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DG Democracy
Directorate of Democratic Participation
Youth Department
THINK YOUTH No 90 - March 2021
Statutory bodies of the youth sector meet in plenary
22-24 March 2021, on-line

The meetings (CDEJ, CCJ and CMJ) were very well attended (over 130 participants) and fulfilled their main objectives.

The CDEJ exchanged on the latest youth policy developments in Europe, further dissemination of the CoE standards on youth policy and the programme of assistance measures to member States for 2021. The CCJ looked into their work plan 2021 and further co-ordination. The CMJ debated on the situation of the youth sector and on a possible future youth campaign. It also took stock of the implementation of the 2020-2021 programme, the implementation of a European Youth Work Agenda, Artificial Intelligence and its impact on young people, and rural youth.

In terms of communication and transversality, the CDEJ, CCJ and/or CMJ exchanged views the Director of Democratic Participation, the Head of the Youth Department, the ADI-ROM's youth rapporteur and a representative of the CDADI (GT-ADI-MIN). The CMJ Roma rapporteur, the CMJ Gender Equality Rapporteur, the CMJ Rapporteur on mainstreaming disability issues, the CMJ Co-ordinator on communications and the CMJ Co-ordinator on anti-racism all provided detailed updates. The cooperation with the team of the SRSG on Migration and Refugees, with the Council of Europe Ad-Hoc Committee on Artificial Intelligence (CAHAI) and with the Congress on Local and Regional Authorities received special focus. The Conference of INGOs, EYCA (European Youth Card Association) and the North South Centre also provided updates on their own priorities/activities to the committees”.
25 years European Youth Centre Budapest: share your memories!
25 years ago, the European Youth Centre Budapest opened its doors for the first time. During this past quarter of a century, the EYCB has played an extraordinary role in supporting young people from across the continent to benefit fully from human rights, democracy, and the rule of law.

On the occasion of this special 25th anniversary, former participants, visitors, and partners of the EYCB are kindly invited to celebrate by sharing their most precious and unforgettable memories from the youth centre on social media platforms.

Do you remember entering the EYCB building for the very first time?
Did you attend an event in the centre that had a huge impact on your personal and professional development?
Did you engage in lively discussions on the balcony while enjoying the panoramic view of Budapest?
Do you have a special moment from the EYCB that you will never forget?
Partial Agreement on Youth Mobility - 45th Board meeting
18 March 2021, on-line


The 45th meeting of the Board of Co-ordination of the Partial Agreement on Youth Mobility through the Youth Card took place ahead of the youth sector’s statutory bodies.

This meeting evaluated the implementation of the Partial Agreement’s work programme in 2020, reviewed the 2021 work programme and introduced recent developments and the Strategy 2021-2025 of the European Youth Card Association (EYCA), the Partial Agreement’s main institutional partner.

The results of the survey conducted among members and non-members of the Partial Agreement on Youth Mobility were also presented and open for a preliminary exchange of views.Proposals to further enrich and develop the Partial Agreement’s programme will be elaborated based on the survey results and discussions at the current meeting.
Partial Agreement on Youth Mobility and its role in the implementation of youth policies in member states
16 March 2021, on-line

The promotional seminar, organised in co-operation with the European Youth Card Association (EYCA), was an occasion to promote the European Youth Card as a tool for youth policy development and youth card implementation at local, national and European levels.

The seminar gathered 30 participants including 18 governmental representatives out of 15 countries of both member states of the Partial Agreement and those which have not yet joined.

The seminar shared good practices for the benefit of young people, especially in times of continued pandemic.The transversal co-operation with the Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes was presented as one of the highlights of the seminar, in particular the project #Routes4U and the special co-branded youth card.
New video: Young women’s participation

8 March is a great occasion to remind ourselves that equality and access to rights is experienced differently by young women and men.

Watch the video of the EU-Council of Europe youth partnership to learn what research says about young women’s participation in social, political and economic life and what can be done to achieve greater gender justice in our societies.
COVID-19 and learning mobility
Learning mobility of young people during the pandemic practically stopped. What impact COVID-19 had on the mobility of young people in Europe? How did it affect the functioning of youth organisations?

