Ability refers to capacities that someone can already demonstrate that s/he possesses, such as having the ability to speak a certain language.

REF: Chisholm, L. (2005): Bridges for Recognition Cheat Sheet: Proceedings of the SALTO Bridges for Recognition: Promoting Recognition of Youth Work across Europe, Leuven-Louvain.

Defined in Article 9 of The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), accessibility is perceived through enabling persons with disabilities to live independently and participate fully in all aspects of life. For this purpose, authorities shall take appropriate measures to ensure to persons with disabilities access, on an equal basis with others, to the physical environment, to transportation, to information and communication, including information and communication technologies and systems, and to other facilities and services open or provided to the public, both in urban and in rural areas. These measures, which shall include the identification and elimination of obstacles and barriers to accessibility, shall apply, inter alia - both to the physical infrastructure but also to information, communication and other services - including electronic services and emergency services. 

Ref: UN, Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRDP), available at: https://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/convention-on-the-rights-of-persons-with-disabilities/article-9-accessibility.html, accessed December 16, 2019

Formally or socially recognised authorities or instances accredit courses, activities and their outcomes. This means they testify that organisations and individuals meet standards to which all have agreed to conform. They vouch for the credibility of the certificates and diplomas that are issued, and hence for the reliability and validity of the monitoring, evaluation and assessment of the individuals and the organisations whose judgements are given the stamp of approval.

REF: Chisholm, L. (2005): Bridges for Recognition Cheat Sheet: Proceedings of the SALTO Bridges for Recognition: Promoting Recognition of Youth Work across Europe, Leuven-Louvain.

See also: Certificates; formal recognition

Acculturation explains the process of cultural change and psychological change that results following meeting between cultures. The effects of acculturation can be seen at multiple levels in both interacting cultures. Acculturation often results in changes to culture, customs, and social institutions, noticeable effects of acculturation also include changes in food, clothing, language. At the individual level, acculturation leads not only to changes in daily behaviour, but is associated with numerous measures of psychological and physical well-being. Acculturation can be thought of as second-culture learning while enculturation is used to describe the process of first-culture learning. Acculturation is a highly complex process of taking conscious decisions, both at individual and group levels, about accepting and/or rejecting material and non-material aspects of another culture. Acculturation may lead to assimilation and weakening or loss of own culture in a “melting pot” society or to keeping own cultural trait alive in a “salad bowl” society. Reluctance to acculturate may lead to segregation. Acculturation processes may involve violence and protest or be smooth and take place voluntarily. In European Union one finds many instances illustrating acculturation processes: Muslim population in France, the Turkish population in Germany, and Caribbean and Asian populations in England. These societies are religiously and ethnically different from the Muslim, Turkish, Caribbean, and Asian populations being introduced into those countries. 

REF: Dennis, K.N. (2007): Acculturation. In Ritzer, G. (ed.): The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

See also: Culture; Integration

The action plan is a way to make sure that an organisation’s/institution’s/group’s vision is made concrete. The action plan also describes the path that the group and the organisation will be following in order to reach the planned strategy and to reach the objectives. The action plan should include the actions that are to be taken, the person responsible for every action, clear deadlines for completing the specified actions, the resources that are to be used for the actions as well as the communication tools required for the coordination.

REF: Community Tool Box, Section 5. Developing an Action Plan.

Activism refers to taking action to impact social change. In terms of actions involved, it may include causes related to changes in the social, political, economic or environmental sectors. The process of change might be either conducted by an individual having the capacity to mobilize masses or collectively. When it comes to the forms of activism, it might vary from action undertaking civil disobedience, protests, occupations, campaigning, boycotts and demonstrations to more conventional forms such as lobby processes, writing letters, internet activism, petitions, and attending meeting of public bodies.

REF: Permanent Culture Now, Introduction to Activism. See also: Lobby

Adultism is the discrimination and disempowerment of children through policies, practices and actions which privilege adults and limit children’s agency, autonomy and subjectivity. The concept of adultism has its origins in psychology (Flascher, 1978). Adultism is based on ‘the assumption that adults know what is in the best interests of youth and are thus entitled to act upon them without their agreement’ (Ceasar: 2014: 169).  Adultism is often enacted through microaggressions, which may be understood as a statement, action, or incident which indirectly, subtly or unintentionally privileges adults and discriminates against youth, for example: “You’ll understand when you’re older”. Adultism limits children’s self-determination and transforms them from political subjects into objects of adult decisions and policies.

See also childist standpoint theory

Ceasar, D. (2014) ‘Unlearning adultism at Green Shoots: a reflexive ethnographic analysis of age inequality within an environmental education programme’ Ethnography and Education, 9:2, 167-181.

Flascher, J. (1978) ‘Adultism’, Adolescence, 13(51), 517-23.

Freechild Institute (2021) ‘Adultism’. Available online here: https://freechild.org/2015/12/22/adultism/ [11.04.21].

Advocacy is the process that aims at creating or reforming public policies. The term has a wide range of definitions determined mainly by the actors involved with the advocacy processes. Social justice advocacy refers to the processes initiated by groups affected by social injustice. Rights based advocacy consists of campaigns and projects run by the watchdog organisations. Public interest advocacy and people centred advocacy are instituted to ensure citizens’ participation in decision making processes or think tanks. Consequently, advocacy is a political process that involves the coordinated efforts of the civil society structures running the advocacy campaigns in order to change the existent policies and practices or the balance of power, the resources, the ideas and values that could affect the citizens in general or a particular group of citizens.

REF: VeneKlasen, Lisa and Miller, Valerie (2002): A new wave of Power, People and Politics: An Action guide for policy and citizens participation, Oklahoma City.

See also: Citizen; lobby; participation; political participation

APEL stands for Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning. This term is used in the UK, where APL (Accreditation of Prior Learning) and CCC (Crediting Current Competence) are also used for roughly the same purpose. In other countries similar activities are known under different names. In France it is known as ‘Bilan de competences’, ‘Bilan des competences approfondi’, or ‘Validation de Acquis des Experiences (VAE)’. Regardless of the title, all are the same and all are RPL – Recognition of Prior Learning.

RPL describes a process used by regulatory bodies, adult learning centres, career development practitioners, military organisations, human resource professionals, employers, training institutions, colleges and universities around the world to evaluate skills and knowledge (learning) acquired outside the classroom for the purpose of recognizing competence against a given set of standards, competencies, or learning outcomes.

Methods of assessing prior learning are varied and include: evaluation of prior experience gained through volunteer work, participation in a youth organisation, previous paid or unpaid employment, standardized exams or observation of actual workplace behaviour. The essential element of RPL is that it is an assessment of evidence provided by an individual to support their claim for competence against a given set of standards or learning outcomes. In European youth field, Youthpass (www.youthpass.eu) which contains a self-evaluation section using eight key competencies of the lifelong learning framework is an example of how RPL actually works.

REF: Chisholm, L. (2005): Bridges for Recognition Cheat Sheet: Proceedings of the SALTO Bridges for Recognition: Promoting Recognition of Youth Work across Europe, Leuven-Louvain.

See also: Competences; knowledge; participation; skill; volunteering; Youthpass

Artificial Intelligence (AI) - AI is a young discipline of about sixty years, which brings together sciences, theories and techniques (including mathematical logic, statistics, probabilities, computational neurobiology and computer science) and whose goal is to achieve the imitation by a machine of the cognitive abilities of a human being. Although there is no standard definition of AI, the expert group set by the OECD (AIGO) defined an AI system as a machine-based system that can, for a given set of human-defined objectives, make predictions, recommendations or decisions influencing real or virtual environments. It uses machine and/or human-based inputs to perceive real and/or virtual environments; abstract such perceptions into models (in an automated manner e.g. with machine learning (ML) or manually); and use model inference to formulate options for information or action. AI systems are designed to operate with varying levels of autonomy. In the broadest sense, the term refers indistinctly to systems that are pure science fiction (so-called "strong" AIs with a self-aware form) and systems that are already operational and capable of performing very complex tasks (face or voice recognition, vehicle driving - these systems are described as "weak" or "moderate" AIs). In practice, Specialists generally prefer to use the exact names of the technologies actually used (which today are essentially machine learning) and are sometimes reluctant to use the term "intelligence" because the results, although extraordinary in some areas, are still modest compared to the stated ambitions.

Ref: OECD (2019), Artificial Intelligence in Society, OECD Publishing, Paris, Available at: https://doi.org/10.1787/eedfee77-en, accessed December 18, 2019; Council of Europe, Artificial Intelligence, available at: https://www.coe.int/en/web/artificial-intelligence/what-is-ai,  accessed February 3, 2020. 

In sociology, assimilation refers to the blending or fusing of minority groups into the dominant society. A narrower notion of cultural assimilation refers to the process by which a person or a group's language and/or culture come to resemble those of another group. The term is used to refer to both individuals and groups. In the latter case it can refer to either immigrant diasporas or native residents that come to be culturally dominated by another society. Assimilation may involve either a quick or gradual change depending on the circumstances of the group. Full assimilation occurs when new members of a society become indistinguishable from members of the dominant group. It happens when they use their language, daily habits, when they accept their version of (official) history, when they have taken over their attitudes and values. It is often disputed by both members of the group, and those of the dominant society, whether it is desirable for an immigrant group to assimilate or not.

