European Youth Forum
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Time for fresh ideas: give young voices the chance to shape Europe!
“Young people must be able to shape Europe's future.” Only a few weeks ago, President von der Leyen stood in front of the European Parliament and stated her ambition that young people will help lead the debate in the Conference on the Future of Europe.OpinionPromoted content
Invest in youth! Young people call for sustainable fiscal policy
Europe’s youth faces tougher challenges than previous generations. But while they persistently pay the price for economic crises, we know that it doesn’t have to be this way. As EU Finance Ministers open the debate on budget rules, it’s time...OpinionPromoted content
Has Covid-19 left a ‘pandemic scar’ on young people?
The end is in sight. Restrictions are lifting and slowly but surely, we’re starting to feel ‘normal’ again. Across Europe and beyond, offices are starting to reopen, empty classrooms have welcomed back students, and spending time with family and friends...OpinionPromoted content
What we can learn from the 2021 Youth Progress Index
They are vastly underrepresented in decision making, much more likely to face a future of economic and environmental insecurity, and already enduring declining mental health. Yet, young people make up a significant part of the global population: in 2019, there...OpinionPromoted content
Erasmus after Brexit: what comes next for British young people?
The shock announcement at the end of 2020 that the UK will be leaving the Erasmus+ Programme sparked disbelief and disappointment on both sides of the Channel. After a chaotic year with disruption to education, jobs and wellbeing in the...OpinionPromoted content
We must protect our civic space so that we can keep our human rights
From health to employment to education, Covid-19 has brought additional challenges regarding access to and enjoyment of human rights. As December 10, International Human Rights Day, draws closer, it’s time to reflect on the state of civic space in Europe,...OpinionPromoted content
The Great Burnout: exhausting our health, workers and our planet
Why do we work so much? Beyond the 40-hour working week, around a tenth of employees in OECD countries routinely work 50 hours or more each week. In some European countries, people are even working longer hours than a decade...OpinionPromoted content
The hidden health crisis: the dramatic impact of COVID-19 on young people’s mental health
Over half of young people across the globe are showing signs of depression and anxiety since the COVID-19 pandemic began. This is according to a survey of over 12,500 young people in 112 countries conducted by the European Youth Forum...OpinionPromoted content
Let’s stop playing the Covid-19 generation blame game
As if dealing with a pandemic wasn’t enough, from the very outbreak of Covid-19, institutions, political leaders, social and traditional media alike seem to have used the pandemic to pit one generation against the other. Young people are being depicted...OpinionStakeholder Opinion
A call for quality! Why we must improve the Youth Guarantee
The 2008 financial and economic crisis is still a vivid memory for many of us. With fewer jobs and opportunities available, a whole generation of young people found themselves facing an uncertain future. Years later, the profound and lasting impact...OpinionPromoted content
COVID recovery: no generation left behind
European COVID recovery plans must address youth unemployment and wellbeing if they are to avoid the mistakes of the previous crisis. The European Youth Forum is the platform organisation advocating for youth rights in Europe. Dr Justa Hopma, 34, started...
Jobs in Europe have returned – just not for youth
Every year, the ‘Euro bubble’ is alive and buzzing in anticipation of one of the biggest events in the European political calendar; the President of the European Commission’s annual State of the European Union address, writes Zuzana Vaneckova.
2019 elections: The end of old-school ‘politics as usual’?
The countdown to the next European Parliament elections has begun. They are an opportunity to change the way we do politics in Europe, to become more inclusive, turn under-representation into equal representation and ultimately increase the trust in our political leaders. Will European political parties accept the challenge? Luis Alvarado writes.
What if the youth could change Europe’s economic reality?
We need a reality check. Some in Europe may be celebrating the slow but steady rise in employment rates and economic growth. But young people have very little to celebrate, writes Luis Alvarado Martinez.
Let’s debunk the ‘apolitical youth’ myth
Young people don’t care. Young people don’t engage. Young people don’t vote. How many times have we heard these clichés? How long will we keep perpetuating this myth? Young people do participate. Young people do care, young people are political, writes Anna Widegren.
An EU Youth Strategy that actually makes a difference
“Young people are the future!” - isn’t that a no-brainer! When meeting politicians, we often find them paying lip service to this mantra. But if you tell someone that they are the future, doesn’t it simply mean you are putting them off, Luis Alvarado asks.
There’s nothing private about women’s sexual and reproductive rights
In 2017, women’s sexual and reproductive rights should be recognised as human rights. But first they must be freed from the political agenda, writes Carina Autengruber.
Voting alone won’t save our democracies
We are so often told that ‘those who don’t vote are not allowed to complain about the result’. Allan Päll asks what would happen if instead of forcing us — the citizens — to adapt to a failing system, democracy evolved to suit our modern day society.
How to fix our broken democracy
Young people are often described as politically apathetic or lazy, but if the current generation of politicians made more effort to include them in decision-making, they would find that young people really do care, argues Johanna Nyman.
Welfare systems should be fair and promote solidarity between generations
In a Europe, with a growing gulf between the “haves” and the “have nots”, we are witnessing that welfare systems are creating what they should overcome: inequality. The purpose of a welfare system is to act as a safety net for everyone, but this is no longer happening, writes Allan Päll.
Crowdsource youth politics to boost voter turnout
Young people are not truly represented in European politics. This is a sign that our democracy is broken, and that we should redouble our efforts to increase participation, argues Allan Päll.
The Commission has lost sight of quality jobs
The European Commission’s Country Specific Recommendations only increase the distance between the EU institutions and the citizens they are supposed to serve, writes Allan Päll.