PATHS

Room for self-determined life paths

In rural and socioeconomically disadvantaged regions, young people often lack educational and career prospects. The journey to the nearest school or counseling center is long, training opportunities are limited, and there is a lack of visible role models or concrete visions for the future. These structural disadvantages make it difficult for young people to actively shape their life paths – especially when family or financial support is lacking. The risk of dropping out of school, unemployment, or migration increases.

This is where the PATHS project (Personalized Approach to Territorial Life and Career Support) comes in. It empowers young people through tailor-made life support and career planning – directly on-site, at the municipal level, and close to their real living environments.

At the heart of the project are the so-called Life Path Support Services (LPSS): new, easily accessible services that provide orientation, enable individual counseling, and help preserve rural areas as attractive places to live and work. Because when young people see real prospects in their region, they stay – and take up professions that secure their future. Right where their roots are.

About PATHS: All information about the project

Project Activities

From April 2025 to April 2028, we will work with 12 project partners from nine different countries to develop and test an innovative support model for young people in rural regions. The key activities include:

Establishing local counseling centers to support individual life and career paths, operating independently of existing school systems and providing easy access to community-based services
Ensuring equal access to career orientation, mentoring, and practical experiences for young people aged 12 to 18, particularly in structurally weak rural areas
Training mentors – including teachers, trainers, parents, and professionals – to actively support young people in their life and career planning
Testing and further developing a transferable, transnational LPSS model that can be sustainably scaled and implemented in various regions after the project ends

Target Group

The PATHS project primarily targets young people aged 12 to 18 living in rural and socioeconomically disadvantaged regions, as well as the teachers, trainers, parents, and professionals who support them.

Project Objectives

PATHS aims to strengthen the organizational and human resource structures needed for effective life path planning for young people in the Danube Region. Professionals working in the Life Path Support Services will receive targeted training to provide optimal support to young people.
Providing career guidance directly in rural communities, PATHS supports disadvantaged youth, improves cooperation between municipalities, schools, and businesses, and helps prevent depopulation.