Working together to combat  social exclusion

Gutsy Go is a new way to build peace and well-being throughout the community. Hundreds of solutions are developed by young people every year to promote social peace and well-being, changing the daily lives of schools and reaching hundreds of thousands of people through the media.

Gutsy Go partners have included major Finnish foundations, the Finnish Ministry of Justice, the Parliament of Finland, the Finnish Youth Research Society, the Finnish Medical Society Duodecim, the Finnish Red Cross, the Finnish Broadcasting Company Yle, and a large number of businesses. Gutsy Go enables cities to harness the potential of young people more effectively, and gives businesses a potent way to realise their social responsibility. Gutsy Go partners directly support thousands of Finnish high school students and teachers. Through the videos of young people, you can be involved in changing the attitudes of urban residents towards one another.

Get involved in making peace visible!

How to become partner
Join Gutsy Go as a city

FOR BUSINESSES

1,000 000 people in Finland reached via the media
3000 trained youth and teachers
100 media stories about peace actions

As a Gutsy Go partner, your business will highlight the social potential of young people in a tangible and compelling way.

This is corporate social responsibility work that brings immediately visible results.

As a corporate social responsibility partner at Gutsy Go, you know that you are supporting the inclusion of young people at the very moment when they make crucial choices. More than 80 per cent of high school students who have experienced the Gutsy Go approach report that this was a meaningful way to influence the community while strengthening their own well-being. Gutsy Go provides a medium for reinforcing key competencies of young people in the world of work, such as interaction and problem-solving skills, creativity and empathy.

 

At the same time, you will be supporting the adults who are important to young people, as Gutsy Go strengthens teacher motivation. 91 per cent of teachers report that the method gave them tools for working with young people, while 77 per cent feel more strongly motivated in their work.

 

More than 250 Gutsy Go youth projects have been launched, and these are influencing the entire community. The results can be seen in the media. One million people in Finland have already viewed videos of positive actions via social and traditional media. The most interesting Gutsy Go projects created by young people are spreading to dozens of other schools.

 

Join as an annual partner to support Finnish young people, teachers and schools in a way that has an impact on entire communities.

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Case studies

As an annual partner, Tradeka supports Gutsy Go training for thousands of young people. In 2020 Tradeka selected the Gutsy Heroes courage coaching developed by young people for first graders for piloting in 20 schools across the country.

“Tradeka seeks to be involved in promoting the right of every child to a happy and safe childhood. Gutsy Go enables young people to become active members of their communities, create peace in their surroundings and reduce inequality – this, if anything, is an activity that conforms to the values of Tradeka and its members, and we seek to support it.”  – Satu Niemelä, Head of CSR, Tradeka Co-operative.

Duodecim Medical Publications Ltd. has been supporting the work of Gutsy Go for several years while gathering information on the effectiveness of the method for reducing cynicism among young people.

“Extending Gutsy Go to include this optimism vaccine for the entire age group would be a huge innovation.” – Dr Pekka Mustonen, CEO of Duodecim Medical Publications Ltd.

The cinema company Finnkino has highlighted the “heroic actions” of hundreds of young people involved in Gutsy Go on its big screens throughout Finland. Finnkino issued an award at a GutsyTalk event to a suicide prevention youth project as part of its corporate social responsibility strategy supporting mental health work.

The analytics and marketing company Quru has supported Gutsy Go in media optimisation while implementing its own programme of corporate social responsibility.

“The Gutsy team is doing a really fine and important job for children and young people. The activity has also focused on topical themes, inspiring young people and encouraging active participation. It is a pleasure to be involved!” – Sanna Halttunen-Välimaa, Business Development & Marketing Director, Quru Oy

Several partners have already joined us

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FOR A TOWN OR CITY

5 days to make a difference
Thousands of youths
Hundreds  of peace actions

As a Gutsy Go city, you give young people the tools for developing solutions that will immediately improve the well-being of hundreds of urban residents.

 

As a Gutsy Go licensee, you will empower the high schools of your city or town as an engine of well-being. The anti-polarisation and anti-exclusion approach generates hundreds of encounters, dozens of peace-building solutions, and new forms of collaboration that benefit the entire urban region. Young people have come up with solutions to numerous problems, including loneliness of the elderly, helping single parents to cope, homelessness and the school fears of younger children.

