or outside the Collective’s classrooms. At the end of the course the participants are connected with job opportunities and those who have other professional goals, like entrepreneurship or keep on studing, are directed to partners that have expertise in these fields. The partnership with local NGOs and a network of more than 250 employing companies all over the country are fundamental for the project’s results. Since the beginning of its implementation the Youth Collective has already impacted more than 219 000 young people in 75 brazilian communities in 14 states and the Federal District and more than 60 000 of them have had access to the job market. In the city of Uberlândia the Youth Collective takes place at the NGO Cristina Cavanis’ Child and Teenager House and it’s sponsored and endorsed by Uberlândia Refrescos.