Over the course of 21 months, the YourEP project trained youngsters in order to prepare them to design, and later on implement, their very own political simulation of the European Parliament.
CONTEXT
The YourEP project started from a shared observation: Citizenship has become yet another area of exclusion, especially for youngsters with fewer opportunities. Active citizenship, EU and political awareness, and Social inclusion are indeed closely intertwined issues in the field of youth.
Furthermore, while these issues can only be tackled altogether, youngsters with fewer opportunities are still underrepresented in initiatives promoting political participation and political awareness. This is why the YES Forum, together with its partners, designed the YourEP project.
OBJECTIVES & PROCESS
To contribute to open political simulations, catering for a more diverse audience, YourEP consisted of 3 Transnational Project Meetings and 2 Blended Mobility activities over the course of 21 months. They allowed partners and their young participants to develop and implement an Inclusive & Accessible political simulation of the European Parliament:
- Inclusive - regardless of participants’ personal backgrounds and difficulties.
- Accessible - regardless of participants’ prior knowledge of or interest in politics and the European Union.
To better suit their needs, the #YourEPsimulation method was designed with the active involvement of 24 youngsters with fewer opportunities from 7 different EU countries. They were accompanied by experienced youth workers from the partners, while the whole process was supported by the European expertise of JEF Europe.
The YourEP project unfolded into three phases.
RESULTS | YourEP's Recipe for Inclusive & Accessible Simulations
YourEP's key outcome lies in its own design. To better suit their needs, the #YourEPsimulation method was developed with the active involvement of youngsters with fewer opportunities, supported by experienced youth & social workers.
As a result of this participatory process, the YourEP Method applied the following key principles in order to be Inclusive - regardless of participants' personal backgrounds and difficulties - and Accessible - regardless of participants’ prior knowledge of or interest in politics and the European Union.
PROJECT PARTNERS
Coordinated by the YES Forum, the YourEP project gathers 10 European partners, bringing their own, complementary experiences in youth and social work, as well as in the promotion of Active citizenship, Social Inclusion and European Awareness.
For more details, please check the following page.