Local Democracy Agency Georgia, along with its partners Kutaisi City Hall, the Regional Development Agency of Ukraine (Ukraine), the Association of Local Democracy Agencies (France), Ganja Municipality (Azerbaijan), Forma Azione (Italy), and the Lodze Marshall Office (Poland), are implementing an Erasmus + Project called "JOURNEY - Joint organization to Unite Rural Networks of Entrepreneurial Youth." The project is funded by the European Commission.

The aim of this project is to enable youth workers from Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Georgia to acquire mentoring skills, as well as knowledge, methods and tools to support rural youth and young entrepreneurs. The project will also promote entrepreneurial education, and provide mentors and young people with the tools needed to develop entrepreneurial skills through online learning, increase entrepreneurial awareness, and create networks of young entrepreneurs from rural areas for the exchange of knowledge and best practices. Finally, participants will study the experience of the European Union and start a dialogue between rural youth from the countries of the European Union and Eastern Partnership for the exchange of experience and communication.

In May, the partners met in Italy. As part of the visit, the project coordinator delivered a presentation about the project and trained mentors on their role and duties; 21 mentors presented presentations about their work and their own visions and expectations of this project. Mentors also visited two of the biggest winemakers in the Umbria region.