Nowadays assimilation is associated also with two other forms describing the patterns of incorporating minorities in a “mainstream” culture and society: pluralist view whereby minorities keep their cultural specifics and features within a dominant society (the “salat bowl” model) and exclusion, which implies persistent and substantial disadvantages of minority group vis a vis the members of the mainstream society.

REF: Alba, R., Nee, V. (2007): Assimilation. In Ritzer, G. (ed.): The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

See also: Culture; diversity; ethnic minority; immigration

Assistive Technology – Any item, piece of equipment or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customised, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities. 

Ref: The Technology Related Assistance to Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1988 (Tech Act), link: https://ectacenter.org/topics/atech/definitions.asp, accessed December 18, 2019

The concept of attitudes emerged in the context of attempts to understand human action and behaviour. The theory of reasoned action posits that volitional behaviour is determined by intentions, which are influenced by attitudes and norms, being in turn influenced by beliefs. Thus within this framework, attitudes are understood as a certain “stage” in the formation of behaviour. However, since they are only one factor, not each attitude necessarily is followed by a behaviour. A different, constructivist approach to understanding (the link between) attitudes and behaviours sees people continually interpreting and reinterpreting the situations in which they find themselves, in order to create and coordinate their line of action with others. Within this framework, also attitudes are continually changed and do not appear as determinants of behaviour.

More concretely, attitudes can be seen as positive, negative, neutral or ambivalent views of persons, behaviours or social phenomena in general that shape a person's readiness to act or react in a certain way. Attitudes are composed of various forms of judgements – conscious and unconscious, rational and irrational, individual and social – and may not necessarily change as a result of evidence and experience. While there are numerous theories of attitude formation and attitude change, it remains poorly understood how exactly attitudes develop and evolve.

REF: Pestello, F. G. (2007): Attitudes and behavior. In Ritzer, G. (ed.) Encyclopedia of Social Theory, SAGE Publications, Inc.

See also: Socialisation

In Western ethics and political philosophy, the state or condition of self-governance, or leading one’s life according to reasons, values, or desires that are authentically one’s own. Although autonomy is an ancient notion (the term is derived from the ancient Greek words autos, meaning “self,” and nomos, meaning “rule”), the most-influential conceptions of autonomy are modern, having arisen in the 18th and 19th centuries in the philosophies of, respectively, Immanuel Kant and John Stuart Mill.

REF: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Autonomy.

Benchmark - Standard, or a set of standards, used as a point of reference for evaluating performance or level of quality.

Bi-sexual is a term that is used to describe a person who has an emotional and sexual orientation towards both their own sex and the opposite sex.

When talking about bi-sexuality, it is sometimes useful to distinguish between behaviour and identity. Someone who has had sexual experience with or even just attractions to people of more than one sex can be described as bi-sexual, but may not identify that way. Likewise, one can identify as bi-sexual regardless of sexual experience. Furthermore, identities can change over time.

REF: Bi-Sexual Resource Centre

See also: Gay, Homosexual, Lesbian, Queer, Sexual Orientation

Bullying - Bullying has traditionally been defined as repeated inhumane actions directed at target individuals, who are disadvantaged or less powerful than those who repeatedly harass or attack them. Bullying is an ongoing and deliberate misuse of power in relationships through repeated verbal, physical and/or social behaviour that intends to cause physical, social and/or psychological harm, having immediate, medium and long-term effects on those involved, including bystanders.It can involve an individual or a group misusing their power, or perceived power, over one or more persons who feel unable to stop it from happening. Bullying can happen in person or online, via various digital platforms and devices and it can be obvious (overt) or hidden (covert). Bullying behaviour is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time (for example, through sharing of digital records). Single incidents and conflict or fights between equals, whether in person or online, are not defined as bullying. 

Ref: Espelage, Dorothy L., and Rue, Lisa D. L. (2012) “School bullying: Its nature and ecology.” International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health 24.1 (2012): 3–10 &  Thornberg, R. (2015) “The social dynamics of school bullying: The necessary dialogue between the blind men around the elephant and the possible meeting point at the social ecological square”, Confero, Vol. 3, no. 2, pp.161-203.

Career guidance refers to services and activities intended to assist individuals, of any age and at any point throughout their lives, to make educational, training and occupational choices and to manage their careers. Such services may be found in schools, universities and colleges, in training institutions, in public employment services, in the workplace, in the voluntary or community sector and in the private sector. The activities may take place on an individual or group basis, and may be face-to-face or at a distance (including help lines and web-based services). 

REF: UNESCO-UNEVOC Resources and Services, TVETipedia Glossary.

See also: Training; voluntary sector

Certificates or diplomas are the ‘piece of paper' which record the outcome of the certification process. They most frequently have the status of an official document, but this is not an absolute prerequisite. In the context of youth work, certificates may also serve to certify one’s participation in a non-formal learning activity and/or to make learning achievements (competences gained) visible. A typical example of certificates of that kind is Youthpass certificate granted to participants in Erasmus+: Youth in Action projects.

REF: Chisholm, L. (2005): Bridges for Recognition Cheat Sheet: Proceedings of the SALTO Bridges for Recognition: Promoting Recognition of Youth Work across Europe, Leuven-Louvain; Youthpass Guide

See also: Accreditation; certification; formal recognition, Youthpass

Certification refers to a standardised process of formally validating knowledge, know-how, skills and/or competencies acquired by an individual or represented through a learning/service provider.

REF: Chisholm, L. (2005): Bridges for Recognition Cheat Sheet: Proceedings of the SALTO Bridges for Recognition: Promoting Recognition of Youth Work across Europe, Leuven-Louvain.

See also: Accreditation; certificate; formal recognition

The Charter on Local Youth Work (Europe goes local) - The aim of the charter is to contribute to the further development of local youth work. It does this by stating which principles should guide it and how different aspects of it should be designed in order to meet these principles. Hence, the Charter constitutes a common European platform for the necessary dialogue on youth work. It is a free-to-use methodological tool, functioning as a check-list around which stakeholders can gather and discuss what measures that might be needed for the further development of youth work, making sure that no aspect or perspective is left out and that youth work provision is carried out in the best and most efficient way.

The Charter formulates youth work’s value basis and its core principles. It also asks that youth work practice is guided by a youth work policy and furthermore states the needs of organisation and practice of local youth work. The Charter also describes on the one hand the role and tasks of youth workers and on the other hand the necessity of quality development of local youth work.

The Charter on Local Youth Work was developed in the Erasmus+ Youth in Action Project “Europe goes local” in a multi-step participatory approach with involvement of practitioners, youth policy makers, researchers and young people on the European level as well as in various consultation and adaptation rounds on the level of nation states.

For further information see: https://www.europegoeslocal.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/20191002-egl-charter_ENG_online.pdf

Children are human beings, so they have exactly the same human rights as adults. However, children have been recognised as being in particular need of care and assistance, and for that reason they also have their “own” human rights treaty – the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) defines child as a human being below the age of 18 years unless under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier. The Convention is the most rapidly and widely ratified international human rights instrument in history, accepted by all the countries except United States and Somalia.

The Convention changed the way children are viewed and treated – i.e., as human beings with a distinct set of rights instead of as passive objects of care and charity. It promotes the idea of children as people, whose wishes do need to be taken into account. Children are entitled to be respected and treated with dignity simply because they are human, whatever their age.

The definitions of child could be various: biological (person between birth and puberty), legal (an individual who is not yet an adult or who has not reached the age of majority), social (regarding the relationship with the parent), etc.

REF: Convention on the Rights of the Child, UN General Assembly resolution 44/25 of 20 November 1989, entry into force 2 September 1990, available at http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CRC.aspx;

Compass: A manual on human rights education with young people (2012), Council of Europe publishing, available at https://www.coe.int/en/web/compass

See also: Best interests of the child; Respect for the views of the child; Children’s rights; UNICEF

Childist standpoint theory is a critical lens which has emerged from the childhood studies tradition that emphasises young people’s subjective political agency and autonomy (Medina-Minton, N., 2019). It seeks to recognise, analyse and address the ways in which young people are disempowered by adultist policies and practices. Recent scholarship from this standpoint has explored the youth climate strikes from a childist perspective (Biswas and Mattheis, 2021) and is theorising global justice for children and youth (Josefsson and Wall, 2020)   Debates on childist standpoint theory increasingly situate the childist standpoint within a wider understanding of intersectionality for children and youth (Konstantoni and Emejulu, 2017).

See also adultism.

Biswas, T. and Mattheis, N. (2021) ‘Strikingly educational: a childist perspective on children’s civil disobedience for climate justice’ Educational Philosophy and Theory.

Josefsson, J. and Wall, J. (2020) ‘Empowered inclusion: theorizing global justice for children and youth’, Globalisations, 17:6, 1043-1060.

Kristina Konstantoni & Akwugo Emejulu (2017) When intersectionality metchildhood studies: the dilemmas of a travelling concept, Children's Geographies, 15:1, 6-22,

Medina-Minton, N. (2019) ‘Are Children an Oppressed Group? Positing a Child Standpoint Theory’ Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, vol. 36, pp. 439–447.

A citizen is a member of a political community who enjoys the rights and assumes the duties of membership.

