Photo by Jorgen Hendriksen on Unsplash
Around 10,000 young people from the EU and beyond will next month meet in Strasbourg and online to discuss Europe’s future, against the backdrop of the war against Ukraine and upcoming European elections.
On Friday 9 June and Saturday 10 June, the European Youth Event 2023 (EYE 2023) will feature more than 300 in-person and hybrid activities – debates, discussions, networking opportunities, artistic performances, sports activities and interactive workshops.
They have been co-created with EU institutions, international organisations, civil society, youth organisations and the participants themselves. The event is hosted by the European Parliament in Strasbourg, with part of the programme taking place outdoors in the EYE Village.
Parliament’s President Roberta Metsola will open the event on Friday in Parliament’s hemicycle. Subsequent activities inside the premises and in the EYE Village will allow participants to discuss their ideas with policy- and decision-makers, experts and activists.
“This year’s European Youth Event is especially important, because it is the last one before the European elections in 2024. My appeal to all participants is to take this experience back to your cities, towns and villages. To get involved. To spread the message of Europe. To vote. And to get your friends and family to vote too. Because ultimately the future of Europe depends on you”, Metsola said.
With the European elections taking place on 6-9 June 2024, participants will discuss key priorities such as climate justice, global warming and the EU’s biodiversity strategy. The European Year of Skills and the need to adapt for the green and technology transitions, the lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic and how to tackle social inequalities and exclusion in Europe will also feature. Participants will discuss the protection of EU values, the role of Europe in a changing world –marked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine-, migration policy and the need for youth engagement and participation.
After the closing session on Saturday the ideas, expectations and concerns of young people will be summarised and brought together in a Youth Ideas Report, to be distributed to all MEPs. Some participants will be able to develop the ideas they consider the most inspiring and present them directly to MEPs during an EYE Hearing planned for Autumn 2023.
This is the fifth edition of the EYE, bringing together young people from across the European Union and the world, to share and shape their ideas on Europe’s future. It is a unique opportunity for 16 to 30-year-olds to talk to each other, inspire each other and meet with experts, activists, influencers and decision-makers, in the heart of European democracy.
