in association with One Terrene International

Τίτλος : Youth Exchange «Active Citizenship in the 21st Century»

Τόπος : Boars/Oxford, United Kingdom

Ημερομηνίες : 1 εώς 9 Απριλίου 2020

Συμμετέχοντες : 4 άτομα 18 εώς 25 ετών και 1 άτομο (leader) 25 εώς 35 ετών

Καλύπτεται το 100% των εξόδων μετακίνησης εώς 360 ευρώ! και το 100% διαμονής διατροφής.

Συμμετοχή : 40 € (εφόσον επιλεγείτε)

Δηλώσεις συμμετοχής έως την ΚΥΡΙΑΚΗ 9 ΦΕΒΡΟΥΑΡΙΟΥ

Συμπληρώστε την φόρμα συμμετοχής εδώ

ΠΕΡΙΓΡΑΦΗ ΠΡΟΓΡΑΜΜΑΤΟΣ

In order for a country to functional normally we need a system in place that takes into consideration the needs of all its people and of course the successful functioning of the system, thus not making choices which would destroy or damage the system. In essence we are describing democracy, or the democratic system which governs and rules a country. Looking at history, it is very rare that an entire nation supports one party or one idea, so there is always division or at least different opinions. When talking to young people from any country we will hear at least some form of dissatisfaction with their country, their government and even the people of their country. This project will look at exactly this from the perspective of the individual, this being active citizenship.

Our project will not focus only on the democratic act of voting, but will look at active citizenship starting from home. How do we deal with the issues, the choices and the actions we take in our daily lives and take these to understand how we act as citizens of our countries and of the EU? We have seen that many factors influence the choices of young people, we have seen how parents influence the educational choices of youth based on their personal beliefs rather than the needs of the labour markets or the desires of their children. Is this how young people are influenced to vote or how they deal with issues in their communities which are wrong or need reform?

This project is designed to allow young people to empower their life choices so that they can be more active citizens, from the simple choices of lifestyle, to education and ultimately to policy reform and the shaping of their countries and of the EU. We will explore the true meaning of active citizenship, looking at our past, the mistakes and even good practices of the past, those which have moulded our today, and then explore our options of how we mould tomorrow.

We have seen that policy reform and politics are more of a spectator activity for young people where they believe they have no influence nor say in what happens in their countries, we have so often heard young people say “no matter who we vote for, nothing will change”. We hope to change this. Our goal is not to form a political movement, but to get young people off the couch and empower them to make the changes they want to see in their world, starting from their homes, their communities, their countries and in the EU, and in the near future even in the world.

Our project will give young people the tools and resources to understand their rights as EU citizens, to understand the reasoning behind the choices of their governments, to challenge these choices and to be actively involved in the reform that are needed in their communities and in the EU. We will help young people understand the process of policy reform, the methods and approaches needed by policy makers to make these choices, understanding that meeting the needs of a society also means that some expenses need to be covered and to allow the youth to take these expenses into consideration, thus not only demanding reform, but contributing to this reform through understanding that the system, be it a local government, or even the EU, needs all of us to contribute in order for it to serve us all.

Participating countries: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Turkey

Venue: Youlbury Oxford Scout Center, Boars Hill, Oxford, OX1 5HD