This site provides an overview of some of the main initiatives of the Youth Sector to support Youth initiatives for an inclusive and peaceful society for young people in Europe and globally.

The Council of Europe youth sector should aim at enabling young people across Europe to actively uphold, defend, promote and benefit from the Council of Europe’s core values of human rights, democracy and the rule of law.

This includes associating young people intercultural dialogue and peacebuilding within the thematic priority Living together in diverse societies. In this work, the Youth for Democracy programme places a special emphasis on:

  • better equipping stakeholders to tackle both the challenges of building inclusive societies through policies, programmes and projects that embrace diversity and of effectively monitoring and countering discrimination, violence and exclusion;
  • allowing young people, including those experiencing any form of discrimination and exclusion, to benefit from opportunities that develop their commitment to and exercise of democratic citizenship;
  • embedding key foundations, such as European unity, global solidarity, peace, diversity, intercultural and intergenerational dialogue and environmental sustainability, more prominently in policy, practice and research within and beyond the youth sector;
  • strengthening young people’s capacities, agency and leadership to prevent violence, transform conflict and to build a culture of peace through substantial support for funding, building networks and recognising the full diversity of young people and their ways of organising themselves.

In this work, the youth sector is guided by the White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue, notably in relation to Euro-Arab cooperation and dialogue and basis itself on the agency of youth leaders and youth organisations, involved in local and Europe-wide Youth Peace Camps. Within this priority the Youth sector is also working on social inclusion of migrants, young refugees , minority and vulnerable groups, including Roma young people .