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Promoting active citizenship and participation: a toolkit

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Download the toolkit in PDF

This toolkit is a collection of the methods, activities and project ideas of the international activity “Young people in action: promoting active citizenship and democracy” organized by the International Union of Socialist Youth (IUSY) with the support of Young European Socialists (YES).

The activity took place in June 2017 in Berlin and was hosted by SJD – Die Falken with the financial support of the European Youth Foundation (EYF). The activity gathered together 24 participants from 16 countries who worked together on the themes of democracy, active citizenship and youth participation.

After the activity, the team gathered the implemented methods as well as the ideas produced during the activity in this toolkit in order to share them with young people and youth organizations who work actively in the eld.

The toolkit presents selected methods implemented during the activity as well as ideas that have been created and developed by the participants. It also includes a short overview of non-formal education, active citizenship and youth participation. In this way, the toolkit introduces the main concepts of the activity and offers methods that can support exploring them while working with a group of young people. In the toolkit, you will also find the daily flow of the activity and several useful resources that will support you exploring the theme more in-depth.

Team and participants hope the reader enjoys the tool-kit and finds content applicable to her*him context.

Active Citizenship

is a term used to describe the involvement of individuals in public life which can take place at local, regional, national and international levels. Youth organisations should support young people, for them to explore and understand the concept of active citizenship and develop skills and competences in order to address and analyse issues concerning the theme as well as be empowered to come up with solutions.

Youth participation

is a process of achieving positive changes in young people’s lives and of building a better community and society. Means to achieve it are different: initiatives, activities, projects that promote youth involvement at very different levels–local, regional, national and international. There are diverse theories dealing with youth participation and it can be approached from different perspectives depending on the context, background etc. It is important to keep in mind the motivation of different actors such as civil society, political organizations, youth organizations might vary as well.

The team

Gohar Ghandilyan
(Armenia/Austria)

Anuschka Ruge
(Germany/Belgium)

James Sleep
(New Zealand/France)

Ana Pirtskhalava
(Georgia)

Matteo Cervi
(Italy/Austria)

Training course on promoting active citizenship and democracy

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The main aim of the project is to increase the engagement of young people in the policy debate on issues relevant to them, their influence on the outcomes of the decision-making and their active part in the democratic process.

Objectives of the course:

  • Organize a debate and learning program for young people and youth organizations to explore the reach of democratic participation and, in particular, their role in the society.

  • Discuss and outline the issues of particular concern to young people and their response and proposals for solutions.

  • Provide an opportunity for young people and youth organizations to cooperate and combine their efforts in order to be able to support each other in the struggle for their rights.

  • Explore the tools and mechanisms for young people and youth organizations to increase their presence in the society and their influence on the democratic process.

Participants profile

  • Grass root youth activists from IUSY/YES partner/member organizations
  • Interested in the topic of active citizenship and democracy
  • Interested in developing follow-up proposals on the topic

How to apply

To make sure that everyone has equal chance in participating, participants must apply via the online application form.

DEADLINE for the registration is May 15th, 2017.

The final confirmation will be sent to all participants within 2 days after the deadline of the registration.

Eligible member/partner organizations per country

Country

Number of participants

Albania

2

Armenia

1

Austria

1

Belarus

1

Belgium

1

Bosnia and Herzegovina

1

Croatia

1

France

2

Georgia

1

Germany

1

Hungary

2

Republic of Moldova

1

Montenegro

1

Netherlands

1

Norway

1

Poland

2

Serbia

1

Slovenia

1

Spain

2

Sweden

1

Turkey

2

Ukraine

1

United Kingdom

2

Costs

There is no participation fee for the project. Travel, accommodation, and food will be fully covered by the project.

Arrivals and Departures

Day of arrival for the activity is the 31st of May and day of departure is the 5th of June.

Please make your travel arrangements accordingly and do not forget that IUSY will not be able to cover accommodation or any other additional expenses for participants who need to stay additional nights.

Invitation letter and travel details (.pdf)

Application close on 15th of May