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

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 http://www.coe.int/en/web/compass

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.

Competence is often used interchangeably with the term skill, but they do not mean the same thing. Competence means the ability to apply knowledge, know-how and skills in a stable/recurring or changing situation. Two elements are crucial: applying what one knows and can do to a specific task or problem, and being able to transfer this ability between different situations.

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: Knowledge; skill

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.

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

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 refers to planned learning and guided by standards in educational settings, referring both to contexts where learning takes place individually or in groups, in both formal and non-formal settings. Consequently, the curriculum is being defined as a body of knowledge to be transmitted, having clear educational objectives that the learners should be achieving, is a well-structured and organised process and also refers to praxis. In practice, the curriculum is also accompanied by a syllabus, including subjects and contents that are being transmitted to the students using a wide range of methods and technologies.

REF: Newman, E. and Ingram, G. (1989): The Youth Work Curriculum, London: Further Education Unit and Smith, M. K. (1996, 2000): Curriculum theory and practice.

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