There are three main elements of citizenship. The first is citizenship as legal status, defined by civil, political and social rights. Here, the citizen is the legal person free to act according to the law and having the right to claim the law's protection. The second considers citizens specifically as political agents, actively participating in a society's political institutions. The third refers to citizenship as membership in a political community that furnishes a distinct source of identity.

REF: Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy.

See also: Citizenship; identity; multi-dimensional citizenship; participation

(Active) citizenship stands for an active participation of citizens in the economic, social, cultural and political fields of life. In the youth field much emphasis is on learning the necessary competences through voluntary activities. The aim is not only to improve the knowledge, but also motivation, skills and practical experience to be an active citizen.

REF: Siurala, L. (2005): European framework of youth policy

See also: Multi-dimensional citizenship; voluntary activities; Youthpass

Civic engagement involves working to make a difference in the civic life of one’s community and developing the combination of knowledge, skills, values and motivation to make that difference. It means promoting the quality of life in a community, through both political and non-political processes. Civic engagement includes both paid and unpaid forms of political activism, environmentalism, and community and national service. The goal of civic engagement is to address public concerns and promote the quality of the community. More and more young people are discovering that their voices matter to their communities and that they can make their communities better places to live if they become active citizens. Volunteering is one form of civic engagement.

REF: Thomas Erlich, Civic Responsibility and Higher Education, American Council on Education/Oryx Press, 2000;

Youth.gov http://youth.gov/youth-topics/civic-engagement-and-volunteering, Last retrieved 05.01.2017  

See also: civic participation

Civic Service is a voluntary service managed by the State- or on behalf of the State- e.g. in the social field or in civil protection.

REF: European Commission: Communication from the Commission to the Council, COM (2004) 337 - 30.4.2004: Proposed common objectives for voluntary activities among young people in response to the Council Resolution of 27 June 2002 regarding the framework of European co-operation in the youth field.

See also: Civilian service; European Voluntary Service; voluntary activities; voluntary sector; voluntary service

Civilian service is an alternative to compulsory military service in some countries. Like military service, it is compulsory and not voluntary. In almost all countries that are members of the Council of Europe civilian service as alternative to military service because of conscientious objections exists (an exception to this is Turkey).

Not all religious faiths are granted the right of conscientious objection in all countries. Regarding the European Bureau for conscientious objection civilian service often has a punitive character due to longer obligation and/or worse financial remuneration/compensation.

The civilian service can usually be served in non-profit NGOs in various sectors like healthcare, education, geriatric care, environmental organisations etc.

REF: European Commission: Communication from the Commission to the Council, COM (2004) 337 - 30.4.2004: Proposed common objectives for voluntary activities among young people in response to the Council Resolution of 27 June 2002 regarding the framework of European co-operation in the youth field.

See also: Council of Europe

Civil society refers to the arena of unforced collective action which centres on shared interests, purposes and values. In principle, its institutional forms are distinct from those of the state, family and market. Often civil society is understood as a "third sector", while the state is "the second sector" and business "the first sector". In practice, the boundaries between state, civil society, family and market are often complex, blurred and negotiated. This makes the exact definition of civil society difficult. Civil society actors include non-governmental organisations, citizen advocacy organisations, professional associations, faith-based organisations, and trade unions, which give voice to various sectors of society and enrich public participation in democracies. Sometimes less organised actions and activities like movements, community groups, protests and demonstrations may be seen as civil society actors. Civil society commonly embraces a diversity of spaces, actors and institutional forms, varying in their degree of formality, autonomy and power.

REF: M. Glasius, D. Lewis and H. Seckinelgin (eds.) (2004): Exploring Civil Society: Political and Cultural Contexts. Routledge and LSE Centre for Civil Society referenced in: Siurala, L. (2005): European framework of youth policy.

See also: Autonomy; participation; third sector

Co-management refers to a model of youth participation practiced for example in the Council of Europe youth sector. Representatives of both the governments and the young people decide together on the priorities, budgetary priorities, implementation of work priorities and on the allocation of the resources.

REF: Siurala, L. (2005): European framework of youth policy

See also: Council of Europe; participation; participation – ladders; participation – models; young people; youth participation

A community-based organisation (CBO) is an organisation that is driven by the community residents. The respective residents decide its vision, mission, strategy, objectives and actions. Specific to the CBO is the fact that the governing bodies are also mainly composed of the residents; the offices are in the community; and its work consists of participatory processes to identify the priority issues, as well as the solutions. The residents hold the key positions/leadership roles are lead in designing actions, planning the activities and evaluating the outcomes.

REF: National Community-Based Organisation Network.

Community cohesion refers to the desired shared sense of belonging and shared visions for living together in a community. Community cohesion is required in order for different groups of people to get on well together. A key contributor to community cohesion is integration, which is what must happen to enable new residents and existing residents to adjust to one another. The vision of an integrated and cohesive community is based on three foundations:

• People from different backgrounds having similar life opportunities
• People knowing their rights and responsibilities
• People trusting one another and trusting local institutions to act fairly

and three ways of living together:

• A shared future vision and sense of belonging
• A focus on what new and existing communities have in common, alongside a recognition of the value of diversity
• Strong and positive relationships between people from different backgrounds.

REF: Communities and Local Government (2008): The Government's Response to the Commission on Integration and Cohesion, London.

See also: Cultural diversity; diversity; integration

Competency is a cluster of knowledge, skills and attitudes. The concept of competency relates to those personal characteristics that influence performance. Competency also refers to performing the tasks at hand according to a certain criterion or standard. The term competency may be categorised into the conceptual, procedural and performance competencies; heuristic, epistemological and actualised competencies; or, for example, general problem-solving competencies, critical thinking skills and social competencies. Competencies can be learnt in formal, non-formal and informal settings. The development of competencies can be evaluated by the organisations or by the individuals themselves. Competencies are used in youth policy for example in the European Union’s ‘Youth Pass’ programme which analyses key competencies of lifelong learning.

Ref: Kiilakoski, Tomi (2015) Youth Work, Volunteering, Recognition and Employability. Defining and recognizing competencies. Alliance of European Voluntary Service Organisations. Available at: http://www.alliance-network.eu/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IVE-Desk-Research-Report-Output-1.pdf

The competency framework defines the knowledge, skills, and attributes needed for people within an existent framework. Consequently, every individual have its own set of competencies that are to be developed or acquired. In developing a competency based framework, a pre-set list of common standards and competencies customized then to a specific target group or to the needs of the organization is to be defined. Creating a competency framework is considered to be an effective method to asses, to maintain and to monitor the skills, knowledge and attitudes of the individuals involved with an initiative or part of an organization. The development of the framework does also allow the measurement of the existent competencies in the starting point of the assessment as well as of the competencies developed through the development process. The competency development framework had also been described as a learning paradigm and, especially in education, focused on describing and measuring what learners need to know and be able to do (outcomes), given the goals and mission of a specific programme.

REF: Developing a Competency Based Framework, www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newISS_91.htm, Last retrieved: 05.01.2017;

Developing a Competency-Based Educational Structure within Clinical and Translational Science, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3633146/, Last retrieved 05.01.2017

See: Competencies, Skills, Education.

Co-production is a way of working where all involved parties come together to share ideas and work together towards a common aim. Each person involved is recognised for the unique knowledge, skills and expertise, which they have - either as a service provider or service user. In this process all participants, no matter what their experience or role, are seen as active citizens with an important contribution to make. Co-production is built on asset based principles which include:

• Recognising people as assets rather than as problems
• Building on people's existing skills and resources
• Promoting reciprocity, mutual respect and building trust
• Building strong and supportive social networks
• Valuing working differently, facilitating rather than delivering
• Breaking down the divisions between service providers and service users

Co-production consists of the following framework:

• Co-design, including planning of services
• Co-decision making in the allocation of resources
• Co-delivery of services, including the role of volunteers in providing the service
• Co-evaluation of the service

REF: Löffler, E. (2009): ‘A future research agenda for co-production: overview paper’, in: Local Authorities & Research Councils’ Initiative (2010): Co-production: A series of commissioned reports, Swindon: Research Councils UK and Stephens L., Ryan-Collins J., Boyle D. (2008): Co-production: A manifesto for growing the core economy. New Economics Foundation, London.

See also: Council of Europe; citizen; skill; participation; participation – ladders; participation – models; youth participation

The Council of Europe is the continent's leading human rights organisation. It was founded in 1949. It includes 47 member states, 28 of which are members of the European Union. All Council of Europe member states have ratified the European Convention on Human Rights, a treaty designed to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe. The Council of Europe promotes human rights through international conventions and it monitors member states' progress in these areas, making recommendations through independent expert monitoring bodies. The Council of Europe advocates freedom of expression and of the media, freedom of assembly, equality, and the protection of minorities, among other key human rights.

REF: Council of Europe, Values and The Council of Europe in Brief

See also: Advisory Council on Youth; equality; European Convention on Human Rights; human rights

The Council of Europe Youth Work Portfolio is an online tool to help those doing youth work, primarily youth workers and youth leaders, but also managers and administrators, to assess and further develop their youth work competence and that of the people under their supervision. The Council of Europe Youth Work Portfolio has been developed at the European level, but it is not primarily for people and organisations working at the European level or internationally. The Portfolio is addressed to youth workers and leaders working at any level from local to international. The Council of Europe Youth Work Portfolio is an initiative of the Council of Europe in co-operation with partners such as the European Commission and the European Youth Forum.

