Democratic backsliding, disinformation, impunity, and authoritarianism are undermining democracy in Europe. People are increasingly afraid and frustrated. It comes at a time when democratic security – the resilience of our democratic institutions, freedoms, and values – is our first line of defence against the threats we face. A collective response is needed. There is no quick fix and no single solution. With the New Democratic Pact, the Council of Europe unites with its partners to boost solutions that work and create new responses. To identify them, consultations are needed. The Pact will serve as a collective and inclusive process – not to reinvent democracy, but to reinforce its foundations, amplify its benefits, and innovate its form to make it tangible for everyone, especially younger generations. The directions set during the consultation phase running through 2026 will shape the work that follows. 

Organisation: Young European Federalists Germany; Project: Federalist Peace Forum; Place: Ventotene, Italy

The project brings together participants from the Palestinian territories, Israel, and various European countries to collaboratively explore solutions to the Middle East conflict through a federalist lens. During a four-day workshop on Italy’s Ventotene island, participants engaged in interactive workshops, lectures, and cultural exchanges, discussing lived experiences and co-developing peacebuilding strategies aimed at fostering “positive peace” beyond politics. The project continued with locally-driven actions to promote human rights and federalist approaches to conflict resolution. The resulting policy papers and participant testimonies will be shared with civil society and european policymakers, ultimately seeking to lay the groundwork for a youth-led, democratic peace movement across the Middle East region.

Organisation: MilleniuM Training and Development Institute; Project: Youth Peace Camp Moldova; Place: Chișinău, Republic of Moldova

This initiative empowered 20 young people to become multipliers of peace-building, social cohesion, and conflict transformation through a structured non-formal learning process starting with a Youth Peace Camp in Chișinău, the Republic of Moldova. Following the main activity, 6 Ukrainians and 14 young people from 10 regions of the Republic of Moldova successfully translated their learning into action by organising follow-up initatives in their local communities (including workshops, discussions, interactive sessions, and community-based peace initiatives), reaching more than 200 young people across the country, thereby ensuring a tangible and measurable multiplier effect. The project concluded with the Youth Peace Fest Together final event, which served as a platform to present results, share learning outcomes, and reinforce cooperation between young people, youth organisations, and institutional stakeholders.

Organisation: Finnish National Youth Council; Project: Peace through participation: Nordic Baltic Eastern European Cooperation Conference; Place: Helsinki, Finland

This initiative aims to reach across borders and to foster and establish lasting collaborations among representatives from 11 different National Youth Councils from Northern and Eastern Europe. This four-day conference will culminate in a joint statement on youth participation and peacebuilding between the youth sectors of the Nordic, Baltic, and Eastern European countries. The purpose of the meeting is to share best practices and find common solutions to challenges relating to strengthening democratic participation and capacity for peacebuilding among young people in the 11 participating countries and their national umbrella organisations, thus representing and eventually impacting hundreds of youth organisations in Northern and Eastern Europe.

Organisation: World Student Christian Federation in Europe; Project: A Future and a Hope: Bridging Youth Resilience Across Borders; Place: Luserna San Giovanni, Italy

Organisation: National LGBT Rights Organization LGL; Project: Pride House: Human Rights Education for Young People by Young People; Place: Vilnius, Lithuania

The proposal aims to provide a safe space for advancing LGBTQIA+ rights through organising a series of educational and cultural events at the Baltic Pride in Vilnius proposed by the young people from the LGBTQIA+ community themselves. 19 events welcomed more than 250 participants, and addressed topics such as LGBTQIA+ rights advocacy, social issues, mental and physical well-being, interpersonal relationships, mindfulness practices, and creative empowerment. Pride House served as a hub and safe space where participants met, exchanged ideas, and strengthened connections. They also promoted community building and collaboration among LGBTQIA+ individuals and organisations. After the festival, the knowledge, skills, and best practices from the events were transformed into an online toolkit. This resource supports young LGBTQIA+ activists, educators, and organisers in developing and expanding similar initiatives.

