The first time Emilija Marinković stood up for her rights, she was a preschooler. Equipped with nothing more than a kindergarten lesson about the child’s right to play, she faced her parents with unwavering seriousness: homework could wait- her rights could not. Many years later, she laughs at the memory, but it still reminds her why knowing your rights matters.

Fifteen years after the Youth Advisory Panel of the Protector of Citizens was created, Emilija stands as one of the many young people who embody what the Panel set out to achieve. Over the years, hundreds of children and adolescents have lent their voices, ideas, and experiences to help institutions better understand and protect the rights of young people. The Panel, supported through the action “Combating discrimination and promoting diversity in Serbia” under the joint programme of the European Union and the Council of Europe “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye,” has become a space where youth perspectives genuinely inform change.

For Emilija, its impact cannot be summed up in a single moment. Her memories are not of milestones but of conversations, trainings, consultations, friendships, and the growing feeling that her voice mattered not only to her peers, but to the very institution tasked with protecting young people’s rights. “All the conversations, trainings and consultations are what shaped my entire experience in the Panel,” she says. “Every acquaintance, every piece of knowledge gained, every opportunity for my voice to be heard contributed to my personal intellectual development.”

Through the Panel, she discovered skills she didn’t know she possessed. Public speaking that once felt intimidating became a source of strength. Working in teams taught her to listen and lead. Step by step, she gained confidence, understanding that knowledge is not abstract: it opens doors, creates opportunities, reveals new paths forward. She values most that the Panel gives young people a space where open communication- honest feedback, criticism, praise, questions, is welcomed. “The whole point of being a panelist is to speak up, not to be afraid, and to have the courage to express your observations, your criticism and your praise,” she says. “Only through open communication can we function and achieve visible results.”

This understanding became crucial when she began to recognise forms of discrimination and violence she would once have missed. “There were many forms of violence and discrimination that I didn’t know how to recognise before the training,” she says. “And that’s where the main task of the panelists comes in- raising awareness.” That knowledge moved from theory to reality one day when a classmate at her school experienced psychological violence from a teacher. No one acknowledged it. No one intervened. But Emilija looked again and realised she had a responsibility as a witness, as a peer,  as a member of the student parliament, as part of the school’s violence-prevention team, and as a youth panelist. “I took the matter into my own hands and resolved the situation in an appropriate way with the help of the knowledge I had gained,” she recalls. “That was the moment I actually moved from theory into practice.”

As the Youth Advisory Panel marks its 15th anniversary, stories like Emilija’s show what the initiative has been able to achieve: empowered young people who recognise discrimination, respond to injustice, and use their voice with confidence. It is proof that investing in youth participation is not symbolic, it reshapes lives, strengthens communities, and builds a culture of rights that grows stronger with every generation. And contributes to block the hatred in our societies.

When asked about her future, Emilija starts with a simple truth: she wants to remain, above all, a good human being. “I want to work in the field of rights and use my full potential in that area,” she says. “I have big ambitions and believe in myself, and I want to pass that belief on to someone who might need that final push to reach their goal and achieve their dreams.”

In a lower secondary school in Kuşadası, a quiet classroom filled with coloured papers and soft conversation marked a meaningful moment for a mother and her young daughter. They were taking part in an activity under the ‘Pilot Project on Digital Citizenship Education in Türkiye’, which supports schools and families in helping children understand the digital world not only as a place of information and entertainment, but also as a space that requires empathy, responsibility, and awareness.

For the mother, the workshop became more than a school event, it became a moment of connection. “Our children are growing up in the digital world but we didn’t,” she said. “We try to guide them, but we don’t always know how. This workshop gave me confidence. It helped us understand each other better.”

The project encourages learning through shared activities rather than lectures. Parents and children sit side by side, discussing online habits, emotions, and digital experiences.

During one of these activities, the children were invited to share something they had created. Her daughter stood up to read a poem she had written herself. “I always thought she was shy,” the mother reflected. “But her voice was steady and strong. I saw something I hadn’t noticed before. This workshop didn’t only teach her, it taught me something about her.”

Her daughter described the day with a bright smile: “The activity was fun. We played, we learned, and I understood what digital citizenship means. I’m glad it was organised.”

By involving families directly, the project strengthens communication at home and reinforces that digital guidance is not about restriction, but partnership. It helps parents feel supported, children feel understood, and schools become shared spaces of learning rather than separate worlds.

As part of the pilot phase, activities took place in 14 schools across 7 provinces, reaching school communities of around 8,718 students and 592 teachers. Through the workshops, approximately 793 students, 400 parents, and 35 teachers were directly engaged. Each visit created meaningful moments of shared reflection and understanding among children, parents, and teachers.

In Kuşadası, this shared moment between a mother and her daughter captured exactly that: learning together, understanding together, growing together.

The action “Digital Citizenship Education in Türkiye” is part of the European Union and Council of Europe joint programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”.