Bringing people together in an online setting alone does not guarantee success. The effectiveness of any given session or workshop is dependent on the skills of the facilitator and the process that has been designed. Training online and face-to-face differ from each other – thus the design and planning of different online activities differ as well. Thus, there is a need to go beyond thinking about the technological side of available online tools: to pay more attention to how we are designing the entire learning process to reach our goals through online training.

When we are looking at the future beyond COVID-19 pandemic, it is likely that online workshops and facilitation are becoming more common. Thus, developing the skills and resources to be an effective facilitator and trainer, as well as how to incorporate online learning to our programmes, will be beneficial in the long run: ‘future-proofing’ and adaptability to changing circumstances are vital skills for any team, be it in delivering online workshops or working remotely in general.

This handbook is based on the training delivered to the organizers, trainers, facilitators and partners of the UNDP’s Youth Leadership Programme. The content was delivered in two ways: 1) through two online workshops, and 2) through an asynchronous online learning experience. The training engaged the participants in experimentation and hands-on learning, while encouraging the use of new tools and new ways of thinking. This handbook gathers the main information and tools used during the training.

We hope that this handbook will be useful for you as a trainer or as a person working with youth and give you tools and confidence to design and deliver your online learning activities!