Organisation: The Others BY; Project: Living Library as a community building tool; Place: Vilnius, Lithuania

The project aims to empower 11 young Belarusian migrants in Vilnius by promoting civic engagement, social inclusion, and efforts to challenge stereotypes and discrimination, using the Living Library method. Young people benefited from intensive trainings followed by educational sessions on communication, event promotion and team building, complemented with peer-to-peer mentoring meetings. Participants then organised and hosted two public Living Library events involving 56 readers and 12 “Living Books,” encouraging dialogue and reducing stereotypes. Organisers expanded the project’s reach through a TV feature and five in-depth articles that highlighted the experiences of vulnerable groups, including LGBTQ+ individuals, political activists, and people with chronic illnesses. 

Organisation: The Child and Youth Friendly Governance Project; Project: Strengthening active citizenship and democratic participation among children and young people; Place: Geneva, Switzerland

The project aims to equip children and youth in the Geneva canton with civic skills to promote democratic education and advance participation of young people to the public life. Through a three-day training program, 28 young Swiss people will learn through case studies and role-playing exercises about civic and political rights, will get to exercise democratic debates and critical thinking and develop advocacy strategies. This pilot project is intended to become an annual federal program in partnership with UNICEF, the Swiss Council for Youth Activities (CSAJ), and local councils, ultimately proposing a national programme of democratic education. 

Organisation: International Union of Socialist Youth (IUSY); Project: YouthLead: Empowering Political Facilitation with Digital Tools; Place; Vienna, Austria

This 4 day international activity aims to strengthen the leadership skills of young political activists from IUSY member organisations, to explore practical approaches to facilitation in political youth work. The activity focuses on building the capacity of young people to design and lead inclusive political youth events using non-formal education methods and digital tools.

A key outcome of the YouthLead: Empowering political facilitation with digital tools training course was the development of a workbook. Its purpose is to capture, consolidate, and share the collective knowledge, experiences, and tools gathered throughout the activity and it compiles the learnings, methods, and good practices that emerged from the training course, including facilitation techniques, digital tools for hybrid and online events, examples of interactive NFE activities, and project examples drawn from participants’ experiences.

 Read online

Organisation: Youth of the European People's Party (YEPP); Project: Women, leadership, politics - YEPP Camp; Place: Madrid, Spain

This training camp of four days aims to promote leadership and women empowerment through a combination of interactive workshops, panel discussions, debates, and study visits. By focusing on women’s political participation and leadership, the proposal equips 30 participants with the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to promote gender equality within their organisations and communities. Young people will engage in sessions that explore the evolution of feminism, strategies for women’s leadership, and the challenges of achieving gender-balanced political representation. Structured debates will allow them to critically analyse topics such as political quotas and merit, encouraging active learning, critical thinking, and the development of argumentation and negotiation skills. 

Organisation: International Young Naturefriends; Project: Democracy Re:Boot – Engage, Defend, Innovate!; Places: Prague (Czechia), Hannover (Germany), Nucșoara (Romania)

This long-term youth cooperation project aims to address rising anti-democratic tendencies, misinformation, disengagement, and social tensions, through a clear need to promote a positive and active way of life. This initiative brings together young people in three international gatherings, each with a specific focus: exploring threats to democracy; strengthening the role of young people in reshaping democratic processes and developings strategies; and finally creating democracy games as a tool to help young people better understand the democratic systems they live in and encourage them to become active participants in local, regional, or national democratic structures. The project fosters critical thinking and media literacy through gamification and promotes playfulness, creativity, and innovation in youth work.

Organisation: Polish Council of Youth Organisations; Project: CivicConnect Poland; Place: Warsaw, Poland.

