2022 is the European Year of Youth. Europe has long recognised that investing in young people is, by definition, investing in the future. Over the years, the European Parliament has been a vocal supporter of policy, programmes and projects which help young Europeans. Let’s take a look back at how European youth policy has grown stronger over the years.

culture

young person

education

Timeline: Europe and young people

https://api.multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/documents/20125/3649503/N01_AFPS_211220_EUYY-EN.srt

helping them to study, travel, find work...

broadening their horizons, learning languages

In 1996, the idea for the European Voluntary Service was born.

This would later become the EU Solidarity Corps.

Parliament launched the Charlemagne Youth Prize

Since then, it has been awarded every year

to projects that promote cooperation and understanding

Tackling unemployment and creating opportunities

was the goal of the 2013 Youth Guarantee.

for more than four months without an offer

an apprenticeship, an internship or a job."

In 2014, the European Youth Event was born.

the goal was to celebrate European citizenship,

debate ideas and meet like-minded people.

participants had even become known as the 'Erasmus generation':

When the Commission proposed updating Erasmus

to explore the diversity of European cultures?

InterRail passes allowing them to travel the continent

That's what the Conference on the Future of Europe

The conversation involves Europeans of all ages

and a third of them are under the age of 25.

"This time their conclusions, their proposals

will be taken into the Conference on the Future of Europe.

So from here starts a very important exercise

in European policies for the coming years."