INCLUSION FIRST

INCLUSION FIRST project highlights a topic of social inclusion through sport values. Its strategic aim is to promote a recent work of the EU in sport sector. The core of the project is a collection of inspirational stories called RUN AND SMILE that will capture views of 24 personalities on different aspects of social inclusion. Their motivational experiences will be intertwined with relevant EU sport policies. A main project objective is to approximate EU sport policies closer to non-governmental sports movement, especially having them more accessible and comprehensible for stakeholders on all levels, local level included. It will be achieved through a platform entitled INCLUSION FIRST. There is a nice play with the name of the project, where the word FIRST does not only emphasize the inclusion as a priority of the project, but also means an abbreviation of five basic project elements: FRIENDSHIP, INNOVATIONS, RUNNING, SUSTAINABILITY and TEAMWORK. Proposed consortium aims to focus on the very recent sport agenda of the EU, such as sport policies outlined by the EU Work Plan for sport (2021 - 2024) and priorities of the EU programme Erasmus+ (2021 – 2027) in the field of sport. The consortium will notably develop Council conclusions on sport as a platform for social inclusion worked out by the Maltese Presidency and Council conclusions on sport diplomacy developed by the Slovak Presidency. With the selected countries, it strives to be a practical follow up of EU sport agenda of Malta and Slovakia approved during their presidencies of the Council of the EU. The project is digital, green and innovative in sport sector. It places a strong focus on the green and digital transitions and contributes to priorities of the Erasmus+ 2021-2027 programme and the current call. The project contributes to the creation and development of transnational networks and to fostering synergies with, and between, local, regional, national and international policies.