Get ready for the 2024 edition of the European Youth Week (EYW), a biannual event organised by the European Commission to promote youth engagement and active citizenship! The EYW campaign encourages young people’s involvement in decision-making, fosters dialogue between young people and policy-makers, and ultimately emerges in the light of the talents and projects of young Europeans.
This year’s European Youth Week – and its plethora of activities – takes place from 12 to 19 April. Tapping into your potential and “Your Say your vision”, if we can lend some of the buzzwords around this year’s campaign. However, the buzzwords exist for a reason: and this year is very different, with the European elections reaching the corner.
“Your voice your vision” is more than a slogan: it is a call to action. The EU is calling on young people to increase and share their thoughts on key issues, and embrace active citizenship. If citizens are engaged, active in their communities, and forward-looking, they become catalysts for change.
Towards active citizenship in a changing digital world
The campaign is not isolated with the EU’s strategic priorities in the EU’s internal market, the internet, and digital technologies. Without active citizenship, Europe will be far from fit for the digital age and risk not meeting the 2030 Digital Decade targets (to ensure that 80 % of European citizens are digitally literate, and increase the number of digital experts, active in the field of work). Citizens’ involvement in decision-making is also essential to achieve the EU’s 2030 headline targets on skills and jobs, which target 78 % of jobs and 60 % of adult participation in annual training.
Young people need a whole set of competences and skills to communicate, study, work and explore the vast digital world – safely and responsibly. Recognising this need, the Council of Europe’s Digital Citizenship education (DCE) project aims to provide young citizens with innovative opportunities to enable them to develop the values, attitudes and skills needed to participate fully in an increasingly digitalised economy and society. The European Youth Strategy has proven to be effective in addressing young people’s concerns. “Listen To People”, an evolving database looking at the drivers of European citizens’ behaviour and attitudes towards democracy, authoritarianism, and the most important issues of our time hopes to reach 10 million Europeans ahead of the European elections and destroys echo chambers that influence public opinion.
EYW in the context of the European Year of Skills
Youth unemployment in the EU for 2022 stood at 14.5 %, with differences among EU Member States. Despite these discrepancies, the share of young unemployed people is well above the overall unemployment rate of 6.2 %. Urgent action is needed to make access to education and training for young people easier and more available, and the mass impact of EYW 2024 is a major step in the right direction.
With activities covering around 400 different initiatives from 29 countries, and over one million participants, EYW 2024 aims to empower citizens to make their voices heard in EU elections, and contribute to building a more resilient Europe.
Don't forget about the data
Open data plays a crucial role in developing young people’s skills, attitudes and knowledge, especially in the context of digital education. It is also crucial for democratic participation, as it allows citizens to conduct research, analyse trends, and form an opinion on some of society’s most pressing issues, based on facts and figures.
It also has an impact on the labour market, and prepares young people for future roles in industries and areas of competence. A wide range of datasets on a range of themes and topics can be found at data.europa.eu.
Keep falling through the rabbit hole
Want to learn more? There is a joint session called ‘Check your facts! The strength of digital skills, critical thinking and open data.’
Follow the EYW 2024 activities on the European Youth Portal, make sure you check the map of activities, and voice your vision for a better Europe by 2030!