Position Paper on the new programme Generation – Youth Advisory Board of JUGEND für Europa

“In times of increasing nationalist tendencies, it is especially important to strengthen the sense of European solidarity among young people. A sustainable and participatory design of the new programme generation, which incorporates the perspectives of young people from the outset, is essential. (..) With the following demands, the Youth Advisory Board seeks to highlight the perspectives of young people with diverse Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps (ESC) experiences.”

The Youth Advisory Board of JUGEND für Europa are committed to the development and implementation of the EU youth programmes Erasmus+ Youth and European Solidarity Corps in Germany. In preparation for the next programme generation from 2028 onwards, they have formulated key demands for the design of the EU youth programmes and summarised them in the attached position paper. With this document, they aim to provide impulses and encourage discussion about the future direction of these programmes.

Some of their recommendations and demands include the importance of making programmes more accessible and inclusive, the need for a specific focus on mental health in the future programme generation, the importance of continuous involvement of non-EU partner countries in the programmes. They also advocate for the integration of micro-grants for increased accessibility of the programmes, expansion of DiscoverEU initiative, as well as continuation and expansion of sustainability dimension of the programmes. Importantly, they emphasise the importance of opportunities for youth involvement in the management of the programmes and encourage all National Agencies to develop long-term and sustainable participation mechanisms in their decision-making processes.

They conclude with expressing interest and readiness to “actively contribute to the implementation of the proposed measures and invite all relevant stakeholders to collaborate in developing sustainable solutions”.

Read and reflect on more of their recommendations: Document

In case of questions and comments, get in touch with [email protected].

The idea of  Youth Advisory Board was born in 2019 and created in 2023. The board consists of 20 young people, who contribute their diverse experiences with these programmes to continuously improve the opportunities they offer.

On the European level, this process was supported by the EU Youth Strategy, the development of the  Youth Participation Strategy  and the creation of the  Federal Government’s Youth Strategy  which focused on youth involvement with a cross-sectoral approach. Read more on website (in German): JUGEND für Europa – Jugendbeirat bei JUGEND für Europa.

Involvement of target groups in decision-making about the management and implementation of the programmes and in the work of National Agencies and other actors is encouraged by Youth Participation Strategy (YPS Aim 5) and supported by New Power in Youth partnership and SALTO Participation & Information. You can read more about several youth involvement mechanisms in National Agencies here.