A two-day workshop held in Tirana, Albania, brought together 55 Young European Ambassadors (YEAs) from the Western Balkans and Eastern Partnership regions. The participants included 40 YEAs who joined online and 15 who attended in person. This event aimed to improve their abilities to combat racism, promote equality, and develop counter-narratives to discrimination and hate speech.
The Young European Ambassadors emphasised that discussions about discrimination are meant to unite, not to divide. Connect people by creating space for every story and voice. In Tirana, they learned that blocking hate starts with listening and that spreading love requires action.
This initiative responds to the urgent concerns raised by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) annual reports, which highlights increasing racism, xenophobia, and intolerance across Europe. It reaffirms the critical role that youth play as drivers of change in their communities and beyond.
The workshop, is part of the awareness-raising initiative “Block the Hatred. Share the Love 2.0”, implemented under the joint regional action of the European Union and the Council of Europe, to engage young people, online and in person, in the fight against hate speech and hate crimes. The initiative kicked-off in May 2025 with a series of four interactive webinars, where participants were introduced to key Council of Europe standards on human rights and anti-discrimination, the European Convention on Human Rights, and practical tools for countering hate speech and promoting diversity. Experts from the Council of Europe, the European Court of Human Rights, academia, and civil society guided the discussions, making the sessions both informative and action oriented.
During the workshop in Tirana, YEA’s explored the concept of racism as a human rights violation through practical activities based on Education pack – All Different, All Equal, shared ideas for awareness-raising actions, and engaged in hands-on sessions using tools like Compass and Bookmarks. They also tackled the importance of co-operation in their work, while planning their own initiatives to be rolled out in their local communities.
Looking ahead, the European Union and the Council of Europe will continue to support the Young European Ambassadors with further capacity building, resources, and opportunities to become part of the anti-discrimination movement. During the implementation of the BHSL2.0 awareness raising initiative the YEAs will lead the efforts to reach out to other young people in the Western Balkans and Eastern Partnership regions and build a broader network of motivated young voices committed to promoting inclusion and equality.
This activity is part of the project “Promoting equality and non-discrimination: towards more resilient and inclusive societies” and the action “Promoting equality and combating racism and intolerance in the Western Balkans”, which are part the joint European Union and Council of Europe programmes “Partnership for Good Governance” and “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”.