Empower young people across Europe – especially those from marginalised or underrepresented groups – to actively participate in democratic life by strengthening their civic competences, political understanding, and digital resilience through innovative and creative engagement approaches.
Description of the project
ACTIVATE responds to the need to revitalise civic engagement among young people in a time of erosion of trust in institutions, growing societal polarisation, disinformation and restrictions on civil society. Recognising that these dynamics disproportionately affect young people from rural areas, migrant backgrounds or marginalised socio-economic contexts, who are at an increased risk of being excluded from civic discourse and policymaking processes, ACTIVATE promotes forms of civic engagement that are inclusive, participatory and creative. Specifically, it addresses shortcomings in civic knowledge, digital resilience, and policy co-creation by combining EU civic education with innovative approaches such as storytelling, arts-based engagement, digital resilience training, and simulated policymaking. This multidimensional approach ensures accessibility while allowing participants to experience participation firsthand. Furthermore, it revitalises traditional methods of civic engagement, by embracing diversity and encouraging new practices and modes of collective action.
Objectives
- Enhance EU civic literacy among youth, through locally relevant and accessible educational events and materials.
- Promote inclusive participation by targeting rural youth, migrants, young women, and socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals with tailored interventions.
- Strengthen digital and disinformation resilience via training in critical thinking, fact-checking, and safe online participation.
- Foster transnational collaboration to exchange civic best practices, deepen cultural understanding, and promote a unified civic vision for Europe.
- Integrate gender and equity perspectives in all phases of the project cycle – from design to evaluation – ensuring meaningful representation and reducing participation barriers for all genders and identities.
Activities
- Transnational Civic Empowerment Lab – A Training of Trainers (ToT) programme for project staff, focusing on the application of project methodologies, including activity design and the integration of inclusive and gender-sensitive approaches.
- Inclusive Civic Participation Labs – In-person workshops to explore local barriers to civic engagement and co-design inclusive strategies with youth.
- National Citizen and Youth Workers Labs – Workshop bringing together citizens and youth workers to design micro-actions addressing the barriers to civic engagement identified by young participants, using gender-sensitive methodologies.
- Political and EU Literacy Webinars – A series of online webinars to increase youth understanding of EU institutions, policymaking, and democratic rights.
- Digital Resilience & Media Labs – Online workshops to strengthen participants’ ability to identify and counter disinformation, improve media literacy, and promote responsible digital citizenship.
- Creative Civic Expression Forums – Public-facing forums and artistic showcases where participants present civic messages through storytelling, visual arts, and performance.
- An online course on the UN system, global citizenship, and its links to EU governance run by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).
- Civic Storytelling Workshops – Online training sessions that help youth craft and share personal narratives linked to civic identity, diversity, and democratic engagement.
- Youth Civic Vision Assembly – A transnational event held in Germany simulating EU decision-making processes, where participants will co-draft and adopt the ACTIVATE Civic Manifesto and action recommendations.
- Youth Governance Dialogue – A two-day learning and exchange visit for youth representatives to UNITAR Headquarters, designed to connect EU civic engagement with global governance and multilateralism.
Results
Resources
- Digital Literacy Toolkit for Youth – An open-access, downloadable online resource featuring critical tools, exercises and tips for countering disinformation.
- Creative Civic Showcase – A curated digital booklet featuring photos, artworks, quotes, and stories from the Creative Civic Forums.
- ACTIVATE Civic Manifesto – A civic policy document co-drafted by youth participants, with key recommendations on inclusion, democratic participation, EU citizenship, and disinformation.
- Reflection Package – A booklet containing youth testimonials, quotes and photos documenting the youth exchange visit, designed as an advocacy tool to inform decision-makers and support evidence-based approaches to youth participation.
Impact
- At least 500 young and underrepresented citizens empowered to engage in democratic processes through the project’s multidimensional activities.
Partners
- Coordinator: ASOCIACION CIFAL MALAGA, Spain
- CIEDES, Spain
- IBCM – Public International Business College Mitrovica, Kosovo
- Centro per lo Sviluppo Creativo Danilo Dolci ETS, Italy
- NEMZETI IFJUSAGI TANACS, Hungary
- Bakcso Természetjaro, Termeszetvedo, Kulturalis es Szabadidosport Egyesulet, Hungary
- CIFAL Flanders, Belgium
- YOUTH POWER GERMANY EV, Germany
- UNITAR, Switzerland