Listen to the new episode of our Under 30' podcast exploring this topic. Read also the desk research study on COVID-19 and Learning Mobility by Ewa Krzaklewska and Özgehan Şenyuva.
Strengthening participation of young people through youth centres
UKRAINE
Representatives from 14 youth centres in Ukraine – partners of the Council of Europe project “Youth for Democracy in Ukraine” met online on 22 March to discuss the methodology of the analysis of the state of youth work and non-formal education programmes in their centres.

The research team of the project developed the relevant methodology with a focus on civic engagement and opportunities for participation of young people.

Fourteen youth centres in Ukraine working on national, regional and local levels were selected for partnerships and approved during the second meeting of the Steering Committee of the project “Youth for Democracy in Ukraine“ on 9 March. These youth centres will review their approaches and ensure that their strategies meet the needs of young people, in line with Council of Europe standards on youth participation and youth work.The project "Youth for democracy in Ukraine" is implemented by the Youth Department of the Council of Europe and the Organisation's Office in Ukraine in the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2018-2022.
A new framework for bi-lateral cooperation
UKRAINE
The Management Committee for bi-lateral cooperation with Ukraine met on 9 March to review the programme and priorities for 2021 and beyond.

The meeting was hosted by Antje Rothemund head of the Youth Department and attended by the Deputy Minister for Youth, Marina Maryna Popatenko and Andriy Chesnokov, Deputy Minister Deputy Minister for European Integration, in addition to representatives of the Joint Council on Youth and of Ukrainian youth organisations.

A new Framework Cooperation was adopted for 2021-2025. The programme will prioritise activities in the areas of:
  • Education for human rights and democratic citizenship; support existing instruments of youth participation (notably youth councils) and to develop new ones;
  • Strengthening youth work policies and practices, supporting the recognition of youth worker as a profession;
 
Improving the quality of youth work in youth centres and supporting the development of youth centres through a three-level system of youth centres in Ukraine.
YOUNG PEOPLE’S ACCESS TO RIGHTS – Reality check
The review process of the Recommendation on Young People’s Access to Rights has kicked off this year with a meeting of the review group.

The Recommendation on young people's access to rights focuses on improving access by taking steps to promote awareness of the rights that young people should be able to enjoy and what they can do if their rights are violated.

The review group explored the results from the consultative meeting held with youth organisations in October 2020, and proposed ways how the review process can be conducted, including the key list of questions and indicators to explore, the research methodology and timeline. The meeting gathered representatives from the statutory bodies of the Youth Department (CCJ and CDEJ) as well as representatives from the European Youth Forum. ​The group finalised a detailed proposal of the review process, including the needed information, desk research and interviews and other methodological ideas
YOUTH WORK: To Know, to Know How to Do and to Know How to Be
The study session on Education and Training of Youth Workers in Europe Today, organised in cooperation with the European Confederation of Youth Clubs took place online between 8-12 March.

The activity explored the creation of frameworks for education and training for youth workers, based on the Council of Europe’s Recommendation on Youth Work and the European Youth Work Agenda. The participants proposed follow-up actions such as development, recognition and advocacy tools which promote youth work and the development of a youth work manifesto aiming at improving education and training for youth workers.

Furthermore, some of the national level organisations will launch an online campaign “Youth Work Works” to increase the visibility, importance and public recognition of youth work and its effects and provide an online database with youth work resources on national level
News instructions for financial reporting available online

The European Youth Foundation has published a revised set of instructions for financial reporting, which now include detailed information about the inclusion of certain administrative costs in Pilot Activities.

Other sections have also been revised to increase clarity and further support EYF beneficiaries with their grant obligations. The EYF instructions for financial reporting can be found on the EYF website, under forms & guidelines.
Joint session with EYF and the Quality Labelled Youth Centres
26 March 2021, on-line
This seminar aimed to increase mutual understanding and to explore opportunities for further co-operation.

The EYF exchanged with representatives from 12 of the 14 labelled centres, and learned about their work, their partners and some of the challenges they face, which provided useful context for possible partnerships and next steps to advance each of their missions and the common goal to support youth work and young people in Europe.
Youth department manuals: new linguistic versions
Now available in German: Mirrors – Manual for combating antigypsyism through human rights education and Right to Remember- a Handbook for Education with Young People on the Roma Genocide.

And a new member in the Bookmarks big family! Welcome to the Albanian version of the manual for combating hate speech online through human rights education
Upcoming activities
  • 7-9 April 2021, Strasbourg and on-line: conference on "Roma Youth: Together for Emancipation and Empowerment"
 
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
Coyote magazine
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