The Connect project, has started with the kick-off meeting held in Cagliari, Italy on the 17-18 July 2021. The project is carried out in partnership with 9 non-governmental organizations from 8 different countries, focuses on the problems faced by young people in European Union policies. The project addresses the problem of the increasing number of young people who do not trust the EU and public institutions in general, and who face difficulties in understanding its principles, values, and functioning, and that young people lack participation and dialogue at all stages of the policy-making decision.
Accordingly, the project draws attention to the necessity of improving existing participatory mechanisms and creating new ones.
In this regard, the project emphasizes the importance of finding solutions to the problems of young people together by establishing new cooperation models between youth organizations and young people. The project aims to support the development of young people, to enable them to become more active members of society, to develop their citizenship skills, and to enable them to have an active part in democratic participation.
A regional youth network will be established in each partner country and it is planned to establish a platform that facilitates interaction between different NGO networks and presents cooperation practices. An international training course is also provided for a total of 87 youth workers with the project. The two seminars, the implementation of nine job shadowing tools for active participation and the replication of best practices are aimed.
The project envisions organizing 16 local events, eight large-scale local events and one large-scale international event.
