Youth delegates - Rejuvenating politics

The "Rejuvenating Politics" initiative

The "Rejuvenating Politics" initiative was launched by the Congress in 2014 as part of its commitement to promoting the participation of young people in public life and in the decision-making process at local and regional level.

The "Youth Delegates" project is a part of this initiative. It gives young people, from the 46 Council of Europe member states, a unique opportunity to sit (without voting rights) in a European assembly alongside local and regional elected representatives. They can make their voices heard, be part of a diverse group of young activists, build a network and have an impact by stimulating debate from a youth perspective.

Becoming a youth delegate

Each of the 46 member state delegations welcomes one youth delegate for a mandate of one calendar year. They are young people, between the ages of 18 and 30, from a variety of different backgrounds: youth activists, youth workers, students, young politicians, and more. They are selected via an online application process and represent a balanced group with regard to gender, cultural background, age and experience. In addition to the youth delegate a substitute is always chosen from each member State.

Acting as youth delegate

Participating as a youth delegate in the sessions (in-person or remote)

The Congress invites young people from different backgrounds to take part in its sessions in March and in October. They have the opportunity to give their opinions during the debates and to exchange views with the Congress members on the issues on the agenda.

Developing and implementing projects between the sessions

As a part of their participation, youth delegates have been required to develop their own projects at local and regional level. For this, they will have the support of the trainers in the form of mentoring sessions to develop and assess their ideas.

Participation of Youth delegates in Congress sessions

43rd Session

42nd Session

41st Session

40th Session

37th Session

36th Session

35th Session

34th Session

33rd Session

32nd Session

31st Session

News

Back The social rights of young people, a competence of local and regional authorities

The fundamental social rights of the citizens of the member states of the Council of Europe are guaranteed by the European Social Charter and its collective complaints mechanism. As a legal instrument, the Charter refers to young people as having certain rights, notably in terms of education, health and housing. There are still significant disparities, however, in the way these rights are implemented, which is why the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe has adopted a report on this issue, presented on 3 April 2019 by the co-rapporteurs Liisa ANSALA (Finland, ILDG) and Piero FASSINO (Italy, SOC).

In order to ensure that young people’s social rights are respected in practice, the Congress calls on local and regional authorities, as bodies which have competences in the social field, to consider these rights a priority for their policies. Member states are invited to ratify the Social Charter, to accept the collective complaints procedures and to involve local and regional authorities in the Social Charter monitoring mechanism. The Congress also emphasises the importance of raising youth awareness through various initiatives and co-ordinating actions at all levels of governance.

In the context of the Congress initiative "Rejuvenating Politics", youth delegates were invited to speak during the debate.

Produced in response to a request from the youth delegates, this report is a continuation of the Congress’s efforts to improve youth integration, participation and engagement at local and regional levels. Since 2014, the Congress has been committed to promoting youth participation, in particular through the “Rejuvenating politics” initiative. Youth delegates from the 47 member states are invited to participate in the debates and to exchange views with Congress members on the issues on session agendas.