CFPs: Congress “Rejuvenating Politics” Initiative 2025 (Europe)

Since October 2014, the Congress has invited young people from different backgrounds – youth activists, youth workers, students, youth political leaders – who take an active interest in the work of the Council of Europe and the role of local and regional authorities to take part in its sessions and meetings, express their views in debates and exchange with Congress members on the issues on its agenda.

Being a Congress youth delegate is a unique opportunity to gain international experience as a part of a diverse group of young activists, to network and to make an impact by bringing youth perspectives to Congress debates. The participation of youth delegates in its work both highlights and helps to strengthen the Congress’s continuing commitment to youth empowerment.

Objectives

• The Congress of the Council of Europe invites young people to:
  • take an active part, as a youth delegate, in its 48th (25-27 March 2025) and 49th (28- 30 October 2025) sessions in Strasbourg, France
  • develop their own grassroots project at home (under the aegis of the Congress)

Aims

• By inviting young people from every member State to take part in its “Rejuvenating Politics” initiative, the Congress aims to give young people an opportunity to express their opinions directly to local and regional elected representatives, to ensure youth perspectives are heard, and to promote young people’s ongoing participation in democratic processes both at international level and at home.
• The specific objectives of the youth delegates programme are to:
  • involve young people directly in all aspects of the Congress’s work;
  • make young people aware of the Congress’s work and the tools it has developed to support youth participation;
  • discuss with young people and raise the awareness of Congress members regarding how local and regional youth participation can be boosted;
  • bring youth perspectives to all thematic debates within the Congress;
  • motivate and empower youth delegates to multiply the information and experience acquired during the sessions on their return home, in particular through the development and implementation of their own projects at local and regional levels;
  • share information about existing models of youth-led structures;
  • inspire young people to spread the word about the Congress’s work;
  • promote co-operation between members of the Congress and youth delegates;
  • show national delegations the importance of officially including more young people as members.

Program Specifications

• Participating as a youth delegate in the sessions:
  • During the sessions, youth delegates sit in the hemicycle alongside the Congress members.
  • A two-day preparatory meeting is held prior to each session. This is not a training session but serves to familiarize youth delegates with the functioning of the Congress; candidates should already have the necessary public speaking skills, be able to prepare short speeches and be capable of analyzing policy documents.
  • Youth delegates must commit to taking part in the whole of the two sessions in 2025:
    • From Saturday 22 March until the debriefing session on Thursday 27 March
    • From Saturday 25 October until the debriefing session on Thursday 30 October.
• Developing and implementing projects between the sessions:
  • Between the March and October sessions, youth delegates will be required to develop a local or regional project which may be related to the Congress’s priorities or to thematic debates held by the Congress during its 2025 sessions. These projects may take different forms (conference, mobile application, presentation to school, podcast).
  • For the development of their projects, youth delegates will have the support of trainers to develop and assess their ideas through mentoring sessions.
  • The Congress does not provide funding for project development but does provide youth delegates with an introduction letter to act as a visiting card in their dealings with local or regional authorities. It may also provide information documents and other material, if needed.
• Other events:
  • There may also be possibilities during the year for some youth delegates to take part in other events organised by the Congress in or outside Strasbourg, such as its committee meetings, seminars or conferences, or to take part as a Congress youth delegate in other Council of Europe or external events.

Eligibility Criteria

• All youth delegates should:
  • be open, committed and motivated to develop and strengthen dialogue between young people and elected representatives at local/regional level;
  • be aged between 18 and 30 years old on the closing date for applications;
  • live in and hold the passport of one of the 46 Council of Europe member States;
  • be active in youth work at local and regional levels;
  • be available to engage in the whole of the activity, including the preparation of grassroots projects;
  • have an interest in actively participating in policy-making at local and/or regional levels;
  • be able to multiply the information obtained during the session on their return home;
  • have good writing and public speaking skills;
  • be committed to working in an intercultural team;
  • speak English fluently.

Ineligibility Criteria

• Youth delegates must not:
  • be elected representatives, whether at local, regional, national or European level;
  • have participated in the initiative previously.

For more information, visit Council of Europe.