Raising empowerment and inclusion among young people at regional and local level - 12WS22260

The workshop aims to find the best way to strengthen empowerment and inclusion among young people. In this European Year of Youth, it is necessary to give voice to those who will lead the Europe of the future and make it greener, more inclusive and digital. It is important to increase young people's participation in decision- and policy-making processes, and ease access to the job market.

COVID-19 has significantly changed our lives. It is an event that no one expected, and that quickly became a phenomenon over which we had no control. It forced us to change our way of life, to adapt, learn and relearn. The pandemic has made it more than clear that there are certain challenges that we cannot face unilaterally.

Taking advantage of the fact that 2022 is the European Year of Youth, we want to give voice and support to the generation that will lead the Europe of the future and make it greener, more inclusive and digital. To make the best of this European Year of Youth, it is important to involve those concerned, that is, the young people themselves. Creating an inclusive and empowering society for young people necessarily implies intentionally incorporating young people into the community. Not only do we need to give young people opportunities and facilities for a better future, but we also need to make them part of the decision-making processes and let them raise their voices. Related to this, the European Commission has launched an initiative called ALMA (Aim, Learn, Master, Achieve), which aims to support young people, especially those who are not in employment, education or training, to find their path to the job market. In addition, NextGenerationEU will also be an important step towards our objective: making Europe green, digital, healthy, strong and equal. 

For this purpose, it is essential that all actors at all levels – including local and regional ones – get engaged. The empowerment and inclusion of young people requires the engagement of authorities at national, regional and local levels. Everyone, including the private sector and citizens, must be involved for young people to be heard and active in society.