This proposal aims to create a national umbrella platform for local youth councils, enabling collaboration, knowledge sharing, and stronger dialogue with local authorities, addressing one key issue faced by young people in Poland which is limited influence in local decision-making and a lack of structured support for meaningful civic engagement. This is rolled-out through consultation meetings, development of a shared database, and training sessions building leadership and civic skills of young people. The project also supports the implementation of local micro-projects co-designed with youth councils. As key outputs, a digital toolkit and video materials showcasing best practices and inspiring youth-led initiatives across Poland is expected to be produced and shared on social media.

Organisation: InCo Molfetta; Project: House of Youths; Place: Molfetta, Italy

This initiative aims to create a Youth Forum in the municipality of Molfetta, where young members of the community express their needs and collaborate with policy makers to initiate proposals that answer the needs of the community. The process will involve the selection of youth delegates from different stakeholders, including civil society organisations, to be part of the "Youth Forum". Through a participatory process of thematic focus groups facilitated by youth workers from InCo Molfetta, the delegates will then contribute to designing and implementing projects or initiatives they consider relevant for their development. The proposal will finance and implement the four most voted ideas. The process also foresees training in project management, a study visit in Spain at the Rafelbunyol Youth Council, and the preparation of policy papers and positions for policymakers. Finally, a short guide on what a youth-friendly space looks like will be published at the end of the project.

Organisation: European Minority Youth Network; Project: Stand up for Inclusiveness and Equality– Stand up for the Future!; Place: Palanga, Lithuania

This six-day training course faims to increase the competences and practical skills of youth workers and young journalists in using information campaigns to stand up for inclusiveness, cultural diversity, multiculturalism, and combating xenophobia, nationalism, intolerance, and chauvinism. 23 youth workers from Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Poland, Ukraine, Moldova and Germany took part in the activity, culminating in the creation of information campaigns rolled out on social media of the participants, promoting inclusiveness and equality, cultural diversity and common democratic values.

Organisation: National Youth Forum of Andorra; Project: Study and Improvement of Young People's Labor Rights; Place: Encamp, Andorra

The project addresses the labour market challenges faced by young people in Andorra, including job insecurity, limited career progression, wage inequality, and weak access to collective bargaining. Through a structured, data-driven approach the initiative collects testimonies and survey data to identify inequalities, raises awareness through campaigns and media outreach, and promotes systemic change by engaging unions, employers, and policymakers in dialogue and advocacy efforts. Through these actions, the initiative empowers young workers with knowledge, skills, and opportunities to shape their working conditions, and young people gain a stronger understanding of their rights, improve their ability to negotiate and advocate for fair treatment, and actively contribute to policy discussions.

Organisation: Fédération Européenne des Associations Nationales Travaillant avec les Sans-Abri - Jeunes (FEANTSA Youth); Project: Empowering young professionals to end homelessness in Europe; Place: Braga, Portugal

Organisation: Non-Governmental Organization “Feminist Workshop”; Project: Feminism unfiltered: know, protect, defend your rights; Place: Lviv, Ukraine

The proposal contributes to empower young women with the knowledge and skills in understanding the causes of gender inequality, counteracting these challenges, and grow as strong activists, driving lasting change and progress toward gender equality in Ukraine. Through lectures and interactive workshops, individual coaching sessions and a two day training on emotional resilience, more than 100 participants explored topics such as preventing burnout, building sustainable feminist activism, breaking gender stereotypes, history of women’s rights in Ukraine and Europe, media representation, workplace inequality, and the link between feminism and LGBTQI+ rights. The project helped participants to building strong peer connections, empowered them to take action through engaging in volunteering programmes and increasing their resilience for long-term activism.

Organisation: European Network on Independent Living Youth Network; Project: Summer school for young disabled women "LEADERKA"; Place: Brussels, Belgium

Through a four-day international meeting, the proposal empowered 13 young women with disabilities from Ukraine, Georgia, Belgium and France on leadership skills, supporting their participation in European political processes, and advancing disability-inclusive advocacy programmes.  The summer school provided intensive trainings, workshops, and open discussions. deepening participants' understanding of political processes, advocacy tools, and exploring what it means to lead as disabled women in an ableist world with topics ranging from feminist leadership and independent living, to work of the Council of Europe, insights into the EU institutions, promotion of human rights, and the EU accession processes. Practical sessions showed how to influence political systems and push for disability rights at national and European levels. 

