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DG Democracy
Directorate of Democratic Participation
Youth Department
Think Youth No:66 June/July 2018
New Director of Democratic Participation - Matjaž Gruden
It is our pleasure to announce that the Secretary General of the Council of Europe appointed Matjaž Gruden as Director of Democratic Participation; he took up his duties on 15 June 2018. Matjaž Gruden joined the Secretariat of the Council of Europe in 1995 and since held various positions in the organisation, most recently he served as Director of Policy Planning (2015 – 2018), Deputy Director of the Private Office of the Secretary General and Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe (from October 2009 to December 2014). THINK YOUTH will publish an interview with the new Director of Democratic Participation in the next issue.
France makes a voluntary contribution
The government of France, via the Ministry of Education, has made a voluntary contribution of €20,000 to support the pilot activities of the EYF. Ambassador Jean-Baptiste Mattei, Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe, met with Mrs Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni, Deputy Secretary General, on this occasion.
Joint meeting of the CDEJ and Advisory Council bureaux
On 7-8 June 2018, the bureaux of the CDEJ and of the new Advisory Council held meetings at the EYCS, in order to take stock of the latest developments since the last plenary meeting of the Joint Council on Youth. On that occasion, the joint bureaux informally met the new Director of Democratic Participation, and exchanged views with the Head of the Youth Department and with the Programming Committee on Youth.  The bureaux also approved the agendas of the upcoming plenary meetings of the co-managed youth statutory bodies (Strasbourg, 15-17 October 2018). The bureaux agreed that they would notably feature discussions on the following items: draft priorities for 2020-2021; Council of Europe youth sector strategy 2030; the legacy of the No Hate Speech Movement Campaign; draft recommendation on young refugees in transition to adulthood.
Youth policy advisory mission to Skopje
As part of its new set of assistance measures to member States, the CoE Youth Department provided youth policy advice to the authorities of the "former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", at their request.  ​On 11-12 June 2018, an Advisory Mission team - composed of youth policy experts, representatives of the youth statutory bodies and the secretariat - went to Skopje initiate their assistance. The Council of Europe delegation met some of the main national stakeholders in the youth field. The Advisory Mission team provided a series of proposals to the national authorities on the drafting of a new youth law and on the further shaping and implementation of the National Youth Strategy 2016-2025.
Study visit on the national youth strategy in Prague
On 12-15 June 2018, a delegation from Cyprus attended a study visit in the Czech Republic, in order to benefit from the support and peer advice of the Czech authorities on the effective implementation of their national youth strategy.  This study visit was a direct follow-up to the peer advice mission which took place in Cyprus in 2017. It allowed all participants to reflect on their own practices and approaches, and to try and find ways to further improve the implementation of national youth strategies. As a follow-up measure, both ministries are considering the possible signature of a Memorandum of Understanding, in order to intensify their co-operation in youth policy development.
#EYE2018 - Living Library
During the European Youth Event (#EYE2018) taking place in Strasbourg on 1-2 June 2018 , The CoE Youth Department run a living library. The books were kept busy on both days with over 150 readers. An article on the Living Library was also published by Voice of America.
Decisions on EYF grants
The first meeting of the Programming Committee on Youth elected for 2018 and 2019 took place at the EYCS on 7-8 June 2018. The Committee awarded grants to 8 annual work plans and 8 one-off international activities that will be supported by the European Youth Foundation in 2019.
Active citizenship and political participation of young disabled people
The study session took place between 25-30 June 2018 at the EYCS and promoted independent living for young disabled people with an emphasis on the aspects of active citizenship and political participation. It was  organised by the CoE Youth Department in co-operation withthe European Network for Independent Living – ENIL . The study session yielded four advocacy plans targeted at promoting the involvement of young disabled people in decision making processes and also ensuring their access to education, employment and infrastructure.
Connecting the dots: Young People, Social Inclusion and Digitalisation
To discuss the effects of digitalisation on young people’s lives within the realm of youth policy, youth work and youth research, the partnership between the European Commission and the CoE in the youth field organised a symposium in cooperation with the Youth Affairs Department of the Ministry of Education and Research of Estonia in Tallinn on 26-28 June 2018. The Symposium, which also marked the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the EU-CoE youth partnership, brought together 120 youth policy makers, researchers, practitioners from youth NGOs and youth workers from  the signatory states of the European Cultural Convention, as well as actors from the digital field. The symposium explored ideas about the role of the youth sector in relation to digitalisation.
Courtesy visit of the chair and vice-chair of the Advisory Council on Youth
On 28 June 2018, Anja Olin-Pape (chair of the Advisory Council on Youth) and Georgios Chatzigeorgiou (vice-chair) held a series of meetings at the CoE to explore possibilities for future co-operation. The meetings included the newly elected PACE president, Liliane Maury Pasquier,  and chairs/vice-chairs of the sub-committees on Education, Youth and Sport and on Refugee and Migrant Children and Young People; the RP Turkey, chair of the GR-C; the Secretariat of the Congress; the President of the INGO Conference.
Youth Peace Camp 2018
The 2018 annual Youth Peace Camp took place at the EYCB between 26 June- 3 July 2018. 60 young people and youth organisations came from conflict affected communities including Kosovo*, both banks of the river Nistru/Dniestr, Cyprus (Greek cypriots and Turkish Cypriots - with the financial support of the Youth Board of Cyprus) and South Caucasus, in particular from border regions and etnic minorities. The Camp had a new format this year and for the first time, the participants developed projects to be implemented in their regions after the camp. The Youth Peace Camp provided a suitable environment for the participants to share personal experiences with conflict and violence and inform about their effective coping strategies.

* All reference to Kosovo, whether to the territory, institutions or population, in this text shall be understood in full compliance with the United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1244 and without prejudice to the status of Kosovo.


Upcoming activities

  • Manushengi Krisi II – National Human Rights Training Course on Human Rights Education with Roma Young people, the EYCB, 23 - 27 July 2018
  • Youth policy assistance measure on quality criteria for youth centres, Kiev/Ukraine, 23-26 July 2018
  • Training for Trainers Human Rights and Democratic Citizenship Education, Pskovskaya oblast /the Russian Federation,15-20 August 2018
  • Regional Training Course for children and young people in the Nordic region on monitoring of achievement of HR for all children and youth, Malmö/Sweden,16-19 August 2018
  • International Youth camp "Dialogue", Kaluga region, Russian Federation, 26-30 August 2018
  • Annual meetings of the Pool of European Youth Researchers (PEYR) and correspondents of the European Knowledge Centre for Youth Policy (EKCYP), Chisinau/Moldova, 18-20 September
  • Study session - Play your part! Strengthening urban and rural youth participation – in cooperation with the Rural Youth Europe and European Confederation of Youth Clubs, the EYCB, 17-22 September 2018
  • The role of young refugees for intercultural dialogue and social inclusion, the EYCS, 17-21 September 2018
Useful links
The CoE Directorate General Democracy
The CoE Youth Portal
European Youth Centre Budapest
European Youth Centre Strasbourg
European Youth Foundation
Intergovernmental Cooperation
The EU-CoE Youth Parthership
Facebook pages
Advisory Council on Youth
Council of Europe - Youth
European Youth Centre Budapest
EU-CoE youth partnership
European Youth Foundation
No Hate Speech Movement


For comments and suggestions, please contact [email protected]
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Tel. +33 (0)3 88 41 20 00
www.coe.int/youth
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