The Gutsy Go method is simplicity itself. Gutsy Go trains teachers to lead an inspiring start-up week, and then to work with young people using the GutsyFlix peace action video bank and additional materials throughout the school year. Social innovations developed by young people can be integrated into the curriculum of all urban schools. As a Gutsy Go city, you may select one or more districts or expand the Gutsy Go to cover all schools.

Gutsy Go involves many underperforming young people while improving pupil relations. 80 per cent of high school students with experience of Gutsy Go report that they enjoyed a meaningful experience influencing the community, and also strengthened their own well-being. Gutsy Go is a vehicle for strengthening the future competencies of young people, such as interaction and problem-solving skills, creativity and empathy.

Gutsy Go reinforces teacher motivation, with 91 per cent reporting that they acquired tools for working with young people and 77 per cent reporting improved motivation for their work. The overall approach and coach training of Gutsy Go provide teachers with concrete ways of implementing the new curriculum.

Some 300 Gutsy Go youth projects have been launched, affecting the entire community. Video recordings of actions taken gain the favourable attention of thousands of urban residents, and the most interesting Gutsy Go projects created by young people are shared with dozens of other schools.

Case studies

Gutsy Go has been operating for three years in the southern Finnish coastal city of Kotka. “I warmly recommend Gutsy Go to other cities. Everything worked well, with highly enthusiastic involvement of young people and teachers and concrete actions achieved. The programme also provided excellent support for the city’s communications. ” – Terhi Lindholm, Development Director, City of Kotka

 

Gutsy Go successfully tackled an outbreak of large scale fighting in the south-western town of Forssa. “From a police perspective, this project was exactly what we needed here in Forssa. I recommend this operator for its professionalism and reliability. Gutsy Go brought expertise to bear in the district in a way that would not have been available without this project involving young people. I think it made our youngsters reflect on some fundamental safety issues of their own and of the community, giving them the feeling that they are valued. ” – Jukka Kastikainen, Senior Detective Chief Inspector, Häme Police

 

Many Gutsy Go projects have emerged and gained national publicity in Kotka. “Our city communications could not have arranged a better PR initiative generating favourable publicity for Kotka in both traditional and social media. Obviously we would like to continue our involvement, and we recommend this to other cities as well.” – Kari Makkonen, Liaison Manager, City of Kotka

 

Gutsy Go has involved a total of 1,500 young people in Oulu over a two-year period. “We wanted children and young people to have an opportunity to do good things for Oulu residents. Gutsy Go has given us memories and even moved us to tears of joy. Many young people have made Oulu a safer place. Actions speak louder than words. I can warmly recommend Gutsy Go to all Finnish municipalities.” – Päivi Laajala, Mayor of Oulu

Frequently asked questions from cities

“HOW DO YOU CHOOSE A CITY?“

 

Every city can secure Gutsy Go support for the city and its schools. Gutsy Go has been piloted in several locations, including Kotka, Oulu, Sipoo, Espoo and Kerava, together with the city leaders, education and youth work departments. Police and municipal engineering departments have also submitted initiatives in cities. We are continually on the lookout for Gutsy cities. Our goal is to reach the entire 14-year-old age group in Finland, meaning about 50,000 young people. Don’t hesitate to contact us!

“WHAT DOES THE CITY GET?”

 

Gutsy Go provides a toolkit that can be applied for youth activation in schools throughout the year. Cities may access popular two-day coach training courses for their teachers, with a Gutsy Go team supporting the launch of Gutsy Go in the city and a media team specialised in generating broad favourable visibility.

“HOW LONG DOES A GUTSY GO INITIATIVE CONTINUE?”

 

The Gutsy Go licence is available for one academic year or for a longer period. The Gutsy Go kick-off intervention takes one week. This is preceded by two days of coaching training for teachers that has earned an overall grade of 4/5 from participants for its value in all of their work. The Gutsy Go material bank and youth video bank have helped teachers to integrate the approach into the school year and lesson plans.