Organisation: European Union of Deaf Youth; Project: Across Borders: Solidarity and shared experiences among Deaf Youth from Ukraine; Place: Bucharest, Romania

The proposal supports Deaf young people affected by the war in Ukraine, including those displaced across Europe and those still living in the country, addressing overlapping discriminations. Through this week long seminar focused on storytelling, empowerment workshops, and intercultural dialogue, Ukrainian peers exchange with Deaf peers from Eastern Europe, fostering mutual understanding, solidarity links, and lasting cross-border connections. The initiative creates a space for Deaf Ukrainian youth to reconnect despite displacement, share their experiences, and reflect on identity, loss, and resilience. At the same time, it engages Deaf youth from neighbouring countries in discussions about marginalisation and empowerment. Through these exchanges, participants strengthen regional networks of support and activism.

Organisation: International Federation of Liberal Youth; Project: Minorities at danger, Time for Youth activism!; Places: Sofia (Bulgaria), Berlin (Germany), Lisbon (Portugal)

The aim of this long-term youth co-operation project is to 50 empower young people to counter discrimination and exclusion of minorities by exploring the root causes, consequences, and solutions for minority rights violations in Europe. The first international activity taking place in Sofia tackles the rise of xenophobia, particularly targeting refugees and Roma youth. Participants will learn how to challenge discriminatory narratives locally and regionally. The second international activity taking place in Berlin, is focusing on the anti-rights movement, exploring how to combat the spread of anti-democratic, anti-equality and anti-human rights rhetoric and to prevent young people from being drawn into such ideologies. Participants will create counterstrategies rooted in pluralism, inclusion, and human rights. Finally, the third international gathering will bring together 20 young people in Lisbon to reflect on the lessons learned, share local follow-up actions, and build lasting collaboration networks across borders, finalised with a joint youth statement.

Organisation: International Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer and Intersex Youth and Student Organisation (IGLYO); Project: LGBTQI Youth Inclusion in Sports; Place: Brussels, Belgium

The project's main aim is creating safer and more inclusive sports environments for LGBTQI youth. It addresses existing barriers and promotes policy change at both national and European levels, through a survey on the lived experiences of LGBTQI youth in sports, an often overlooked area in inclusion efforts. The survey collects first-hand accounts of LGBTQI youth navigating sports environments in schools and community settings, where they frequently face discrimination and exclusion. The research informed an international seminar on LGBTQI inclusion in sports. It produced a narrative report and a visual storytelling campaign, used as core material to guide further inclusion and advocacy work of IGLYO.

 Read the survey report here. Check-out the policy recommendations to policymakers, sport institutions, educational actors and youth organisations.

Organisation: BreachBuilders; Project: Youth Gender Advocacy Fellowship; Place: Osnabrück, Germany

This initiative aims to strengthen young people’s knowledge of gender equality and to boost their engagement in policy and monitoring processes. Over the process of several months, 15 participants in Osnabrück took part in trainings, research, advocacy activities, and public campaigns. The young "fellow" participants collaborated with civil society organisations and representatives of local authorities to produce policy documents, blog articles, a shadow report for a UN commitee and to engage in advocacy initiatives. As a result, they developed key skills, raised awareness on gender justice, strengthened youth participation in policymaking, and built lasting networks with stakeholders, that were presented at a concluding forum. 