REF: Council of Europe, Portfolio for Youth Leaders and Youth Workers.

See also: Council of Europe; European Commission; European Youth Forum; non-formal education; youth leaders; youth workers

Critical thinking is the ability to form our own opinion from a variety of sources, to think though complex issues in a complex way. Critical thinking opens our minds in the face of stereotypes and any attempts of manipulation. It is a tool through which we can develop a more in-depth understanding of social, political and economic realities and power relations.

See also: multiperspectivity

Cross-sectoral co-operation in the field of youth implies that, at EU, national and local level, an effective coordination exists between the youth sectors and other sectors. This concerns, for example, family policy, education, gender equality, employment, housing and healthcare.

REF: European Commission: Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, COM(2009) 200 (2009): An EU Strategy for Youth – Investing and Empowering. A renewed open method of coordination to address youth challenges and opportunities.

See also: Equality; gender

Cross-Sectoral Youth Policy - Youth policy should be broad, holistic, integrated and cross-sectorial. Cross-sectoral co-operation in youth policy may refer to vertical communication between young people and youth organisations with relevant ministries. It may also refer to horizontal co-operations between different ministries dealing with youth issues. The principle of cross-sectoral youth policy states that policies concerning young people need to take into account not only youth affairs, but all the connected policy sectors such as education, social policy, employment, family policy and child welfare, health, housing and environment. 

Ref: Nico Magda (2017) A primary look at secondary data - CSYP in official documents. In Nico M., Taru M., Potocnik D. & Salikau A. (eds.) Needles in Haystacks. Council of Europe and European Commission, 2017, pp. 13-32.

Cultural capital - A term introduced by Pierre Bourdieu to refer to the symbols, ideas, tastes, and preferences that can be strategically used as resources in social action. He sees this cultural capital as a ‘habitus’, an embodied socialised tendency or disposition to act, think, or feel in a particular way. By analogy with economic capital, such resources can be invested and accumulated and can be converted into other forms. Thus, middle-class parents are able to endow their children with the linguistic and cultural competences that will give them a greater likelihood of success at school and at university. Working-class children, without access to such cultural resources, are less likely to be successful in the educational system. Thus, education reproduces class inequalities. Bourdieu sees the distribution of economic and cultural capital as reinforcing each other. Educational success—reflecting initial cultural capital—is the means through which superior, higher-paying occupations can be attained, and the income earned through these jobs may allow the successful to purchase a private education for their children and so enhance their chances of educational success. This ‘conversion’ of one form of capital into another is central to the intragenerational or intergenerational reproduction of class differences. Bourdieu recognises a number of other forms of capital, most notably the social capital of contacts and connections. Cultural and social capital are to be gained also in youth work as it is part of education on the one hand and are enabling social contacts on the other hand.

Ref: Scott, John, Marshall, Gordon, A dictionary of Sociology, Oxford, available online: https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803095652799  

See also: culture, subculture, youth culture, social capital

Cultural differences emerge from differences in nationality, ethnicity, religion, as well as family background. These differences affect beliefs, practices, and behaviour and impact on expectations people might have of one another.

REF.: Titley, G. (2004): Resituating culture: an introduction, in: Titley, G. (ed.) (2004): Resituating culture, Strasbourg and Karsten, A. and Küntzel, B. (2007): Forum on Intercultural Dialogue: Discussion paper based on the Forum.

See also: Culture; cultural diversity

Cultural participation refers to different forms of art and expression (visual arts, music, film, dance, etc.). The right of everyone to take part in cultural life is at the core of Recommendation 1990 (2012) of the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly. Participation can be more or less active, depending on whether one is a member of an audience, is an amateur or engages in artistic or creative activities on a professional basis. Cultural participation is also closely linked with cultural inclusion.

REF: Laaksonen, A. (2010): Making culture accessible. Access, participation and cultural provision in the context of cultural rights in Europe, Strasbourg: Council of Europe Publishing and Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1990 (2012) Final Version: The right of everyone to take part in cultural life.

See also: Culture; inclusion; intercultural dialogue; participation

An often cited definition of culture within the Council of Europe publications dates back to the consultation procedure for the White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue. In this framework, the Council of Europe has defined culture “to include everything relating to ways of life, customs, beliefs and other things that have been passed on to us for generations, as well as the various forms of artistic creations”.

The above attempt depicts a widespread approach to naturalise the operative concept of culture as a descriptive one. In other words, culture is used to describe ‘ways of life' and life practices, collectivities based on location, nation, history, lifestyle and ethnicity, systems and webs of representation and meaning, and realms of artistic value and heritage.

What this prevalent understanding fails to capture, however, is culture as a space of contestation that involves the tendency to prefer and embed some meanings over others. Culture is not only a symbol of distinction or an expression of difference – it also serves, at the same time, as the foundation for making assumptions and judgements about our differences and the backdrop against which we develop preferences for and against particular differences in constant interaction of power and meaning.

A common criticism to the prevalent definitions of culture is that they run the risk of describing culture as monolithic and static, overlooking differences ‘within culture’, such as gender, age and other differences.

REF: Council of Europe (2008): White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue “Living Together As Equals in Dignity”, Strasbourg,

Bergan, S. and Restoueix, J. (eds.) (2009): Intercultural Dialogue on Campus, Council of Europe higher education series No.11, Strasbourg,

Titley, G. (2004): Resituating culture: an introduction, in: Titley, G. (ed.) (2004): Resituating culture, Strasbourg and

Karsten, A. and Küntzel, B. (2007): Forum on Intercultural Dialogue: Discussion paper based on the Forum.

See also: Council of Europe; citizenship; cultural differences; cultural diversity; cultural participation; intercultural dialogue; subculture; White paper

Curriculum. The term is used widely for different programmes of teaching and education. It can describe the aims, content, methods of teaching and education and means of evaluation. It can refer narrowly to the content of a particular subject or area of study and more widely to the total programme of an educational institution, which includes emotions, values, communal relations and peer activities. A curriculum can be divided into explicit and hidden curriculum; to received and planned curriculum, and to formal and informal curriculum.

Ref: A. V. Kelly (2004) The Curriculum. Theory and Practice. 5th edition. London: Sage.

See also: Educational methods; non-formal learning; learning objectives

Decision making refers to the process resulting in the selection of a belief or a course of action among several alternative possibilities. Every decision making process produces a final choice that may or may not prompt action. The EU’s standard decision making procedure is known as Ordinary Legislative Procedure (codecision). This means that the directly elected European Parliament has to approve EU legislation together with the Council of Europe(the governments of the 28 EU countries). The Commission drafts and implements EU legislation.

REF: European Union, How EU decisions are made.

See also: Council of Europe; European Commission

Considered a global issue and extremely challenging for the European Union, the demographic changes refers to ageing population, low birth rates, redefining the family structures and to the challenges generated by the migration phenomenon. To respond to the stated challenges, the European Commission came up with in 2006 with a communication on the demographic future of Europe – from challenge to opportunity, identifying five key policy responses: supporting demographic renewal through better conditions for families and improved reconciliation of working and family life, boosting employment – more jobs and longer working lives of better quality, raising productivity and economic performance through investing in education and research, receiving and integrating migrants into Europe, ensuring sustainable public finances to guarantee adequate pensions, health care and long-term care.

REF: European Commission: Commission Communication COM (2006) 571 final - 12.10.2006: The demographic future of Europe – from challenge to opportunity.

See also: European Commission; migrant

Deradicalisation – This very contested term is often used referring to the process of abandoning an extremist worldview and therefore disengaging with an attitude that is accepting violence as means to social change. On the other hand, radicalism and radicalisation per se do not lead to violence or acceptance of violence. Therefore, the use of de-radicalisation is normally limited to the work of practitioners in the field of EXIT programmes, supporting violent offenders, terrorists or supporters of terrorist ideologies to find alternatives.

Ref: Radicalisation Awareness Network (RAN) https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/what-we-do/networks/radicalisation_awareness_network/about-ran/ran-exit_en ; The Contribution of Youth Work to preventing marginalisation and radicalisation to violent extremism, available at: https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/0ad09926-a8b1-11e7-837e-01aa75ed71a1 (access October 12, 2019)

Detached youth work - Is a model of youth work practice, targeted at vulnerable young people, which takes place where young people are, such as streets, cafes, parks and pubs at times that are appropriate to them and on their terms. It begins from where young people are in terms of their values, attitudes, issues and ambitions and is concerned with their personal and social development. It is characterised by purposeful interaction between youth workers and young people and utilises a range of youth and community work methods. In addition to building bridges to other services and support systems, detached youth work includes the organisation of the follow-up work. 

Ref: The Prince’s Trust 1998 & European Commission (2014) Working with young people: the value of youth work in the European Union, Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/assets/eac/youth/library/study/youth-work-report_en.pdf, accessed December 16, 2019; Björn Anderson (2019) Fringe Work - Street-Level Divergence in Swedish Youth Work 

See also: outreach youth work.

