It's official: 2022 will be the European Year of Youth

The EU seeks to help young citizens regain control of their lives after the pandemic

In October, the European Commission submitted a formal proposal to designate 2022 the European Year of Youth. Two months later, on 7 December, the European Parliament and the Council officially reached a political agreement on the matter.

As a result, 2022 will offer young Europeans a variety of activities and opportunities for growth and development. To coordinate and launch these activities, the Commission will cooperate with the European Parliament, EU Member States, regional and local authorities as well as youth organisations and young citizens themselves.

Four main objectives

Explaining the need to make 2022 the European Year of Youth, the Commission reports that the younger generations have suffered most during the past two years. Taking this further, the outbreak of the pandemic affected both their personal and professional development in numerous ways.

For this reason, the Commission now seeks to help young Europeans regain control of their lives by supporting and engaging them. More specifically, the European Year of Youth aims to fulfil four key objectives.

First, it will work to renew positive perspectives for young people by highlighting the opportunities that arise from the green and digital transitions. Second, it will support young Europeans who are from diverse and disadvantaged backgrounds, have fewer opportunities and are in vulnerable positions.

Third, the European Year of Youth seeks to help young citizens gain a better understanding of the opportunities that are available to them – on EU, national, regional, and local levels. Finally, it will mainstream youth policy across all relevant union policy fields.

Leave a lasting impact

Although the European Year of Youth will take place in 2022, the Commission hopes that it will have a long-lasting impact and legacy. Commenting on the upcoming year, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Mariya Gabriel shared:

“We understand the importance of putting young people in the spotlight and celebrate their resilience after two very challenging years. I invite all young Europeans to participate in the numerous engagements, initiatives and actions that we will launch as from January 2022. We want to make their voice heard and to inform the decisions we will take for their future. We want this Year to lead into concrete actions that will last well beyond 2022.”

It is important to highlight that the activities and initiatives of the European Year of Youth will be supported by EUR 8 million from Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps. The 2022 programme will soon be available on the EU Youth Portal.