Get ready for the 2024 edition of the European Youth Week (EYW), a bi-annual event organised by the European Commission to promote youth engagement and active citizenship! The EYW campaign encourages youth engagement in decision-making, fosters dialogue between young people and policymakers, and ultimately, brings to light the talents and projects of young Europeans. 

This year’s European Youth Week – and its plethora of activities – takes place from 12 – 19 April. Unlock your potential and “Voice your vision”, if we can borrow a bit of the buzzwords around this year’s campaign. Yet, buzzwords exist for a reason: and this year truly is different, with the European elections just round the corner.

 “Voice your vision” is more than a slogan: it’s a call for action. The EU is calling on young people to step up and share their thoughts on key issues, and embrace active citizenship. If citizens are engaged, active within their communities, and look ahead, they become catalysts for change. 

Towards active citizenship in an ever-changing digital world 

The campaign does not stand in isolation to strategic EU priorities in the EU internal market, the internet, and digital technologies. Without active citizenship, Europe will be far from fit for the digital age and risks to fall short of the 2030 targets of the Digital Decade (ensuring 80% of European citizens are digitally literate, and raising the number of digital experts, active in the labour market to 20 million). Citizen engagement in decision-making is also key to reaching the 2030 EU headline targets on skills and employment, aiming for 78% of employment and 60% adult participation in yearly training. 

Young people need a whole set of competences and skills to communicate, study, work and explore the vast digital world – safely and responsibly. Recognising this need, the Council of Europe’s Digital Citizenship education (DCE) project aims to provide young citizens with innovative opportunities to allow them to develop the values, attitudes and skills necessary to participate fully in an increasingly digitalised economy and society. The European Youth Strategy has proven effective in addressing young people’s concerns. “Listen To People” , an ever-evolving database looking at the drivers of behaviours and attitudes of European citizens towards democracy, authoritarianism, and the most important issues of our time hopes to reach 10 million Europeans ahead of the European elections and break apart echo chambers that influence public opinion.

EYW in the context of the European Year of Skills 

Youth unemployment in the EU for 2022 stood at 14,5%, with differences amongst EU Member States. In spite of these discrepancies, the share of young people without employment is well above the overall unemployment rate of 6.2%. Urgent action is needed to make access to education and training for young people easier and available, and the mass impact of EYW 2024 is a huge step in the right direction. 

With activities spanning across close to 400 different initiatives from 29 countries, and over 1 million participants, EYW 2024 aims to empower citizens to make their voices heard in the EU elections, and contribute to building a more resilient Europe. 

Don’t forget about data

Open data plays a crucial role in the development of skills, attitudes and knowledge of young people, especially within the context of digital education. It is also crucial for democratic participation, as it enables citizens to conduct research, analyse trends, and form an opinion on some of the most pressing issues of society, based on facts and figures. 

This also has an impact on the labour market, preparing young people for future roles across industries and fields of expertise. A vast array of datasets on a range of themes and topics can be found in data.europa.eu. 

Keep going down the rabbit hole

Want you like to learn more? There is a joint session called ‘Check your facts! The power of digital skills, critical thinking and open data.’ 

Follow the activities of EYW 2024 on the European Youth Portal, make sure you check out the map of activities, and voice your vision for a better Europe by 2030!