Doing inclusion differently: How young people with fewer opportunities shaped the SALTO I&D Forum

Across the EU Youth Programmes, the ambition to involve young people in decision-making is widely shared, but the practice often falls short of the rhetoric. For young people with fewer opportunities, participation is still too frequently limited to consultation, feedback rounds, or symbolic representation.

The Inclusion & Diversity Forum preparation process offered an opportunity to test something more substantial:

The experience provides valuable learning for National Agencies (NAs) that want to move from intention to implementation.

Early involvement as a foundation for meaningful influence

SALTO I&D’s Advisory Group was brought in before key decisions were locked in. This early timing enabled a more equal conversation about what the Forum should achieve and how it should be structured.

Members quickly brought essential insights to the table. One noted, “I loved the diversity of the group.”

While simple, this comment highlights a core principle in SALTO’s approach to participatory work:

Varied experiences allowed the group to notice barriers that more experienced or institutionally embedded actors might overlook.

Because this involvement happened early, the group’s reflections shaped perspectives on accessibility, outreach, methodology, safety, and communication—not as ‘late fixes’, but as integral parts of the event design.

Where young people’s input shifted the direction of the Forum

1. Rethinking outreach and who the Forum is for
   Advisory Group members questioned whether the standard communication channels would reach those furthest from opportunities. Their observations pushed the team to re-examine how calls and descriptions were framed, and how far beyond familiar networks they travelled.
   This recalibration contributed to a significant broadening of the applicant pool—nearly 800 applications, including people and organisations that SALTO I&D had not previously reached at this scale. While numbers are not the real goal, they signal a shift in those for whom the Forum had an impact.
2. Strengthening accessibility through lived experience
   Accessibility is often understood in narrow, mostly physical terms. Group members challenged this by highlighting digital, cognitive, and social barriers. One participant made the point very clearly, stating, “Digital skills and devices should not be taken for granted, especially in a shared space.” This observation led the team to rethink not just technical arrangements but the assumptions behind them:

These reflections translated into concrete adjustments: clearer instructions, additional support mechanisms, and a more intentional approach to ensuring that participation—both online and on site—would be realistic for more people.

3. Rethinking facilitation and participant experience
Feedback on methodologies encouraged the team to adjust session formats and planning. The group questioned whether everyone would feel safe or confident to contribute in large, fast-paced discussions. Their input led to the adoption of methods better suited to different communication styles, reflecting SALTO’s ongoing commitment to inclusive learning environments.

These changes did not transform the event overnight, but they reflect a deeper principle:

4. Embedding participation beyond the event itself
In addition to influencing specific aspects of the Forum, the Advisory Group engaged in reflection on the process as a whole. Their feedback fed directly into the final recommendations document, including the suggestion to establish a permanent advisory structure from 2025.

This is particularly important from a SALTO perspective: meaningful participation is not a one-off exercise but a long-term commitment. A sustained advisory structure allows for continuity, capacity-building, and the more equitable distribution of influence over time.

These statements point to deeper needs: relationship-building, regular contact, and spaces that foster collective ownership. Participation is relational, not only structural.

On the organisational side, capacity constraints were a real factor. An NA member reflected, “The challenge lies in balancing commitment to participation with limited capacity.”

This tension is familiar to NAs: staff workloads are already high, and participatory processes require additional coordination and emotional labour. The lesson is not that participation is too difficult but that it must be planned, resourced, and shared, not added on top of existing responsibilities.

Dos & Don’ts for National Agencies

At the same time, the experience underscores that participation is not simply “adding young people to the table”. It is a culture shift—one that requires intention, transparency, support, and continuity.

An advisory group member reflected, “I was involved in what I was asked to do, but I feel that my experience was not used fully.”

This reminds us that participation must keep evolving, not as a critique, but as

For SALTO and the wider NA network, this is where the future lies: participation that is embedded, resourced and understood as a long-term practice, shaping not only events but how inclusion and diversity are approached across the EU Youth Programmes.

The series of articles on youth involvement in decision-making in National Agencies is a part of activities organised by SALTO Participation & Information Resource Centre and partners in an effort to encourage the right of young people to participation in decisions affecting them and to implement Aim 5 of Youth Participation Strategy “to encourage National Agencies and other actors to involve young people when making decisions about the management and implementation of the programmes, and to take a quality approach to youth participation when doing so”.

We are grateful to the authors, National Agencies and the young people themselves for dedicating time and effort to co-create activities together and to share their experience in doing so, inspiring us, National Agencies and other institutions.

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