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Understanding Digital Infrastructure for Youth Work
Understanding Digital Infrastructure for Youth Work
Content
This activity invites youth workers, youth work managers, and youth organisations to explore what it takes to build and sustain meaningful digital infrastructure for digital youth work.
The activity draws on insights from the:
- European Commission’s Digital Education Action Plan (see document HERE)
- Youth workers 2.0 - A guide to digital Education for youth workers (see document HERE)
- Ray Digi research report on Exploring successful approaches to digital youth work (see document HERE)
It also relates to global trends in digital transformation and youth work research that identifies infrastructure, funding, and skilled professionals as critical enablers for successful digital youth work. Participants are encouraged to reflect on their organisation’s digital environment, understand the technical and strategic foundations of infrastructure, and co-develop solutions that are inclusive, future-ready, and youth-centred.
By completing this activity, you will:
- Understand the critical role of digital infrastructure in youth work transformation
- Identify the core components, risks, and long-term needs of digital infrastructure
- Recognise how security, accessibility, and sustainability influence digital youth work
- Take practical steps toward planning and advocating for better digital environments
Get inspired
Digital infrastructure has gone from being an innovation to becoming indispensable for education, communication, participation, and employment. With over 90% of jobs requiring digital skills, youth organisations must prepare young people not just to consume technology but to engage with it confidently and critically.
Yet many youth organisations lack the infrastructure — both virtual and physical — to deliver effective digital youth work. Infrastructure includes broadband access, devices, platforms, data security, cloud services, and integration systems. It also involves funding models, maintenance plans, and the people who can use the systems confidently.
The European Commission, alongside youth work researchers, calls for:
- Strategic investment in infrastructure and long-term maintenance
- Better recognition and funding of digital youth work
- Skilled, confident youth workers with both digital soft and hard skills
- Ongoing support for digital ethics, data privacy, and cybersecurity
- Acknowledging that digital activities require just as many (if not more) resources as in-person programming
Download the presentation slides on digital infrastructure for youth work and view the mentimer results about digital infrastructure for youth work.
Infrastructure enables connection, inclusion, innovation, and sustainability — but only if it’s intentionally planned, adequately funded, and continually updated.
Why are we addressing Digital Infrastructure as a key element of Digital Youth work?
In the Ray-Digi Research report “Exploring successful approaches to digital youth work” Digital Infrastructure is recognised as one the three structural pillars identified as key enablers for successful digital youth work, while also pointing out that digital technologies and products are typically not a one-time investment but require long-term maintenance that calls also for digitally skilled and confident youth workers.
The pillars are the following:
- Digital youth work requires rethinking the funding and infrastructure of youth work organisations. Therefore, there is also a need for better recognition of digital youth work.
- Building strong and diverse networks is described as an important structural aspect, also for bridging gaps in the resources of youth work organisations.
- Skilled and confident digital youth workers are a scarce but crucial resource for successful digital youth work. Offering training and support to build both digital soft and hard skills is a need recurrently identified within our interviews.
The Youth workers 2.0 - A Guide to Digital Education for youth workers also recognises Digital Infrastructure as one of the 5 main future challenges in digital education.
Why does this matter for youth work
As youth work increasingly moves into digital and hybrid spaces, the quality and availability of digital infrastructure directly affect the inclusiveness and effectiveness of your work. However, challenges such as limited broadband access, outdated equipment, or insufficient integration between tools are still common – especially in under-resourced organisations or remote areas.
For youth workers, this means:
- Recognising the importance of reliable infrastructure in designing inclusive and engaging digital youth work activities.
- Collaborating across sectors, including education, technology, and government, to advocate for investment in digital infrastructure where it’s needed most.
- Staying informed about emerging technologies such as cloud services, the Internet of Things (IoT), and M2M (machine-to-machine communication), as these developments will shape how young people interact and learn.
- Planning for the long term, understanding that digital tools are not one-time fixes but evolving systems that require maintenance, updates, and adaptability.
To truly unlock the potential of digital youth work, we need infrastructure that supports:
- Connectivity and inclusion for all young people;
- Adoption of new technologies in safe, sustainable ways;
- Long-term growth of digital literacy and creativity.
