Around 50 youth trainers working at European level met recently at the Trainers’ Forum 2026, a gathering of people active in youth work, adult education, non-formal learning and Erasmus+, many of whom also work with the Council of Europe and the EU-CoE Youth Partnership.
Our Learning & Capacity Building coordinator, Alina, presented the network’s work and took part to hear directly from the field.
She used the session to introduce the Participation Resource Pool and to explain how the wider SALTO network has shifted its focus toward supporting National Agencies.
Many trainers work closely with a single SALTO but have limited visibility into how the network operates. With SALTO mandates due for renewal, the forum gave trainers a chance to flag what support they want going forward, and SALTO PI intends to factor this into its own advocacy.
Discussions
Discussions moved between systemic issues — political shifts affecting youth work in several countries, the limitations of Erasmus+, and the precarious position of freelance trainers — and more concrete concerns about working with National Agencies. The forum also connected SALTO PI with trainers specialising in critical education, Betzavta methodology, critical media literacy, critical youth work, rural youth participation and future skills, several of whom offered to join an expert pool SALTO PI hopes to formalise.
Rural youth participation came up repeatedly, including how SALTO PI’s work aligns with the Council of Europe’s recommendation on rural youth — a topic likely to warrant a dedicated strategy going forward.
The Commission’s plans for Erasmus+ 2028–2034
Charalampos Babis Papaioannou, responsible for the EU-CoE Youth Partnership at the European Commission, presented the Commission’s proposal for the next Erasmus+ programme, part of the broader EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).
Key points:
- Erasmus+ sits within Heading 2 of the new MFF (“Competitiveness and prosperity”), alongside AgoraEU, a renewed Horizon Europe and a new European Competitiveness Fund.
- The Commission proposes €40.82 billion for Erasmus+ over 2028–2034, with no earmarking by field or management mode.
- The programme retains its “dual DNA”: building skills and competences for a competitive, sustainable and digital economy, alongside democratic engagement, critical thinking, EU values, preparedness, solidarity and a sense of belonging.
- The European Solidarity Corps would be merged into Erasmus+, making it a single-entry point for EU opportunities for young people, including volunteering and humanitarian aid volunteering.
- Funding would be streamlined into two pillars — “Learning opportunities for all” and “Capacity building support” — replacing the current four-strand structure.
- The Commission’s stated ambition is for everyone to have at least one Erasmus+ experience in their lifetime, whether as a school pupil, VET learner, volunteer, student, or through up/reskilling.
One point drew visible concern from participants: the youth consultation behind the proposal reportedly drew a limited number of responses, unevenly spread across countries — a gap that sits uneasily with a programme built around youth participation.
Green cooperation and a possible framework
Separately, SALTO PI began scoping a 2027 Transnational Cooperation Activity (TCA) with SALTO Green on “preparedness,” addressing overlapping crises through the lens of participation and pedagogy of hope. Trainers’ use of existing frameworks such as DigComp and GreenComp also prompted discussion of a possible Participation Competence Framework — a tool that could be developed through 2027 TCAs and give the Commission’s “dual DNA” ambition a more concrete, usable form for trainers and National Agencies.
What’s next
SALTO PI plans to follow up with the trainers who offered expertise, and to continue developing the TCA with SALTO Green and the participation competence framework idea. The forum reinforced a working principle SALTO PI already holds that participation should shape how support structures and strategies are designed, not only what they promote.