Problem statement

44% of core workforce skills will change within the next five years. Yet, only about half of current workers have adequate access to the training needed to thrive in a rapidly digitalizing future, defined by AI, big data, and emerging technologies.

Target Group

The primary beneficiaries are vulnerable youth (ages 16–35) from diverse backgrounds and geographies who lack access to high-quality digital skills training.

Proposed Solution

Through a cross-hub initiative spanning multiple cities and continents, the project will develop and standardize a digital skills curriculum and resource bank. This includes AI, big data, design and user experience, online safety, cyber harms, and cybersecurity.

The curriculum will be locally contextualized, and expert facilitators will be trained to deliver workshops, mentorship sessions, and other learning opportunities to ensure participants gain the skills they need to succeed in a digitally-driven future.

Activities

• Conducting landscape analyses and curating relevant educational content
• Creating and localizing a standardized curriculum suitable for multiple hubs
• Training a network of facilitators and educators to deliver workshops
• Running initial and ongoing workshop series, mentorship programs, and refresher sessions
• Distributing learning materials and supporting content to participants and partner hubs
• Continuously refining curriculum and content based on feedback and evolving digital skill demands

Short and long-term goals

Short-Term (2-year milestones):

• Develop a standardized, easily contextualized curriculum ready for adoption by at least 10 hubs by the end of 2026
• Train 600 individuals across these hubs’ workshops and 30 facilitators by end of 2026

Long-Term (5-year milestone):

• Empower participants to be more competitive in a technology-driven workforce, improving their job security, access to employment opportunities, and wages
• Engage 25–30 hubs globally, deliver 500 workshops, and train approximately 15,000 individuals by the end of 5 years
• Establish 150 trained facilitators across the hubs, ensuring self-sustaining and scalable impact

Impact Metrics

• Number of Hubs/Cities Involved: 25–30 hubs by the end of the project
• Number of Workshops Held: 6 workshops per hub per year initially, growing to a total of 500 by the end of year 5
• Individuals Trained & Certificates Awarded: 200 individuals trained per hub each year, leading to a total of around 15,000 trained over 5 years
• Curriculum Hours Delivered: Increasing amounts of digital skill training hours deployed across multiple hubs
• Number of Expert Facilitators: 5 facilitators per hub trained, totaling 150 by the end of the project

Project Collaborators

Hubs: NYC-Brooklyn Hub, London III Hub, Bengaluru I Hub

Opening to Global Shapers Community and ongoing developments with probable other partners in industry and NGOs.