Non-discrimination policy

In short

• We treat everyone fairly, whatever their age, gender, ethnicity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, nationality or background.
• If you face barriers to taking part, we offer extra support, such as mentoring, translation or help with the application.
• Anything you tell us about your needs stays confidential.
• If you experience discrimination, harassment or exclusion, you can report it safely, and anonymously if you prefer.
• We act quickly when something goes wrong, and we review this policy every year.

At Elemdiar we believe every young person deserves the same chance to learn, travel and grow. This policy explains the principles we follow in our youth exchanges and training courses, the support we offer to people who face barriers, and what to do if you feel you have been treated unfairly.

How we choose participants is explained in our Selection Procedure.

What we stand for

• Non-discrimination. We treat every applicant and participant with fairness and respect. We do not discriminate on the basis of age, gender, ethnicity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, nationality or socio-economic background.
• Equality. Everyone has the same opportunity to join and benefit from our activities, whatever their personal characteristics or circumstances.
• Accessibility. We work to make our activities, our application process and our communication accessible to everyone. We make reasonable adjustments so that people with disabilities or other specific needs can take part fully.
• Inclusion. We actively welcome people from different cultural, language and social backgrounds. We want our activities to be places where diversity, mutual respect and learning between cultures are valued.
• Equity. Some people face barriers that others do not, either because of how society works or because of their personal situation. We look for these barriers and work to remove them, so that everyone has a fair chance to take part.
• Transparency. We are open about how we select people: the criteria, how we assess applications and what we expect from you.

Young people with fewer opportunities

"Young people with fewer opportunities" is the term Erasmus+ uses for people who face obstacles that make it harder to access education, travel or international learning. These obstacles can include:

• Disability: physical, mental, sensory or cognitive impairments.
• Health: long-term illness or other medical conditions.
• Education: leaving school early, having few qualifications or limited chances to learn.
• Cultural differences: a migrant background, language difficulties or belonging to an ethnic minority.
• Social barriers: being marginalised or discriminated against, or having few people to rely on.
• Economic barriers: low income, unemployment or financial difficulty.
• Geography: living in a remote or rural area with few services and opportunities.

How we support you

To remove barriers and make sure you can take part fully, we:

• make reasonable adjustments when needed, such as physical access, translation or mentoring;
• train our group leaders and trainers to offer one-to-one support and adapt to your needs;
• help you with the application if you need help filling in the form or understanding the requirements;
• say clearly in all our communication that our activities are open to everyone and are learning opportunities, not academic competitions;
• keep your information private: anything you share in your application, including information about specific needs, is protected and handled with care;
• give our team and partners regular training on inclusion, anti-discrimination and working across cultures;
• invite you to share your experiences and perspective, if you want to, because they make the group richer and help everyone understand each other.

If something goes wrong

If you experience or see discrimination, harassment or exclusion in any of our activities, please tell us.

• We deal with every complaint or concern quickly and confidentially.
• You can report safely, and anonymously if you prefer. Our contact person is Adrian Vîlcan: talk to him during any activity, or write to [email protected].
• For local activities with younger participants, we also stay in touch with families and teachers: we visit parents in the community and talk with teachers, so concerns can reach us through people you trust.
• We take action straight away if we find that this policy has not been followed.

Information about participants with fewer opportunities is handled anonymously and confidentially, with respect for their dignity and privacy.

How we stay accountable

• We look at equality, accessibility and inclusion when we plan every youth exchange, as part of the needs analysis, and we report on them in each project's final report to the Erasmus+ National Agency.
• We also review our progress once a year, at our annual meeting.
• We review this policy every year, so it stays useful and in line with what participants need, the Erasmus+ inclusion priorities and EU law.

The laws behind this policy

This policy is based on EU law on equality and non-discrimination, including:

• the Racial Equality Directive (2000/43/EC), which bans discrimination based on racial or ethnic origin;
• the Gender Equality Directive (2006/54/EC), on equal treatment of men and women;
• the Employment Equality Framework Directive (2000/78/EC), which covers discrimination based on religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation;
• the Gender Goods and Services Directive (2004/113/EC), which extends equal treatment of men and women to goods and services;
• the European Accessibility Act (Directive (EU) 2019/882), on accessibility for people with disabilities;
• the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR, Regulation (EU) 2016/679), which protects your personal data and helps prevent data being used in a discriminatory way.

We follow these rules in spirit and in practice, so that everyone has equal access to the learning and intercultural experiences we offer.

Questions?

Write to us at [email protected].