Pathways to Active Democracy: Cultivating European Engagement Among Young People

<< Background >>We applied for this project because we saw that many young people do not feel part of democratic life. They often think that democracy only means voting in elections, and they do not know how they can get involved in other ways. We also noticed that some young people do not trust the political system or feel that their voice matters.At the same time, youth workers and youth organisations in our network wanted more tools and ideas to support young people in learning about democracy, participation, and European citizenship. We wanted to help them become active citizens, not just during elections, but also in their schools, cities, and communities.The project also came at an important time, just before the European Parliament elections. This gave us a great chance to raise awareness and support participation. Our goal was to make democracy more clear, practical, and close to young people’s everyday lives.<< Objectives >>The main goal of our project was to support young people and youth organisations in becoming more active in democratic life. We wanted to promote civic participation, European values, and cooperation between youth NGOs.Our specific objectives were:1. To strengthen the capacity of the 5 participating NGOs to engage local youth and promote active citizenship.2. To empower 15 youth leaders and youth workers (3 from each partner) with skills, tools, and knowledge to involve young people in democratic activities.3. To raise awareness about the European Parliament Elections 2024 and the importance of active citizenship by organising youth conferences in all 5 partner countries.4. To foster a stronger sense of European identity, citizenship, and values among young people.5. To create 2 online campaigns and 4 webinars that share good practices, increase visibility, and engage a wider audience.6. To organise a 7-day youth exchange for 25 participants, promoting civic action and intercultural learning.7. To host a networking event with 20 youth NGO representatives to build connections and plan future cooperation.<< Implementation >>We implemented ten main activities during the project:Offline activities: - Training course “Democracy in Action: Youth Leadership Training”, held in Figueira da Foz, Portugal (21-26 March 2024)- Youth conferences “Europe in Focus: Youth for Democracy”, held in Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia, and Portugal (April-June 2024)- Youth exchange “Active Democracy Pathways”, held in Figueira da Foz, Portugal (16-22 January 2025)- Networking event “Active Democracy Pathways”, held in Corfu, Greece (11-15 April 2025)Online activities:- Campaign on the European Parliament Elections (May-June 2024)- Campaign on promoting active participation (November 2024)- Four educational webinars shared between March and June 2025 on:* Democracy and youth participation* European citizenship and values* Social entrepreneurship and NGO creation* Erasmus+ opportunitiesAll activities were planned with our partners and followed the goals of the project.<< Results >>The project achieved strong results at local, national, and European levels. In total, 249 participants joined 10 activities: 17 in the training course, 187 in five national youth conferences, 25 in the youth exchange, and 20 in the networking event.Two online campaigns reached over 2000 people in total according to TDM Portugal's Instagram post statistics, raising awareness on EU elections, active participation, and youth engagement.We produced four educational webinars shared on YouTube: Webinar 3 - Social Entrepreneurship and NGO Creation (5.7k views), Webinar 1 - Democracy and Active Youth Participation (2.7k views), Webinar 2 - European Citizenship and Values (193 views), and Webinar 4 - Erasmus Plus Program History and Opportunities (181 views). The videos are freely available and used in youth work and training.Participants developed skills in communication, leadership, and project planning. Several launched initiatives in their local communities. Partner NGOs discussed ideas for future Erasmus+ projects and strengthened cooperation.