Digital Agenda for Europe - (DAE) was conceived as one of the seven flagship initiatives of the Europe 2020 strategy adopted by the European Commission. Published in May 2010, it set out to define the key enabling role that the use of ICTs would have in Europe’s ambitious 2020 goals. 

Ref: European Union, Available at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52010DC0245&from=en, accessed December 18, 2019

Digital Divide - or the digital split, is a social issue referring to the difference in the amount of information possessed between those who have access to the Internet (especially broadband access) and those who do not have such access. The term became popular among concerned parties, such as scholars, policy makers, and advocacy groups, in the late 1990s. Broadly speaking, the difference is not necessarily determined by the access to the Internet, but by access to ICT (Information and Communications Technologies) and to Media that the different segments of society can use. With regards to the Internet, the access is only one aspect, other factors such as the quality of connection and related services should be considered. Today the most discussed issue is the availability of the access at an affordable cost and quality. 

Ref: Available at: https://www.internetworldstats.com/links10.htm, accessed December 18, 2019

A digital immigrant is a person born before the widespread adoption of computers and has had to adopt digital technology later in life. Digital immigrants are considered to be less technically able than digital natives and it is argued that they can never develop the same level of technology skills and knowledge as digital native. Digital immigrants are not naturally familiar or instinctively comfortable and therefore must adapt to using digital technology, interfaces, and software and became familiar with computers as a young adult or later in life.

Ref: Prensky M. (2001), Digital natives, digital immigrants, On the Horizon Vol. 9, No. 5, pp. 1-5. &  IGI Global – Dissemination of Knowledge, available at: https://www.igi-global.com/dictionary/digital-natives/7645,  accessed December 15 2019.

Digitalisation - A transformative process accelerated by new technologies, with a high social and economic impact. Digitalisation is enabled by the appearance of the World Wide Web, investments in infrastructure of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), and the widespread use of technology. Current definitions include a rethinking of how individuals, governments, organisations and businesses use technology to change traditional social & economic models. Debates on digitalisation include its potential to generate economic growth while causing disruptions on the labour market, communication, privacy, security and human development. Complementarily, it also refers to the technical process of converting analogic information and physical documents or services into digital form.

Digital literacy - Is a broad term used to describe three interrelated dimensions of literate practice in the contemporary age: 1. the operational dimension, which includes the skills and competences that enable individuals to read and write in diverse digital media (including making meaning with and from diverse modes such as spoken and written language, static and moving images, sounds, screen design etc.); 2. the cultural dimension refers to developing a repertoire of digital literacy practices in specific social and cultural contexts (such as constructing and/or maintaining effective social, educational and/or professional relationships online); 3. the critical dimension recognises that meaning-making resources are selective and operate as a means of social control (e.g. knowing what Facebook is up to when it reminds you that your profile is not complete). Becoming critically literate with digital media therefore includes not simply participating competently in digital literacy practices but also developing the ability to transform them actively and creatively. 

Ref: Green, B. (1988) Subject literacy and school learning: a focus on writing – Australian Journal of Education 32(2), 156-179 and Green, B. and Beavis (2012) Literacy in 3 D: An integrated perspective in Theory and Practice – Australian Council Educational Research (ACER); Flewitt, R. (2016) Establishing a research agenda for Digital Literacy – Practices of Young Children – A White Paper for Cost Action and ELINET – Position Paper on Digital Literacy, available at: http://www.eli-net.eu/fileadmin/ELINET/Redaktion/Amsterdam_conference/ELINET_Position_Paper_on_Digital_Literacy.pdf, accessed December 18, 2019.

The term ‘digital native’ was coined by Marc Prensky (2001) and included for the first time in the article “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants” as an attempt to explain why teachers face constant troubles in teaching students. The articles define ‘digital natives’ as: “the first generations to grow up with this new technology. They have spent their entire lives surrounded by and using computers, video-games, digital music players, video cams, cell phones, and all the other toys and tools of the digital age.”  Ever since, the idea of ‘digital natives’ has been challenged and various studies have appeared in order to better clarify what a digital native is and what it is not. The term is contested for its very general approach considering that all young people are ‘digital natives’ and not taking into account some young people are facing different barriers into developing their skills and competencies required to use the online tools.

Ref:  Prensky M. (2001), Digital natives, digital immigrants, On the Horizon Vol. 9, No. 5, 1-5.; Prensky M. (2004), The emerging online life of the digital native. What they do differently because of technology, and how they do it, available at: www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky-The_Emerging_Online_Life_of_the_Digital_Native-03.pdf, accessed 23 September 2019

Digital Participation - The term digital participation refers to the active involvement in the digital community society through the use of modern information and communication technology (ICT) such as the Internet. This participation includes access to not only the Internet but to also various online services and content. Non-participation in the digital world could lead to a feeling of social exclusion whereas a feeling of social inclusion may be induced by having access to the Internet as well as the willingness and skills to use it. 

Ref: Seifert A., Rössel K. (2019) Digital Participation. In Gu D., Dupre M. (eds.) Encyclopedia of Gerontology and Population Aging, Springer, Cham 

Digital Tools - Digital tools, as opposed to analogic tools, are those tools of an electronic nature and especially

• Computerised technologies
• Electronic devices, that may or may not be portable or not portable including computers, smartboards, laptops, tablets, smartphones, projectors, etc.
• Programmes, applications or other software available on digital device (e.g., iPad, laptop, smart phone, etc.), including those that are language, audio, and visually based
• Instruments that use internet and other new Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
• Educational programs, websites or online resources, and digital processing systems that encourage active learning, knowledge construction, and exploration in the teaching and learning process
• Digital or computerised tools that allow for meaning-making with digital literacies such as cell phones, tablets, laptop computers, e-readers, etc.

Ref: IGI Global – Disseminator of Global Knowledge, available at: https://www.igi-global.com/dictionary/value-added-crowdsourcing/66587, accessed December 19, 2019.

Digital Youth Work - Digital youth work means proactively using or addressing digital media and technology in youth work. Digital youth work is not a youth work method – digital youth work can be included in any youth work setting (open youth work, youth information and counselling, youth clubs, detached youth work, etc.). Digital youth work has the same goals as youth work in general and using digital media and technology in youth work should always support these goals. Digital youth work can happen in face-to-face situations as well as in online environments – or in a mixture of these two. Digital media and technology can be either a tool, an activity or a content in youth work. Digital youth work is underpinned by the same ethics, values and principles as youth work. Youth workers in this context refer to both paid and volunteer youth workers. 

Ref: Developing digital youth work, policy recommendations, training needs and good practice examples for youth workers and decision-makers: expert group set up under the European Union Work Plan for Youth – 2016-2018, available at: https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/fbc18822-07cb-11e8-b8f5-01aa75ed71a1, accessed December 18, 2019 

See also: smart youth work

Disability is the consequence of impairment and might be physical, mental, sensory, developmental, and cognitive. It might also be a combination of these forms of impairment, affecting the functional performance and activity by the individual. The presence of disability (either from birth or occurring later on in one’s development stages) might lead to the reduced participation of the individuals the social, cultural or economic life.

REF: Salto Youth Inclusion Resource Centre (n.d.): No barriers, No borders, A practical booklet for setting up international mixed-ability youth projects (including persons with and without a disability)

See also: Educational difficulties; discrimination; participation; prejudice; vulnerable young people

Disadvantage - A lack of access to the instruments required by every person for self-sufficiency and sustainable autonomy. […] Disadvantage is viewed as the process through which some groups of young people or other individuals are systematically denied (whether by design or neglect) the opportunity or means to fully enjoy social rights (as defined by the European Social Charter), which in effect represents a violation of their human rights. The experience of disadvantage may include a lack of independence; incentive; responsibility; self-respect and respect from others; health; education; information; employment; adequate financial support; social, cultural and financial capital; responsive support systems and participation.

Ref:  Council of Europe 2015, Access of young people from disadvantaged neighbourhoods to social rights, Recommendation CM/Rec (2015)3, Strasbourg, 24

Disadvantaged groups - Groups of persons that experience a higher risk of poverty, social exclusion, discrimination and violence than the general population, including, but not limited to, ethnic minorities, migrants, women, transgender persons, people with disabilities, isolated elderly people and children. 

Ref: European Institute for Gender Equality, Glossary, available at: https://eige.europa.eu/thesaurus, accessed December 26, 2019

Discrimination means treating a person or particular group of people differently. In a negative sense, discrimination is an action, expression or behaviour that denies social participation or human rights to categories of people based on prejudice or on a certain characteristic. This includes treatment of an individual or group in a way that is worse than the way people are usually treated, based on their actual or perceived membership of a certain group or social category. Discrimination may take place on various grounds: age, disability, employment, language, nationality, racial or ethnic, regional or religious background, sex, gender, and gender-identity, sexual orientation.

Reverse or positive discrimination is the policy of favouring members of a disadvantaged group. Examples of positive discrimination include quotas and giving certain groups preference in (job) selection processes. The nature of positive discrimination policies varies across countries.

