UPC’s parent company Liberty Global is to become the first corporate donor of the Cork-born CoderDojo movement, committing to support 60 new CoderDojos and reaching 2,000 young people across Europe in 2014.
Since the first CoderDojo in Cork, Ireland, two summers back, the organisation has swept the world with dojos sprouting up in New York, London, Paris, Tokyo, LA, the Caribbean, Africa and Australia.
On any given Saturday, as many as 16,000 kids in 26 countries gather to learn skills and abilities that will stand to them in the 21st-century economy.
“We’re delighted and humbled that Liberty Global chose to support us, becoming our first pan-European corporate donor,” said CoderDojo co-founder James Whelton.
Shortage of 900,000 digital workers across Europe
The move by Liberty Global is part of its support of the Davos Declaration on the European Commission’s Grand Coalition for Digital Jobs, which aims to bridge the shortage of up to 900,000 ICT workers in Europe.
“Their support will aide us in spreading CoderDojo and digital skills throughout Europe, enabling us to reach many young people, giving them the opportunity to learn coding and become the next generation of creators.”
Liberty Global has also become a key sponsor of YouRock, an employability platform for young people which encourages them to use their online creation activities to demonstrate their skills to employers. The support by Liberty Global will help YouRock reach 200,000 young people across 11 European countries this year.
“The continuing high levels of youth unemployment in Europe are a challenge for us all, but the fact that up to 900,000 jobs in the ICT sector remain unfilled because of a skills gap gives the clearest indication possible of what needs to be done,” warned the chief policy officer of Liberty Global Manuel Kohnstamm.
“These projects, and Liberty Global’s complimentary digital inclusion initiatives, have the potential to address the skills gap and bring a raft of new employment opportunities to Europe’s youth.”
Coding kid image via Shutterstock
