One quarter. 578 active Digital Hubs. 186,358 people reached. More than 47,000 hours of digital learning and support delivered across Europe.
These numbers tell the story of a growing network, but behind them are hundreds of YMCA teams, youth workers and partners creating opportunities in their own communities every day. From May to July 2026, Digital Hubs across Europe continued to expand their reach, test new approaches and help people turn access to technology into practical skills and opportunities.
From Southern Italy to Moldova, Ukraine, Ireland and beyond, each local Hub contributes to something much bigger: a European network working to make digital learning more accessible, relevant and rooted in community needs. Together with HP, that collective effort is showing what becomes possible when technology, local knowledge and community action come together at scale.
Expanding Reach and Diversifying Learning Models
Network growth in Q3 prioritised reaching underserved, remote, and rural communities. Nine new Digital Hubs opened across Southern Italy to provide access to technology where local infrastructure is limited. Programming across the wider network expanded beyond introductory digital literacy to include practical applications of artificial intelligence, creative technology, entrepreneurship, and gaming.
At the same time, regional hubs tested scalable models to maximise community engagement. Romania piloted a locally adapted Hub framework that pairs technical learning with local community development, while practitioners gathered in Germany to share best practices for future program design.
From partnerships with schools and local authorities to collaboration with NGOs and businesses, each Hub is adapting to its own context while contributing to a shared European effort to strengthen digital inclusion.
Building Everyday Independence and Employability
For many participants, gaining digital competence provides a clear pathway to personal independence and career readiness, showing how these hubs create transformative individual experiences across distinct focus areas.
France and Moldova, participants leveraged digital skills as a direct stepping stone toward their career ambitions and professional growth. In Villeurbanne, France, a young adult named who arrived with minimal digital experience mastered job-application tools, successfully drafting a professional cover letter and building essential skills to enter the workforce.
Similarly, in Moldova, a student named Roberto harnessed AI and digital skilling sessions to advance his ambition of entering medical school, proving that digital literacy opens doors well beyond traditional technical fields.
In the United Kingdom, digital literacy was tied directly to personal autonomy and daily life management.
A participant at Trinity Group learned how to independently manage household finances online, breaking a long-standing reliance on third parties and gaining complete control over their personal life.
Driving Community Solutions and Youth Leadership
This quarter also showed what can happen when participants move from learning digital skills to using them for others. Across several Hubs, young people stepped into leadership roles, supported their peers and created solutions for their communities.
In Ukraine, Albania, and Ireland, participants leveraged their training at local hubs to build personal confidence, step into leadership roles, and mentor others. In Ukraine’s Vinnytsia Hub, a student named Anastasiia built the self-assurance needed to master classroom presentation tools and begin mentoring her peers.
Following a similar path at the Press YO Hub, another Ukrainian participant turned AI training into action by founding a weekly tech and gaming club. Meanwhile in Albania, M.S. cultivated essential presentation and leadership skills to directly facilitate youth activities at the Tirana Digital Hub. In Ireland, a participant at the Carrickfergus Hub pushed past a strong reluctance to appear on camera, eventually volunteering to create digital media content for local youth projects.
Malta and Bulgaria, young people channelled the specialised digital and project management skills acquired at their hubs straight into community design and civic outreach.
In Malta, an intern developed a custom mobile application through YMCA Malta to streamline critical service referrals for individuals experiencing homelessness. Similarly, in Bulgaria, young people in Gabrovo put their hub-acquired skills to immediate practical use by designing, drafting, and launching a series of youth-led community projects.
To make these individual journeys possible, infrastructure hubs like the one in Kirovograd, Ukraine, provided donated laptops to ensure safe online access and deliver tailored digital education for orphans and youth with disabilities.
This quarter is a reminder that the impact of the Digital Hubs network is bigger than any single activity, Hub or country.
Across 578 active Hubs, YMCA teams are turning technology into opportunities that respond to their communities—from employment and everyday independence to youth leadership, creativity and locally designed solutions.
For every YMCA contributing to this work, these results are a shared achievement. Each workshop delivered, partnership built, and participant supported adds to a much bigger story of digital inclusion across Europe.
And none of this happens alone. Through the partnership with HP, technology, resources and support are connecting with YMCA’s local presence, community relationships and youth work expertise to reach people at scale while keeping the impact rooted locally.
186,358 people reached in one quarter is a milestone worth celebrating—and an exciting indication of what this growing network can continue to achieve together.