REF: Law, I. (2007): Discrimination, in Ritzer, G. (ed.): The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

See also: Disability; ethnic minorities; gay; gender; gender identity; homophobia; homosexual; identity; LGBTQI; lesbian; prejudice; sexual orientation; transgender; trans man/ woman

Discursive participation refers to the diverse ways in which individuals discuss policy issues affecting the local, national, and international communities in which they live. Discursive participation features deliberative communication behaviours that allow citizens to formulate and revise their preferences, i.e. learn what they should want from policymakers. Discursive participation can include but is not limited to the formal institutions and processes of civic and political life. It can involve private individuals in informal, unplanned exchanges; those who convene for public purposes but do so outside the normal processes of government operations (e.g. in libraries, schools, homes, churches, and community centres); and those who are brought together in settings such as town hall meetings of political representatives and their constituents. Discursive participation can occur through a variety of media, including face-to-face exchanges, phone conversations, email exchanges, and internet forums.

REF: Sharp, E.B. (2012): Citizen participation at the local level, in H.L.Schachter (ed.): The state of citizen participation in America, Information Age Publishing, Inc.,

Charlotte and Delli Carpini, M. X., Cook, F. L., & Jacobs, L. R. (2004): Public Deliberations, Discursive Participation and Citizen Engagement: A Review of the Empirical Literature, in: Annual Review of Political Science, 7 (1), 315-344.

See also: e-participation; participation; political participation; youth participation; co-production

In general, the term ‘diversity’ is simply another way of denoting ‘multiple difference' or ‘variety'. However, it has come to acquire a socio-political connotation that specifies positive acceptance of heterogeneity, and in particular, of cultural heterogeneity. Most commonly, diversity implicates that such differences are to be accepted and respected equally, since no culture is intrinsically superior or inferior to another.

Within this framework, noticeable and identifiable differences between people, such as race, ethnicity, language, culture, religion, age, gender, socioeconomic status, family status, sexual orientation, political views, disability status, etc. are considered to offer positive potential – diversity connotes the power of variety, which both exists and is to be valued and cultivated.

At the European level, the notion of diversity is, on the one hand, one of the pillars of the EU for achieving the Union's strategic goals and for building a more inclusive community, and, on the other hand, central to the ideas of pluralism and multiculturalism underpinning the Council of Europe's strategy on education for democratic citizenship.

REF: Stevens, G., Downs, H. (2007): Diversity. In Ritzer, G. (ed.): The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

See also: Citizenship; community cohesion; Council of Europe; culture; cultural diversity; disability; ethnic minority; gender; integration; multi-cultural; sexual orientation

Early School Leaving (ESL) is a multi-faceted and complex problem caused by a cumulative process of disengagement, being the result of personal, social, economic, education or family-related reasons. The European Union defines early school leavers as people aged 18-24 who have only lower secondary education or less and are no longer in education or training. Early School Leaving takes several forms: young people who have dropped out of school before the end of compulsory education, those who have completed compulsory schooling, but have not gained an upper secondary qualification, and those who have followed pre-vocational or vocational courses which did not lead to a qualification equivalent to upper secondary level. Reducing ESL is essential for the integration of young people into the labour market and to contribute to breaking the cycle of deprivation that leads to the social exclusion of too many young people. Reducing the average European rate of early school leavers to less than 10% by 2020 is one of the education headline targets of the Europe 2020 Strategy.

REF:

Early School Leaving (ESL) is a multi-faceted and complex problem caused by a cumulative process of disengagement, being the result of personal, social, economic, education or family-related reasons. The European Union defines early school leavers as people aged 18-24 who have only lower secondary education or less and are no longer in education or training. Early School Leaving takes several forms: young people who have dropped out of school before the end of compulsory education, those who have completed compulsory schooling, but have not gained an upper secondary qualification, and those who have followed pre-vocational or vocational courses which did not lead to a qualification equivalent to upper secondary level. Reducing ESL is essential for the integration of young people into the labour market and to contribute to breaking the cycle of deprivation that leads to the social exclusion of too many young people. Reducing the average European rate of early school leavers to less than 10% by 2020 is one of the education headline targets of the Europe 2020 Strategy.

REF: European Commission (2013): Reducing early school leaving: Key messages and policy support Final Report of the Thematic Working Group on Early School Leaving, available at http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/education_culture/repository/education/policy/strategic-framework/doc/esl-group-report_en.pdf   

Council conclusions on "Reference levels of European Average Performance in Education and Training (Benchmarks)", May 2003.

See also: Educational difficulties; Europe 2020 Strategy; social exclusion; young people

Economic obstacles refer to the obstacles that young people with a low standard of living are facing. This includes for example, low income, dependence on social welfare system, long-term unemployment, homelessness, debt or financial problems.

REF: Salto Youth, Young People with Fewer Opportunities

See also: Long term unemployment; young people

Economic participation refers to employment and work which leads to economic development, eliminating poverty and building a stable economic situation in a society.

REF: The United Nations Youth Agenda (n.d.): Empowering youth for development and peace at: www.un.org/esa/socdev/unyin/agenda.htm

See also: Participation; poverty

When defining young people with fewer opportunities, a wide range of obstacles and contexts can be identified. Educational difficulties refer to the obstacles, difficulties and contexts that young people are facing. This is used with particular reference for people with learning difficulties, early school-leavers, lowly or non-qualified persons, young people that did not find their way in the school system, and young people with poor school performance because of a different cultural/linguistic background.

REF: Salto Youth, Young People with Fewer Opportunities.

See also: Early school leaving; NEET; social obstacles; vulnerable young people; young people

Educational evaluation is a systematic and on-going process which includes:

• Researching and collecting information from different sources about the learning process, the content, the methods, the context, and the outcomes of an educational activity
• The organisation and analysis of that information
• The establishment of certain criteria (evaluation criteria)
• The discernment and judgement of the analysed information (according to the set evaluation criteria and in the light of the educational objectives).
• Drawing conclusions and recommendations, which allow the re-orientation and eventual improvement of the educational activity.

REF: Iafrancesco, Giovanni (2001): Hacia el mejoramiento de los procesos evaluativos en relación con el aprendizaje, Bogotá, referenced in: Council of Europe and European Commission (2007): T-kit 10: Educational Evaluation in Youth Work: “Tasting the soup”, Strasbourg.

See also: Evaluation; formal evaluation; summative evaluation; research methods 

Education for democratic citizenship means education, training, awareness-raising, information, practices and activities which aim, by equipping learners with knowledge, skills and understanding and developing their attitudes and behavior, to empower them to exercise and defend their democratic rights and responsibilities in society, to value diversity and to play an active part in democratic life, with a view to the promotion and protection of democracy and the rule of law. It shows people how to become informed about their rights, responsibilities and duties and it helps them to realise that they can have influence and make a difference.

Charter on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education plays an essential role in the promotion of the core values of the Council of Europe: democracy, human rights and the rule of law, as well as in the prevention of human rights violations. 

REF: Recommendation CM/Rec(2010)7 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on the Council of Europe Charter on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education

See also: human rights education 

This term refers to the general principles, pedagogy and management strategies used for classroom instruction. Your choice of teaching method depends on what fits you — your educational philosophy, classroom demographic, subject area(s) and school mission statement. Teaching theories primarily fall into two categories or “approaches” — teacher-centred and student-centred.

Teacher-Centred Approach to Learning:

Teachers are the main authority figure in this model. Students are viewed as “empty vessels” whose primary role is to passively receive information (via lectures and direct instruction) with an end goal of testing and assessment. It is the primary role of teachers to pass knowledge and information onto their students. In this model, teaching and assessment are viewed as two separate entities. Student learning is measured through objectively scored tests and assessments.

Student-Centred Approach to Learning:

While teachers are an authority figure in this model, teachers and students play an equally active role in the learning process. The teacher’s primary role is to coach and facilitate student learning and overall comprehension of material. Student learning is measured through both formal and informal forms of assessment, including group projects, student portfolios, and class participation. Teaching and assessment are connected; student learning is continuously measured during teacher instruction.

REF: Teach. Make a difference, Teaching Methods. 

See also: Assessment; informal learning; knowledge; teacher; non-formal learning

Effectiveness - the extent to which policies are achieving the benefits they are supposed to achieve, plus any unanticipated side benefits.

Ref: Nagel, S. S. (1986). Efficiency, effectiveness, and equity in public policy evaluation. Review of Policy Research, 6(1), 99-120.

Efficacy - the extent to which an intervention produces the expected results under ideal conditions in a controlled environment.

Ref: UNAid, Glossary Monitoring and Evaluation Terms, available at: https://www.unaids.org/sites/default/files/sub_landing/files/11_ME_Glossary_FinalWorkingDraft.pdf accessed December 22, 2019

Efficiency - Efficiency refers to the relationship between costs and benefits, or how much and what kind of resources have been spent on implementing an intervention that was planned to bring about certain changes in society.

Ref: Lonean, Braziene and Taru (2020) Youth Policy Evaluation Review. EU-CoE youth partnership

Emigrants are people leaving the country where they usually reside and effectively taking up residence in another country. According to the 1998 UN recommendations on the statistics of international migration (Revision 1), an individual is a long-term emigrant if he/she leaves his/her country of previous usual residence for a period of 12 months or more. Emigration is the number of emigrants for a given area during the year.

REF: European Commission Eurostat, Glossary.

See also: Immigration; migration

Empathy is the capacity of a person to recognise or understand another person's state of mind or emotion, often captured by the phrase "to put oneself into another's shoes". Empathy could also be described as the anticipation of mutual (presumed) interests within a communication process, related to a common goal or task that the partners in such a process want to realise.

