Youth all over Europe lack knowledge about the European Union. This affects youth in a negative way because they miss out on opportunities provided by the EU, such as education or training mobility, international volunteering or youth exchanges. Furthermore, youth’s participation in democratic processes is limited by obstacles they face and by lack of knowledge about the functioning of the Union, as well as by low level of media literacy and uncritical thinking. Youth can become more active citizens if they improve media literacy and critical thinking skills, and gain knowledge on the EU, especially about the Union’s functioning, and its values. Moreover, these knowledge and skills can boost youth’s employability, increase sense of initiative and self-esteem, enhance intercultural awareness and foster European identity.

In order to better meet the needs of local youth and help them overcome social, cultural and geographic obstacles, the aim of the activity is to increase the quality of youth work of partner organisations in promoting active citizenship. Special emphasis will be put on using non-formal education methods because non-formal learning can help enhance youth’s understanding of the EU, inspire a more active participation in social and democratic processes, as well as foster a sense of belonging to the European Union.

In 2022, Udruga Prizma implemented an Erasmus+ project Civitas: Promoting Active Citizenship through Youth Work, involving youth workers from eight EU countries. Digital toolkit Non-formal approach to fostering active citizenship among youth (available here) was made within the project. Moreover, Croatian national agency for Erasmus+ selected the project as an example of good practice. 

During the implementation of the Civitas project the Toolking was used.

You can download the Toolkit by clicking the button below:

Disclaimer

The European Commission’s support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflect the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.