|
|
26.03.2004 - Seminar on Youth Issues and the European Parliament
Election 2004
The significance of youth voices - conclusions from
the seminar
Seminar on the Youth Issues and the European Parliament
Elections 2004 took place on the 25th of March at the venue of the
Romanian Embassy in Brussels. Organized by AEGEE in co-operation with JADE
(European Confederation of Junior Enterprises), it gathered almost 50
representatives of youth NGOs, students and activists, and gave them the
floor to meet and personally discuss the issues connected with policies
and funding for youth activities in the light of the upcoming European
Parliament Elections
2004. |
The discussion was carried out in two panels, the
first of which dealt with the future of the EU Education Programmes (mainly
Youth and Erasmus) relevant for supporting student NGO activities and projects.
Mr. Pierre Mairesse, head of the Youth Unit at the DG Education and Culture of
the European Commission, discussed with the participants the possibilities the
developed Youth Programme offers to student NGOs. “The priorities of the Youth
Programme should derive from the grass-root level and should stem from the needs
in youth communities. The decision makers should carry on a continuous dialogue
with the members of the student NGOs in order to find out what these needs are
and take them into consideration while deciding upon the budget lines.” - says
Karsten Wenzlaff, the MEP candidate from SPD (Social Democratic Party of
Germany). Another panelist, Giacomo Filibeck, the President of the European
Youth Forum, spoke about the significance of youth participation in the upcoming
EP Elections and tapped onto the issue of the Manifesto - “A promise to the
Youth, a promise to keep” issued by the EYF, elaborated in order to point out
the important reasons for young people to vote in the European Elections. “What
will be decided now as framework will determine our future life” - concluded
Filibeck.
The second panel was led by the
representatives of JADE and touched upon the issues connected with the youth
employment and entrepreneurship. The Secretary General of the European Movement,
Mr. Henrik H. Kröner, bravely though controversially tackled the subject of youth employment
opportunities in the Enlarged European Union, stating that the open position
towards equal opportunities on the job market should be treated as a factor not
threatening but boosting competition and raising Europe’s economy to a higher
level.
The outcome of the seminar was
first and foremost strengthening the bonds of co-operation between student and
youth NGOs and the necessity to stand together united for the issues of utmost
importance for young people nowadays. Personal relations and a face-to-face
dialogue should be given a chance and ground to occur and develop.
“ It was a great experience to participate in
the seminar – reflects Manue J. Kripp, one of the participants of the seminar,
young representative of JADE Network – “It gave an overview on different aspects
of youth development in Europe in the next years, the Educational Programmes and
the activities of the European Institutions in the field of Junior
Entrepreneurship. Students and young entrepreneurs in Europe are facing a bright
future. Furthermore this event was a great platform to establish new contacts
among European students and young entrepreneurs”.In preparation to the seminar, a movie concerning the European Parliament
Elections 2004 was prepared by AEGEE-TV. You
can view it under: http://www.aegee.org/movie/movie.htm.AEGEE is one of Europe's largest interdisciplinary and
voluntary student associations, operating without being linked to any political
party, promoting a unified Europe, cross-border co-operation, communication and
integration in academic environment, and at the same time striving to create an
open and tolerant society by involving students and young graduates in valuable
projects and discussions over the topics of importance for the communities they
live in It is represented in 260 university cities, in 42 countries all around
Europe and has about 17000 members.More information:Ewa
SolarczykVice-President / Director for
Public RelationsEuropean Students'
Forum - AEGEERue Nestor de Tiere
151030 BruxellesPhone: +32 2 245 23 00Fax: +32 2 245
62 60Web: www.aegee.orgEmail: [log in to unmask]
==============================================
This is the AEGEE Monthly Review mailing list.
Archives and subscription options are available via
http://lists.aegee.org/monthlyreview-l.html
IF you want to unsubscribe from the list use this link:
http://lists.aegee.org/monthlyreview-l/unsubscribe.php?email=&WHOM;
or http://lists.aegee.org/monthlyreview-l.html