NEWS

COMECE in dialogue with young people on Europe’s future

One of the main arguments against the EU is the gap between the European institutions and its citizens, particularly the youth. COMECE met and discussed with young people in order to understand how European politics can better involve young people and listen to their concerns and proposals.

(Credit: COMECE)

The Youth Day, an event organised by the Bavarian youth organisation Bayerischer Jugendring (BJR), gathered young people, EU decision-makers, and Brussels-based organisations, among them COMECE, to discuss in workshops on the role of youth policy at EU level.

Participants agreed that Europe should be built on a strong sense of solidarity and with the aim to preserve the common house for future generations in an interconnected world. They called for new ways of involvement, which enable young people to enter into a real dialogue on equal footing with EU decision-makers and moreover, ensures their proper representation in politics.

The outcomes of the workshops were presented to various EU decision-makers, among them Members of the European Parliament and Jens Nymand-Christensens, Deputy Director General of the DG Education, Youth, Sport and Culture in the European Commission.

In close cooperation with the European Office for Catholic Youth and Adult Education, COMECE is committed to strengthening the voice of the Catholic youth movements in Europe. Currently, the Secretariat focuses on the proposal for a European Solidarity Corps and submitted its contribution on this initiative for a new EU youth programme.

A day after the event, a delegation from the Bavarian Catholic Youth (BDKJ Bayern) visited the COMECE Secretariat to learn more about COMECE and its dialogue with the EU institutions.