"Young people want to participate both in person and online, depending on the possibilities. They want to have enough resources to implement their ideas and projects."

Participant in the analysis of young people's visions, 19 years old

Young people in Ukraine now have a new educational resource on the participation of young people in decision-making processes that affect them. In response to a request from national and local partners, the Council of Europe Project "Youth for Democracy in Ukraine: Phase III" has developed a new board game "There is a solution!".

In 2023 in co-operation with the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Association of Youth Council the Council of Europe Project conducted  an analysis of the visions and needs of young people regarding the creation of such an educational resource. The opinions of young people and the content of the Revised European Charter on the participation of young people in local and regional life became the basis for the development of a new educational tool.

The purpose of the game "There is a solution!" is to explore:

• policies that affect young people and ways to strengthen these policies;
• barriers that may hinder youth participation;
• conditions, circumstances that can help overcome these barriers;
• forms of youth participation;
• the RMSOS approach – Right, Means, Space, Opportunity, Support – for the participation of young people and reflect on how all this relates to the participation of each and every one in real-life decision-making.

In March 2024, the concept of the game was discussed with 23 young activists from 14 regions of Ukraine. This session took place during the first five-day training seminar on youth policy.

Based on the results of the developments, the Council of Europe project prepared the first prototype of the game. On 26 June 2024, the game was tested by  20 young activists from 10 regions of Ukraine during the second training seminar on participatory youth policy.

"The game "There is a solution!" provides space for equal participation of all players. This means that all decisions in the game are made jointly, not necessarily by consensus, it can be a majority. Each table (a group of participants) decides at the beginning of the game how they will make decisions. This mechanism develops dialogue competencies and negotiation practice," says Olena Glazkova, author of the game, consultant of the Council of Europe.

Based on the results of the piloting of the game and feedback from young people, the Council of Europe project finalized the prototype and published the game in several formats.

The game can be downloaded both for self-printing and for printing in the publishing house at the link.

It can be used by youth workers, educators, trainers in civil society organisations, youth centres, youth spaces, youth councils, civic education lessons. A board game can be an occasion to talk with young people about their participation and opportunities to participate both locally and nationally.

The game can be continued with exercises from the Council of Europe manuals "Have your say!", "Compass" or a training manual under the Training Programme for Civil Servants and Local Government Officials in Ukraine "Participatory Youth Policy".

The project “Youth for Democracy in Ukraine: Phase III” is implemented within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2023-2026. News, Council of Europe resources in the field of youth and open announcements for participation in project activities can be found here.