![A smiling participant in the project](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-10/SKAIDR%C4%96%2013.jpg?itok=nVRSlDzw)
Lithuania’s path to community integration for persons with disabilities
The ‘From Care to Possibilities’ project in Lithuania is replacing institutional care with community-based support, helping adults with mental or intellectual disabilities live independently.
![Distribution of vouchers in August 2024](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-09/Schulstart%2016%209.jpg?itok=gQIssLBT)
Starting the school year right: how Austria’s voucher system helps low-income families
In Austria the ‘Schulstartklar’ (Ready to Start School) initiative, a cornerstone of the national programme to fight material deprivation, provides vouchers to pupils from poor households.
![Four young participants of the voluntary military service stand at a high table with the European flag.](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-08/SMV%2016%209_0.jpg?itok=cLqo_BxM)
Empowering young people through voluntary military service
The Voluntary Military Service in France provides military and professional training, facilitating social and professional integration through discipline, teamwork, and partnerships.
![Serhii in the office](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-08/Serhii-billede-4.jpg?itok=yxkniCdt)
How Serhii from Ukraine found a permanent job in Denmark
Serhii, a 34-year-old from Mariupol, is building a new life in Denmark after fleeing the war in Ukraine. Thanks to the European Social Fund, Serhii has secured a stable job.
![Blood-it-yourself: a new approach to remote blood testing](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-07/Team3_Blood-it-yourself_29052024.jpg?itok=3x6BIwuu)
Blood-it-yourself: a new approach to remote blood testing
Blood samples are typically drawn by doctors or nursing staff in medical practices and shipped to a laboratory by courier. Blood-it-yourself aims to determine whether people can draw blood themselves.
![A portrait of Mantas, who provides a testimonial in the article](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-07/WORT.jpg?itok=V23pt8Mm)
See you in Schmalkalden – Fostering participation, building bridges, embracing diversity
Schmalkalden, a small city in southern Thuringia, boasts a dynamic economy supported by 4 000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs). However, it also faces a shortage of skilled workers.
![One of the workers in Caddy](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-07/Caddy_ESF2_0.jpg?itok=GyO9Xxzo)
Fighting poverty and food waste: the impact of Luxembourg’s Caddy workshop
Since 2014, the vocational reintegration workshop called ‘Caddy’ has been fighting food waste in Luxembourg by repurposing food that would otherwise be thrown away.
![President Alar Karis visiting the Skills Festival. Pictured with the organizing team, representatives of the Ministry of Education and Research, and WorldSkills Estonia members.](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-07/20yt_0.jpg?itok=ofcj4YC0)
Enhancing vocational education in Estonia: a new approach
A new programme in Estonia has improved vocational and higher education by introducing practical training and real-world experience for students.
![A doctor measuring a patient's eyesight.](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-07/20yt.jpg?itok=vhBzJHTQ)
Building capacity: how overseas training is transforming healthcare in Malta
Malta tackled a shortage of specialist healthcare professionals by sending students to the United Kingdom for advanced training in genetic counselling, optometry, and orthoptics.
![Two drawings by children from the project](/sites/default/files/styles/oe_theme_ratio_3_2_medium/public/2024-07/LENE%204.png?itok=eBmqaxoc)
Empowering youth: the Escolhas programme’s fight against social exclusion in Santarém
The Escolhas Programme, meaning Choices, aims to tackle social exclusion by providing better access to quality educational, employment and social services for young people aged 6-25.