Foreword

The GoTeach Wiki – In the spirit of collaboration

GoTeach has been improving the employability of young people around the globe since 2009.

Christoph Selig, Head of Sustainability Communications and Programs - DHL Group

For many vulnerable young people, the transition from school to working life and independence can seem insurmountable. They need support. Empowering them to make a successful transition is critical not only to their own lives, but to sustainable economic growth around the world. This is high-leverage social issue!

We at DHL Group initiated the GoTeach program in 2009 because we were moved by the plight of those young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and wanted to make a difference. We also realized that we have a tremendous resource within our company – local employees around the globe who have successfully made the transition to working life and can now help young people do the same. Having mentors, role models and access to real-world experience is exactly what young people need. The success of GoTeach has shown: just by sharing their story and expertise, our employee volunteers can make a real difference; after participating in our programs, young people can dream bigger and more realistic than before. The GoTeach format has proven effective for our partner NGOs SOS Children’s Villages and Teach For All too. As a global company, we can build the bridge to the world of work, providing NGOs and their participating young people with mentorships, internships and other activities. These development opportunities bring real added value to our partnerships and help our partner NGOs keep their promise.

Today, our GoTeach programs include roundabout 70 partnerships in 60 countries ... and there’s plenty more work to be done! We are still far away from offering GoTeach to all young people reached by our partners. The only way to achieve our long-term GoTeach vision is to get more people and organizations on board sharing knowledge, expertise and technology. This Wiki is designed to do just that: to support collaboration and scaling solutions by sharing what we have learned over the last ten years – internally and externally.

Christoph Selig addressing a young audience

This extensive resource will introduce you to GoTeach, its history and the impact it has had on young people, our employees and other key stakeholders. We have started putting together a “how to” guide for engaging effectively with young people, employees and other key stakeholders such as NGOs, companies and government agencies. You’ll find our insights on what is needed for successful mentoring, what kinds of activities work best, how to navigate the pandemic with virtual mentoring and events, and how to recruit volunteers within the company. We share our “user manuals” for young people and volunteers, our system of monitoring and evaluation; we share how we have scaled GoTeach into new countries, how we communicate GoTeach, and much more.

If you’re a colleague in DHL Group and thinking of getting involved, I urge you to jump in! You may not know it yet, but you are an expert! Even just sharing your experience and your story can change a young person’s life. And I can promise, there’s a lot in for you as well. If you are a company and thinking about engaging in this issue, there is definitely something for you in the Wiki. No need to reinvent the wheel! And please don’t hesitate to reach out to us for further exchange. If you’re a NGO, this will give you some ideas on how to leverage the power of collaboration with the private sector.

There are so many different players that can make a difference in supporting children and young people on their path to employability and independence. Our goal is to bring these individuals and organizations together and tap into these great resources so that we can maximize the potential of more young lives.

Susanne Novotny, DHL Partnership Advisor - SOS Children's Villages

SOS Children’s Villages looks back on over 70 years of experience in the service of children and young people who have lost parental care or are at risk of losing it. The focus lies on the individual development of each child.

Young people from vulnerable backgrounds face tremendous challenges when embarking on their journey to self-reliance. They are more likely to experience obstacles as discrimination, lack of skills, lack of networks, role models and at times lack of social skills and self-esteem than those who grow up in stable, protective family environments.

Susanne Novotny

The GoTeach partnership supports SOS Children’s Villages in this critical stage of achieving the ultimate mission: to support marginalised young people on their way to independence and to becoming active members of society.

In the past 10 years SOS Children’s Villages and DHL Group have achieved tremendous global impact in the frame of the GoTeach partnership by empowering vulnerable young people and providing them with the necessary experience and self-confidence to take control of their future and to build stable and independent adult lives.

The last decade in GoTeach was an exciting ride from the initial idea to starting pilots, scaling globally and extending the network. Our partnership went far beyond the expectations we had at the start and yet it is just the beginning.

The foundation of this successful partnership is the mutual trust and balanced collaboration we were able to establish between our organizations. A unique partnership spirit based on co-creation, openness and joint values. Key success factor is the local ownership that ensures that the programme reflects the local context and is tailor made to the local needs of the young people. GoTeach is a success story that can serve as a blueprint for others and an example of impact and success in forming partnerships and growing similar youth employment programmes.

We have jointly developed this programme step by step over the past 10 years. What you find in this WIKI is not theoretical knowledge but hands-on information that aims to help others to engage in partnerships and achieve transformative change for those who need it most!

Many thanks to each and everyone who contributed to this journey so far! For those of you about to start such an impactful cross-sector collaboration I am confident that this WIKI will provide you with good practices and inspiration.

Together we can!

Mariana Franco, Director, Corporate Partnerships - Teach For All

Every child is born with enormous potential.  But around the world, hundreds of millions of children can only dream of realizing that potential simply because of where they were born or how much their family earns. The obstacles they face—poverty, hunger, discrimination, trauma, and school systems that do not provide them with the education they need to thrive—are overwhelming.

It’s unjust. And the results are devastating. When millions of children aren’t learning, t affects us all—perpetuating poverty, dividing societies, and weakening economies. It doesn’t have to be this way. When children have access to quality education, it changes everything. Education, support, and opportunity are essential to enabling all children—and ultimately all nations—to thrive. But the root causes of inequity are both entrenched and complex. No single solution—a new technology, updated curriculum, improved infrastructure—can address the multiple factors that contribute to the systemic challenges that prevent some kids from attaining the kind of excellent education all children deserve.

Mariana Franco

Given this complexity, we need many people pioneering many solutions and working together to change the status quo for the world’s least advantaged children and ensure a quality education for every child. But around the world, there is little investment in developing the leadership necessary to reshape education systems, strengthen the broader set of services that support healthy development, and challenge the systemic and social injustices that perpetuate inequity. This is the problem Teach For All partners are working to address.

Teach For All is a global network of 59 independent, locally led and governed partner organizations and a global organization that works to accelerate the progress of the network. Each network partner recruits and develops promising future leaders to teach in their nations’ under-resourced schools and communities and, with this foundation, to work with others, inside and outside of education, to ensure all children are able to fulfill their potential.

For over a decade, DHL Group and Teach For All have collaborated to ensure young people from across our global network are exposed to the world of work. Teach For All's partnership with DHL Group has grown from six network organizations at inception to 20 today, helping thousands of students develop their employability skills.  

Teach For All network partners and DHL Group employees are improving employability for students of all ages through GoTeach. Together, DHL Group, Teach For All’s global organization, and our network partners provide access to resources, experiences, tools, and capacity building and mentoring opportunities that enable students to succeed in a dynamic global economy.

Chapter lead	Christoph Selig