Open call for 46 participants to take part in the 2024 edition of the Congress "Rejuvenating politics" initiative. As part of its “Rejuvenating politics” initiative the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe will invite one young person per member State to come to Strasbourg, France to take an active part, as a youth delegate.
About Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe is a pan-European political assembly, the 612 members of which hold elective office (they may be regional or municipal councillors, mayors or presidents of regional authorities) representing over 200,000 authorities in 46 European states.
About "Rejuvenating Politics" initiative
The "Rejuvenating Politics" initiative was launched by the Congress in 2014 as part of its commitment to promoting the participation of young people in public life and in the decision-making process at local and regional level.
A part of this initiative is the "Youth Delegates". It provides young people from the 46 member states of the Council of Europe with a unique opportunity to sit alongside local and regional elected members in a European assembly, without the ability to vote. They may have an influence by promoting discussion from a youth viewpoint, join a broad community of young activists, make their views known, and develop a network.
Selected applicants will have a unique opportunity to:
1. take an active part in the whole of the two sessions in 2024:
- From Saturday 23 March (19.00) until the debriefing session on Thursday 28 March (17.00)
- From Saturday 12 October (19.00) until the debriefing session on Thursday 17 October (17.00)
A welcome evening will be organised prior to each session on 23 March and 12 October 2024.
2. develop and implement projects between the sessions
- Between March and October, youth delegates will remain involved in the work of the Congress. They will be required to develop a local or regional project which may be related to the Congress’s priorities or to the session themes for 2024. For this, they will have the support of trainers in the form of mentoring sessions to develop and assess their ideas.
Youth Delegate role
Being a youth delegate is an exciting activity. For a year you will have the opportunity to participate and experience from the inside the life of one of the main institutions of the Council of Europe - the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities.
It's IMPORTANT to know that you are a youth delegate of the Congress and the Congress alone, not of the Council of Europe or any other part of the Council of Europe. This means that your role is
focused on the Congress. There are some key issues you should understand about this role and you can find these key issues from HERE
Eligibility | Who can apply
Application is open for young people from the Council of Europe Member states who:
- hold the passport of, and live in one of the 46 council of Europe Member States
- aged between 18 - 30 years
- be open, committed, and motivated to develop and strengthen dialogue between young people and elected representatives at local/regional level
- be active in youth work at local and regional levels
- be available to engage in the whole of the two sessions including the preparation of grass-roots projects
- have an interest in actively participating in policy making at local and or regional levels but not be an elected representative
- have good writing and public speaking skills
- be committed to working in an intercultural team
- not have participated in the initiative previously
- speak English fluently
Financial conditions and Benefits
- Selected youth delegates’ travel and subsistence expenses will be covered jointly by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities according to the Council of Europe's rules.
- Accommodation will be provided and paid for by the organisers, in single-occupancy or shared rooms according to availability.
Timeline
Application deadline: 7 January 2024, 23:59 CET
Selection result: All candidates will be informed of the results of the selection procedure by 9 February 2024 at the latest.
First session: 26-28 March 2024
Second session: 15-17 October 2024
How to apply?
To apply you need to fill in the online application before the deadline
Note: Applicants must also submit a short video via online link of no more than 30 seconds, to support their application. The link to the video (title should contain only the applicant’s name and country) should be sent together with the application. Please note that candidates should not present themselves on the video but should answer the question that has been put. This is an integral part of the application.
Selection Process
0 Comments