Organisation: Rural Youth Europe; Project: European Rural Youth Forward Conference 2026; Place: Infiesto, Asturias, Spain

Over 100 rural youth leaders, policymakers, and stakeholders gathered in L’Infiestu, Piloña, for the European Rural Youth Forward Conference 2026, organised by Rural Youth Europe and EPA! – Rural Youth of Spain. The event brought young people and decision-makers together to develop practical solutions and highlighted the importance of youth involvement in rural communities. Participants discussed key challenges such as youth engagement, education, cultural sustainability, and economic opportunities, based on recent research. Using the Petardo methodology, they created practical community initiatives through interactive collaboration. The conference promoted democratic participation and youth-led governance, while speakers emphasised the role of EU-supported initiatives in empowering rural youth and recognising them as active contributors to rural development.

Organisation: European Free Alliance Youth; Project: Challenging Far-Right Extremism: Awareness and Rights for Minority Youth; Place: Cardiff, United Kingdom

This four-day international seminar aims to bring together minority and stateless nation youth from across Europe to explore and challenge the rise of far-right extremism. In a safe, youth-led space, young participants will be able to share experiences of discrimination, build a common understanding of how far-right hostility affects young people in different contexts. Collective tools to respond to exclusion and hate speech will be produced by the participants and shared to spread the outcome of the project.

Organisation: Information and Education Development Network (INEDNET); Project: Boosting youth democratic governance through participatory budgeting BUDGETIFY; Place: Yerevan and Tsaghkadzor, Armenia

This seven-day capacity-building activity empowers 21 young leaders from across Europe to drive participatory democracy in their communities, using Participatory Budgeting (PB) techniques. The participants’ skills will be enhanced through a combination of theory and practice in needs assessment, project development, communication campaigns, engaging in PB simulations and role plays, and developing strategies to mobilize their communities. After the training, participants apply their learning locally by running awareness campaigns, consulting with stakeholders, collecting ideas, developing proposals, and implementing and monitoring small-scale PB projects.

Organisation: Cooperation and Development Network for Eastern Europe; Project: Keep your fist up and your head held high! Building resilience of green youth organisations in Eastern Europe; Places: Armenia, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czechia, Croatia, Republic of Moldova, Türkiye, Ukraine.

The project consisted of an international Resilience Building Summer Camp as the first phase, which was held in Chișinău, Republic of Moldova - followed by eight Refocus Local Actions that were realised across Eastern Europe. Both activities aimed to support green youth organisations in Eastern Europe to build resilience for operating within environments characterised by democratic backsliding and deterioration of democratic values and maintain capacity to advocate for improvement of democratic processes to counter these trends. Participants explored issues such as rights restrictions, limited media freedom, mental health challenges, and shrinking civic space. They analysed the causes and impacts of democratic decline and developed skills in adaptability, strategic thinking, community building, and well-being, while gaining tools to resist these trends.

 Check the outcomes of this project at the following link.

Organisation: Organisation of Creative Grouping Serbia; Project: Creative Youth Sparks of Democracy; Place: Vršac, Serbia

This proposal aims to strengthen young people's skills in advocating for democratic participation in rural areas using creative methods. This will be done through a Creative Lab training for 18 young people, followed by at least 5 advocacy creative campaigns. Participants will gain knowledge about the role of human rights in inclusion and preventing discrimination; questioning personal values toward different discrimination based on gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, geographic, social and economic obstacles; improve critical thinking towards existing advocacy methods and democracy processes on a local level; learn about step-by-step approaches in making creative advocacy methods with and for young people; and prepare for dissemination on a local level. The project will conclude with the production of a pocket sized brochure for democratic participation of young people from rural and suburban areas.

Organisation: European Fellowship of Christian Youth; Project: Empowering Youth in the Digital Age; Place: Kirkham, United Kingdom

This five-day course aims to equip 40 youth workers and young leaders with the competences needed to critically use social media and digital tools for youth participation, community engagement and responsible leadership. Participants will learn film making skills, useful for branding their organisation, have sessions on media literacy, disinformation and AI, and plan follow-up activities in their own settings (workshops on media literacy or digital competences, social media strategies for their organisations). Outputs will include a "European digital literacy toolkit", participant's local actions and at least 5 co-created videos during the training.