In educational contexts and, more specifically, in intercultural learning, the concept means the capacity to develop an idea of given partners – to see things from the point of view of the others – in a communication process, to comprehend their aims and possibilities to act, and to establish common ground by achieving a balance between the different intentions and interests involved, including but without giving preference to one's own.

REF: Adapted from: Lauritzen, Peter (1980s): Selected Remarks on 'Role' in Simulation Games and Training Situations Hungary, Otten, Hendrik (1997): Ten theses on the correlation between European youth encounters, intercultural learning and demands on full and part-time staff in these encounters, and Fennes, Helmut and Otten, Hendrik (2008): Quality in non-formal education and training in the field of European youth work.

Employability refers to the set of achievements, skills, understandings and personal attributes that make individuals more likely to gain employment, stay in employment and to be successful in their chosen occupations. Employability of individuals depends on: (a) personal attributes (including adequacy of knowledge and skills); (b) how these personal attributes are presented on the labour market; (c) the environmental and social contexts (incentives and opportunities offered to update and validate their knowledge and skills); and (d) the economic context.

Young people represent a quarter of the world’s workforce but they are almost three times more likely to be unemployed comparing to adults. One of the main reasons is low employability of youth since they usually face with underdeveloped skills, early school leaving, lack of formal contacts with employers and formal education unmatched with market needs. Therefore, a special focus should be placed on overcoming the difficulties youth face when entering the labour market and the issues they encounter when trying to remain there. Enhancing youth employability skills is certainly the essential mechanism for better youth employment promotion and their active inclusion as well.

REF:

Brewer L., Enhancing youth employability (2013), International Labour Organisation, available at www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_emp/---ifp_skills/documents/publication/wcms_213452.pdf ;

International Labour Organisation Resolution concerning human resources training and development (2000), available at www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/relm/ilc/ilc88/resolutions.htm ;

Glossary: Quality of education and training (2011), CEDEFOP, available at www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/publications-and-resources/publications/4106

See also: Employability skills; transferable skills; career management skills; lifelong learning; transition from education to the labour market

Empowerment is helping people to help themselves. This concept is used in many contexts: management ("the process of sharing information, training and allowing employees to manage their jobs in order to obtain optimum results"), community development ("action-oriented management training aimed at community members and their leaders, poverty reduction, gender strategy, facilitation, income generation, capacity development, community participation, social animation") and mobilisation ("Leading people to learn to lead themselves").

Empowerment involves a process to change power relations. “On the one hand it aims to enable excluded people to take initiatives, make decisions and acquire more power over their lives. At the same time it forces social, economic and political systems to relinquish some of that power and to enable excluded people and groups to enter into negotiation over decision-making processes, thereby playing a full role in society”.

REF: Siurala, L. (2005): European framework of youth policy, Soto Hardiman, Paul et al. (2004): Youth and exclusion in disadvantaged urban areas, Council of Europe, Strasbourg.

See also: Gender; participation; poverty; training

Environmental activism is organised participation in environmental issues, comprising an example of environmentally friendly behavior rooted in the political realm. Environmental activism is expressed in specific activities reflecting a commitment to the environment and realized through institutional structures. Examples include having environmental group membership; engaging in political action; being actively involved in environmental organisations; having the potential to influence policy or management decisions  or to engage in environmental protection behaviours. Sociologically inclined scholars have conceptualised environmental activism as a collective process. Environmental activism takes place in the public sphere, in contrast to making environment-friendly decision in the private sphere which has significant environmental impact only when many people independently do the same things.

Ref: Stern. Paul C. (2000) Toward a Coherent Theory of Environmentally Significant Behaviour. Journal of Social Issues 56(3), 407–424.

Dono, Joanne, Webb, Janine & Richardson, Ben (2010) The relationship between environmental activism, pro-environmental behaviour and social identity. Journal of Environmental Psychology 30 (2010) 178–186

Sandra T. Marquart-Pyatt (2012) Explaining Environmental Activism Across Countries, Society & Natural Resources, 25:7, 683-699

O'Brien, K., E. Selboe, and Hayward B. M. (2018), Exploring youth activism on climate change: dutiful, disruptive, and dangerous dissent. Ecology and Society 23(3):42

E-participation is the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) to supported participation and involvement in government and governance processes. It may concern administration, service delivery, decision making or policy making. e-Participation refers to all ICT-supported democratic processes except e-voting. Traditionally most of the forms of participation were linked to direct face to face interactions with public authorities, however nowadays technology often facilitates the process. Citizens and civil society organisations are now able to participate using online tools thus e-participation is a popular means of participation. This mode of participation also provides an incentive for governments and authorities to improve transparency due to the ability of civil society and activist groups to mobilize support. Using social media tools, citizens can participate in the decision making processes and are able to lobby, and advocate, for different causes.

REF: E-participation – Best Practice Manual. European Commission, Digital Agenda for Europe, Glossary.

See also: Activism; citizen; citizenship; civil society; decision making processes; lobby; participation; policy

Equality is about ensuring that every individual has an equal opportunity to make the most of their lives and talents, and believing that no one should have poorer life chances because of where, what or whom they were born, what they believe, or whether they have a disability. Equality recognises that historically, certain groups of people with particular characteristics (e.g. race, disability, sex and sexuality), have experienced discrimination.

According to Aristotle, equality means that “things that are alike should be treated alike”. From this perspective, a person should not be discriminated against on grounds such as physical or personal characteristics. Furthermore, differences among people should be considered irrelevant for the access to (and exercise of) basic rights. However, a principle of equality constructed in this way has two main limitations: first of all, it may reinforce inequalities because it does not take into account concrete obstacles which can lead to emerging forms of discrimination and disadvantage; secondly, it is inadequate to tackle subtle forms of discrimination, generated by laws and practices based on apparently neutral criteria, which subsequently create a disparate impact for certain people.

Equality of opportunity systems have been designed to help promote equality. The redistributive justice system tries to cope with inequalities due to individuals’ different starting points. In this theorisation of equality, equal opportunities are implemented through the use of positive action plans to ensure that individuals from traditionally disadvantaged groups receive proper support to compensate for their exclusion, as well as to prevent further discrimination.

Equality of outcomes systems focus on bringing about substantive equality. This goes much further than equality of opportunity by explicitly treating people more favourably on the grounds of race, sex, religion, belief and so on.

REF: Değirmencioğlu, S (2011): Still some more equal than others? Or opportunities for all?, Council of Europe Publishing, Strasbourg.

See also: Disability; discrimination; equity; exclusion; prejudice; sexual orientation

Equity is the act of being fair and impartial to everyone regardless of their ethnicity, gender, race, religious identity, sexuality or socio-economic background. In its broadest sense, equity could be also defined as fairness.

REF: Değirmencioğlu, S (2011): Still some more equal than others? Or opportunities for all?, Council of Europe Publishing, Strasbourg.

Equity - the extent to which benefits and costs of policies are spread among those affected in such a way that no group or individual receives less than a minimum benefit level or a maximum cost level, unlike “diversity,” which is a numerical representation of different types of people. Distinction of equity from “inclusion,” lies in the idea that inclusion is “the action or state of including or being included within a group or structure … [Unlike diversity,] inclusion involves an authentic and empowered participation and a true sense of belonging.” Under this thinking, inclusion may be a definite step toward equity. Equity is also different from “equality,” in which everyone has the same amount of something (food, medicine, opportunity) despite their existing needs or assets.

Ref: Nagel, S. S. (1986). Efficiency, effectiveness, and equity in public policy evaluation. Review of Policy Research, 6(1), 99-120.

Annie E. Casey Foundation: Race Equity and Inclusion Action Guide Embracing Equity: 7 Steps to Advance and Embed Race Equity and Inclusion Within Your Organization https://www.aecf.org/resources/race-equity-and-inclusion-action-guide/

The Erasmus + program merges seven EU programs in the fields of Education, Training, and Youth. It is expected that the Erasmus + will provide opportunities for over 4 million Europeans to study, train, acquire work experience and volunteer abroad. From 2014, for the first time, Sport will also be supported. As an integrated program, Erasmus + is easier to access than its predecessors because it has simplified funding rules. The seven year programme will have a budget of €14.7 billion.

REF: European Commission, Erasmus +.

See also: Training; volunteer; Youthpass; Youth in Action

Ethnic distinctiveness can be either claimed by a group or imposed by a majority group. Members of an ethnic minority share a sense of group solidarity and kinship and might be more disadvantaged than those belonging to a majority group, in terms of power, ‘status’ and wealth. Capotorti defines a "minority" as: ‘A group numerically inferior to the rest of the population of a State, in a non-dominant position, whose members - being nationals of the State - possess ethnic, religious or linguistic characteristics differing from those of the rest of the population and show, if only implicitly, a sense of solidarity, directed towards preserving their culture, traditions, religion or language’.

REF: Capotorti, F. (1977): E/CN.4/Sub.2/384/Rev.1, para. 568, referenced in: UN Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights (2010): Minority Rights: International Standards and Guidance for Implementation, New York and Giddens, A. (2013): Sociology, Cambridge: Polity Press.

