In a 3-days conference, 155 participants divided in 10 different working groups had debate and come up with conclusions on issues key for youth policy in Europe in the current situation and the years to come.
Ten initial topics from Learning, Work, Health, Inclusion, Citizenship & Participation, Identify/Lifestyles, Diversity/Solidarity, Mobility, Housing & Family and Crime & Justice were discussed in between participants and they came up with very diverse ideas and resolutions; more than 30 challenges were shared to all the audience and now Orange Magazine bring them to you.
In the Learning Working Group the resolutions are a demographic change, migration and multiculturalism; democratization, empowerment and participation and globalization and the information society. A better match between the world of learning and the world of work, the needed of more knowledge on unemployment and young people, and the youth employment and migration were the main Work Group concerns.
The Health working group stressed the importance of accessibility to health services with reliable and anonymous online-support, the research on lifestyles, particularly in relation to substance abuse, and the negative impacts of Internet use. Reaching young people, translating knowledge into action and Individualization are the main topics to work in the near future, according to Inclusion Group.
Three key-words were chosen by the Citizenship and Participation Group: Empowerment, Equality and Dialogue. New skills, more education and training, equal access to opportunities to young people and new ways of contact in between government and young people are requested.
Identity and Lifestyles Working Group had identify three clear recommendations; Youth cultures and lifestyles as political statements; Not all aspects of diversity are necessarily positive; Influences on identity-building processes of young people.
Deeper dialogue and mutual learning, the importance of the non-formal education, and the creation of a strategic commitment, in order to promote concerted action are the conclusions of the Diversity and Solidarity Group.
The Mobility participants declared that is needed to establish conceptual clarity on mobility, equality of access and flexible support measures – differentiated and focused methods for both pedagogical and practical support that can bring out the learning potential in mobility activities.
Concerning the Housing and Family conclusions, the group had discussed the importance of diversifying housing policies, besides the “one-size-fits-all” model of housing policy; the youth influence on housing and family policies and the intergenerational solidarity, re-establishing and enhancing the relationship between the younger and the older generations, constituting a pressing task for all actors and stakeholders in the process.
In the last topic, Crime and Justice, the working group defined three priorities; prevention; cooperation and networks in between the different actors; and the new forms of criminal behavior or transgressive behaviour.
Discussing the future of democracy and the relationship between young people and the future of active citizenship, the participants brought the conversations even after the working groups time had finished. Through dinner and after the sessions were over, the brainstorming continued. Now, these expected outcomes and results are helping the participants to encompass better knowledge and mutual understanding, strengthened partnerships and enhanced commitment to furthering the work on the issues at stake.
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