Digital infrastructure isn't just a technical issue — it’s a youth equity issue, a learning opportunity, and a shared responsibility. By understanding and engaging with this foundational layer, youth workers can better support the needs and rights of young people in a digital world.
Take action: activities for different roles
Explore these role-specific entry points to build digital infrastructure capacity in your youth work context:
- Youth workers can evaluate their access to digital tools, identify infrastructure barriers faced by young people, and advocate for better digital environments.
- Youth work managers can map digital readiness, review security protocols, and initiate budgeting and investment strategies as well as design long-term infrastructure plans, rethink funding strategies, and build cross-sector partnerships with IT and education providers.
- Young people can be included in infrastructure discussions to ensure tools and environments meet their real needs and reflect their lived digital realities.
Claim open badge recognition
Upon completing this activity, participants can earn badges that recognise:
- Awareness of digital infrastructure as a foundation for digital youth work
- Advocacy for equitable access to digital tools and safe online environments
- Contributions to long-term strategic planning for digital transformation
- Commitment to youth-centred, inclusive digital systems
Who created this resource?
This activity was developed by members of Digital Systemic partnership within the Cities of Learning Network, in response to the insights from the field of digital youth work policy and practice. It builds on the understanding that effective digital youth work depends on more than just tools — it requires infrastructure, skilled professionals, and strategic investment.
Contributors include:
- TiPovej! Institute – Slovenia
- Breakthrough Foundation – Netherlands
- Awero – Lithuania
- Curaçao Innovation & Technology Institute – Curaçao
Next steps: Use this activity to assess your organisation’s digital infrastructure readiness. Identify areas for investment, security improvements, and youth engagement. Start internal conversations around funding, staff training, and technology maintenance. Connect your efforts with broader national and EU-level digital strategies and contribute to a more equitable, sustainable and secure digital future for all young people.
Resources
Get activity badge
Digital Infrastructure Ally Get this badge
This badge recognises individuals who take initiative in strengthening the digital foundation of youth work. You have explored how digital infrastructure, ethics, and strategy can shape inclusive, responsive, and future-oriented youth engagement.
You have to finish 2 tasks to get the badge
Tasks
Task no.1
Evidence verified by: one activity organiser
Use the "ASSESSMENT TOOL ON DIGITAL CAPACITIES OF YOUTH WORK ORGANISATIONS" to evaluate your organisations digital infrastructure capacities (pages 21 - 22).
Use the provided assessment grid to self-assess the 2 main sub-elements within the "infrastructure" capacity:
- Provision of necessary technologies and competences
- Towards inclusive digital youth work
Task no.2
Evidence verified by: one activity organiser
Find 1-3 additional resources (try local/national, if not use international) that talk about digital infrastructure for digital youth work and answer the following:
- Explore and share how digital technology is transforming youth work (in your country) and what do experts identify as main opportunities and/or risks.
- Find and share examples or experience where infrastructure made or broke a digital youth work initiative. You can use international examples (but please name them and add links) or draw from your own experiences and practice.
- Propose a realistic step that could improve digital readiness in your youth work environment.
Task no.3
Evidence verified by: one activity organiser
Discover Digital Infrastructure in Unlikely Places: Make a quick desk research and find good practice examples of digital infrastructure from outside the youth work field.
Many organisations that do not define themselves as “youth work” actors still create impactful digital opportunities for young people — often without even realizing it. From libraries and makerspaces to tech start-ups, social enterprises, and digital literacy NGOs, there are inspiring initiatives out there that provide access, skills, and support through well-planned digital infrastructure.
Identify 1–2 organisations, projects, or initiatives (local, national, or international) that demonstrate good use of digital infrastructure to support learning, participation, creativity, or inclusion.
These can be schools, tech hubs, online platforms, innovation labs, media education initiatives, etc.
Reflect on what youth work can learn from these examples:
- What aspects of digital infrastructure stand out?
- How do they engage young people?
- Could similar models be adopted in youth work?
Tip: Think beyond hardware. Consider how access, design, partnerships, or sustainability are part of their approach.
Optional: Share links, visuals, or short descriptions of what you found with the community!
Organisers
Digital Youth Work Resource Hub
Awero not-for-profit organisation manages this platform and develops it together with leading educational organisations. The European Union's programme Erasmus+ granted co-funding for building the first version of this platform. Contact support@awero.org.
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