Organisations that support migrants rarely have spare hours for training. Managers juggle funding deadlines and staff carry demanding caseloads, so a course has to be practical, structured and available whenever it is needed. This is the starting point of the MISUP learning methodology, developed within the Erasmus+ project Strengthening Migrant Supporting Communities.
MISUP rests on two complementary approaches. Pillars of Strengthening builds the capacity and leadership skills of the organisation itself, while Pillars of Power equips staff with empowerment training techniques to use with migrants. Work Package 3 links both to practice: the method is adapted, selected staff from each partner country are trained, and they then run local empowerment sessions.
The online courses follow the same logic. The platform offers three modules (Basic Organisational Development, Organisational Diagnosis and Fundraising), each split into two chapters and short numbered steps, and each closing with a final quiz. Every module opens with learning outcomes on three levels: the knowledge learners will gain, the skills they will be able to apply, and the attitudes they will show, such as transparency and cultural sensitivity.
The method was tested with people first. In Rome, on 12–13 November 2025, a two-day pilot prepared 12 staff members from the five partner countries to deliver Pillars of Power locally. The local sessions that followed reached 81 participants against a target of 50, and all five countries met their goal. In the Netherlands, 18 of 20 respondents (90%) reported greater confidence.
Akadimos is proud to be one of the five partners behind this work. Explore the courses at misup-training.eu.
Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
