How do we turn social innovation into a life-changing reality?
Last week in Vilnius, YMCA Europe and YMCA Germany joined over 100 leaders at the European Competence Centre for Social Innovation to discuss the future of refugee integration. Representing our movement, Eliza and Lukas shared a powerful message: Integration is an investment in our collective future.
Focus on Impact: The Edu-Hubs Model
Sharing the YMCA perspective towards inclusion and integration with the success of the “Edu-Hubs and Mobile Centers” project. This initiative isn’t just a concept — it’s a proven engine for community empowerment:
- Reaching Thousands: Our Hubs provide vital support to thousands of beneficiaries across Europe.
- Community Harmonisation: Through localised events, we are bridging the gap between displaced Ukrainians and their new host communities.
- A Blueprint for Europe: We are now scaling these successful models from Central and Eastern Europe to the West, ensuring that good practices reach those who need them most.
Key Takeaways from the Summit:
- Security and compassion go hand in hand, and integration should be seen as an investment in our future.
- When thinking about social innovation, we should scale what can be replicated, such as language courses.
- As of January 2026, there are more than 4.3 million people from Ukraine registered for temporary protection in the European Union.
- We need to think about how to coordinate the approach for the transition from the temporary protection to what will come next.
- Labour market integration remains central, more than 1 million beneficiaries have been employed in 19 European states, including Norway and Liechtenstein. Skills recognition is extremely important.
- It is important that the projects become a life changing-experience not only for the lives of the Ukrainians, but also for our communities.
- Societal change takes a generation, and we need legislation to sustain different stages of an intervention.
One of the main conclusions of the event is that social innovation can foster inclusion and integration when the right tools to be replicated are identified.
This is also the direction YMCA pursues through the project ”Edu Hubs and Mobile Centers” with new models for refugee integration and community empowerment. This approach showcases the potential to disseminate good practices from Central and Eastern Europe to Western Europe.