See also: Culture

Ethnocentrism is the belief that one’s cultural group is superior to the other. Ethnocentric persons experience their culture as central to reality and all others are scaled and related with reference to it; they see their own standards and values as universals and have the tendency to judge other groups in relation to their own.

See also: racism, discrimination, stereotypes, prejudices

Europe 2020 is the European Union’s ten-year growth and jobs strategy that was launched in 2010. It is about more than just overcoming the crisis from which our economies are now gradually recovering. It is also about addressing the shortcomings of the growth model and creating the conditions for a smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. Five headline targets have been set for the EU to be achieved by the end of 2020. These cover employment; research and development; climate/energy; education; social inclusion and poverty reduction. The objectives of the strategy are also supported by seven ‘flagship initiatives’ providing a framework through which the EU and national authorities mutually reinforce their efforts in areas supporting the Europe 2020 priorities such as innovation, the digital economy, employment, youth, industrial policy, poverty, and resource efficiency. The Europe 2020 strategy is implemented and monitored in the context of the European Semester, the yearly cycle of coordination of economic and budgetary policies.

REF: European Commission, Europe 2020 in a nutshell. 

See also: Poverty; young people

At the end of the 2^nd European Convention on Youth Work that was held in Brussels in April 2015, the 500 participants came up with the Declaration of the 2^nd European Youth Work Convention – Making a world of difference. The Declaration came up with a set of Recommendations and Action Points under a common name – A European Agenda for Youth Work stating the need for investment in youth work as a necessary contribution to the development of a social Europe. The aim of the “European Agenda for Youth Work’ is to strengthen youth work in Europe. The text is available here:  http://pjp-eu.coe.int/en/web/youth-partnership/eywc-website-declaration

Citizenship is traditionally perceived as a legal status, which involves rights and duties. Usually, the status of citizen was solely granted in relation to a Nation-state. However, other forms of citizenship have recently emerged, notably the European citizenship.

Within the European Union, the Treaty of Maastricht established the Citizenship of the Union (1993). The purpose of this new legal status was, among others, to strengthen and enhance the European identity.

According to the Treaty of Amsterdam (1997), "every person holding the nationality of a Member State shall be a citizen of the Union. Citizenship of the Union shall complement and not replace national citizenship”. This is also confirmed by the Lisbon Treaty (2007).

The Citizenship of the Union establishes the following rights:

• Right to free movement of persons in the member States territory
• Right to vote and stand in local government and European Parliament elections in the country of residence
• Right to have diplomatic and consular protection from the authorities of any Member State.

European Citizenship can be considered as a more comprehensive concept and practice of citizenship, with many cultural, social, political and economic dimensions.

Third country nationals living in the European Union do not enjoy the same rights as European nationals, even though recent legislation has broadened the access to social rights for non-EU nationals who are legal residents.

REF: European Union Democracy Observatory on Citizenship, EU Citizenship. 

See also: Citizenship

The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. Among other tasks, it proposes legislation, implements decisions, upholds the EU treaties and ensures that the treaties are respected.

The Commission consists of a cabinet government, made up of 28 commissioners (one per member state).

Jean-Claude Juncker is the current Commission President. The usual languages of the Commission are English, French and German.

REF: The European Commission. 

The European Convention on Human Rights, was signed in 1950. It sets forth a number of fundamental rights and freedoms for example, the right to life; prohibition of torture; right to a fair trial; no punishment without law; right to respect for private and family life; etc.

Additional rights were granted by later protocols added to the Convention, such as Protocol 12 which provides a general antidiscrimination principle. Parties undertake to secure these rights and freedoms to everyone within their jurisdiction.

The Convention also establishes an international enforcement mechanism. To ensure the observance of the engagements undertaken by the Parties, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg was set up. It deals with individual and inter-State petitions. At the request of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, the Court may also give advisory opinions concerning the interpretation of the Conventions and their protocols.

REF: Council of Europe, European Convention on Human Rights, Strasbourg.

See also: Council of Europe; human rights

The European Knowledge Centre for Youth Policy (EKCYP) is a network within the EU-CoE youth partnership with a "think tank" function aimed at increasing the knowledge about the contexts and needs of young people in Europe, current and upcoming challenges they face in support of the activities of the Partnership. The European Knowledge Centre for Youth Policy is an on-line database intended to provide the youth sector with a single access point to reliable knowledge and information about young people's situation across Europe. EKCYP aims at enhancing knowledge transfers between the fields of research, policy and practice through the collection and dissemination of information about youth policy, research and practice in Europe and beyond. The EKCYP is supported by a European wide network of European Knowledge Centre correspondents nominated by the member states ministries and responsible for collecting national data.

REF: The EU-CoE youth partnership, The European Knowledge Centre for Youth Policy, http://pjp-eu.coe.int/en/web/youth-partnership/knowledge-/-ekcyp

See also: The EKCYP correspondents; Pool of European Youth Researchers (PEYR); Country Sheets on Youth Policy 

The European Portfolio for youth leaders and youth workers is an initiative of the Council of Europe in cooperation with experts and partners such as the European Commission and the European Youth Forum. It provides youth leaders and youth workers in Europe, volunteers or professionals, with a tool, which can help them, identify, assess and describe their competencies based on European quality standards.  In using this portfolio, youth leaders and youth workers are not only contributing to the recognition of their experience and skills but also to efforts to increase the recognition of youth work and non-formal education and learning.

REF: Council of Europe, Portfolio for Youth Leaders and Youth Workers.

See also: Council of Europe; European Commission; European Youth Forum; nonformal education; youth leaders; youth workers 

The European Steering Committee for Youth (CDEJ) brings together representatives of ministries and organisations responsible for youth matters from the 49 States Parties to the European Cultural Convention. It encourages closer co-operation between governments on youth issues and provides a forum for comparing national youth policies, exchanging best practices and drafting standard texts related to youth issues. The CDEJ also organises the Conferences of European Ministers with responsibility for youth matters and drafts youth policy laws and regulations in member states. Within the co-management process, the CDEJ and the Advisory Council on Youth are coming together in a co-decision body, which establishes the youth sector priorities, objectives and budgets – the Joint Council on Youth.

REF: Council of Europe, Co-management. 

See also: Advisory Council on Youth; co-management 

The European Commission promotes dialogue between youth and policy makers in order to increase active citizenship, foster social integration, and ensure inclusion of young people in EU policy development. The specified priorities are the core part of the EU Youth Strategy that has been launched in 2010 and operates until 2018 It has two overall priorities: to provide more and equal opportunities for young people in education and the job market, and to encourage young people to actively participate in society. The Strategy mainly targets initiatives in eight fields of action: education and training, employment and entrepreneurship, health and well-being, participation, voluntary activities, social inclusion, youth and the world and creativity and culture.

REF: European Commission, EU Youth Strategy.

See also: Citizenship; culture; employment; European Commission; European youth policy; participation; social inclusion; training; voluntary activities; youth entrepreneurship; youth policy; youth policy reviews

The Charter on Local Youth Work (Europe goes local) - The aim of the charter is to contribute to the further development of local youth work. It does this by stating which principles should guide it and how different aspects of it should be designed in order to meet these principles. Hence, the Charter constitutes a common European platform for the necessary dialogue on youth work. It is a free-to-use methodological tool, functioning as a check-list around which stakeholders can gather and discuss what measures that might be needed for the further development of youth work, making sure that no aspect or perspective is left out and that youth work provision is carried out in the best and most efficient way.

The Charter formulates youth work’s value basis and its core principles. It also asks that youth work practice is guided by a youth work policy and furthermore states the needs of organisation and practice of local youth work. The Charter also describes on the one hand the role and tasks of youth workers and on the other hand the necessity of quality development of local youth work.

The Charter on Local Youth Work was developed in the Erasmus+ Youth in Action Project “Europe goes local” in a multi-step participatory approach with involvement of practitioners, youth policy makers, researchers and young people on the European level as well as in various consultation and adaptation rounds on the level of nation states.

For further information see: https://www.europegoeslocal.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/20191002-egl-charter_ENG_online.pdf

EU Youth Strategy – The Commission Communication 'Engaging, Connecting and Empowering young people: a new EU Youth Strategy' proposes to focus on the following areas of action: ENGAGE: Fostering young people's participation in civic and democratic life, CONNECT: Connecting young people across the European Union and beyond to foster voluntary engagement, learning mobility, solidarity and intercultural understanding, EMPOWER: Supporting youth empowerment through quality, innovation and recognition of youth work. This new EU Youth Strategy is valid for the time of 2019 to 2027. It includes some novelties: A) A new EU Youth coordinator will channel voices of young people in the Commission, thus allowing young people to contribute to shaping EU policies across areas; the coordinator will strengthen the dialogue with young people, notably via the European Youth Portal and the EU Youth Strategy Platform. B) A renewed EU Youth Dialogue to take youth concerns better into account and ensure wider outreach, including through innovative formats; C) Tracking of EU spending for youth in main funding programmes; D) An agenda for youth work to further improve its quality, innovation and recognition and to allow other sectors to capitalise on the potential of non-formal learning; and E) A clearer link between EU youth policy implementation and related programme activities in Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps.

Importantly, it includes the 11 Youth Goals, which were developed in a participatory method, as an Annex.

Ref: https://ec.europa.eu/youth/news/eu-youth-strategy-adopted_de