Youth in Action is the EU Programme for young people aged 15-28 (in some cases 13-30). It aims to inspire a sense of active citizenship, solidarity and tolerance among young Europeans and to involve them in shaping the Union's future.
On 15 November 2006, the European Parliament and the Council adopted decision which establishes the Youth in Action programme for the period 2007 to 2013. Youth in Action is the successor of the YOUTH Programme (2000-2006).
Read more about the Youth Policy of the EU here .
The Youth in Action Programme aims to achieve the following general objectives:
- promote young people's active citizenship in general and their European citizenship in particular;
- develop solidarity and promote tolerance among young people, in particular in order to foster social cohesion in the European Union;
- foster mutual understanding between young people in different countries;
- contribute to developing the quality of support systems for youth activities and the capabilities of civil society organizations in the youth field;
- promote European cooperation in the youth field.
Actions
To this end, the Programme is structured around 5 Actions.
Action 1 - Youth for Europe
encourages young people's active citizenship, participation and creativity through youth exchanges, youth initiatives and youth democracy projects.
Action 2 - European Voluntary Service
helps young people to develop their sense of solidarity by participating, either individually or in group, in non-profit, unpaid voluntary activities abroad.
Action 3 - Youth in the World
promotes partnerships and exchanges among young people and youth organizations across the world.
Action 4 - Youth Support Systems
includes various measures to support youth workers and youth organizations and improve the quality of their activities.
Action 5 - Support for European Co-operation in the Youth field
supports youth policy co-operation at European level, in particular by facilitating dialogue between young people and policy makers.
Programme priorities
The Youth in Action programme has four permanent prioritie0s and additional annual priorities which potential projects will have to be aware of as they frame their bids for support:
European Citizenship
A key goal of the programme is to raise awareness in young people that they are citizens of Europe, as well as citizens of their own countries. The aim is to get youth actively involved in shaping the future of the European Union. Projects will have to show a strong European dimension if they are to receive programme backing.
Participation of young people
Youth in Action promotes and supports young people's involvement in democratic life, spurring them on to be active citizens who care about their communities and understand the value of representative democracy.
Cultural diversity
Respect for people's cultural origins is at the heart of the Youth in Action programme, as is the desire to fight against racism and xenophobia - forces that undermine European values and people's solidarity.
Inclusion
The focus is on ensuring that young people with fewer opportunities get access to the Youth in Action programme, as well as on encouraging projects with a thematic focus on inclusion.
Annual priorities
In addition to these permanent priorities, each year the focus is also placed on specific annual priorities.
