G. & D.

CHIRLEAN, Management of the European Programmes

Chapter 6: CULTURE PROGRAMME

STRUCTURE OF THE COURSE 6 (Part I):
6.1: Culture Programme:
6.1.1.: History
6.1.2: New Culture Programme
6.2: Types of measures
6.3: European capital of culture
6.4: Projects in images

6.1: Culture Programme

6.1.1.: History
Up until the Treaty of Maastricht (1992), the Community had no real power in the field
of culture. However, culture was still represented in Community activities through ad hoc
initiatives.
In 1993, the entry into force of the Treaty of Maastricht marked the Member States'
desire to "mark a new stage in the process of European integration", that of "an ever closer
union between the peoples of Europe", expressed in particular via the creation of a European
citizenship and by the granting of new powers to the Community, including new powers in the
field of culture, with the Treaty introducing a new article devoted to it.
Cultural cooperation thus became a recognized aim of Community action, with an
appropriate legal basis (article 128). This article was included in its entirety in the Treaty of
Amsterdam (1997) (article 151), apart from paragraph 4 which was amended to read as follows:
"the Community shall take cultural aspects into account in its actions under other provisions of
this Treaty, in particular in order to respect and to promote the diversity of its cultures".
This paragraph calls for culture to be taken into account and for cultural diversity to be
respected in all Community policies, in compliance with Community law. This is a legal
obligation, and the Community institutions must take the cultural implications of all Community
policies on board.
Based on Article 151 (ex-128), a first generation of programmes, first of all pilot and then
sectoral programmes, were put in place between 1993 and 1999.
In July 1990, the Commission published the selection criteria and conditions for
participation in the "Platform Europe", which became in 1991 the first Kalidoscope programme
for supporting artistic and cultural events involving at least three Member States. The
programme was reorganised from 1994 in order to support cultural events more effectively,
encourage artistic creation and cooperation in the form of a network, to promote better public
access to European heritage and to improve artistic and cultural cooperation between
professionals. Between 1990 and 1995, more than 500 cultural projects received Community
support.
Between 1990 and 1996, the Commission also launched several pilot projects in the area
of translation and the promotion of books in Europe, providing support for more than 500
projects or translations.

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These pilots allowed the implementation, between 1996 and 1999, of three cultural programmes:
Kalidoscope (1996-1999), which aimed to encourage artistic and cultural creation and
cooperation with a European dimension;
Ariane (1997-1999), which supported the field of books and reading, including translation;
Raphal (1997-1999), the aim of which was to complement Member States' policies in the area
of cultural heritage of European significance.
Finally, preparatory actions were performed in 1999 in order to manage the preparation
of Culture 2000. Culture 2000 was a Community programme established for seven years (20002006). In contrast to the financial instruments that preceded it, Culture 2000 provided grants to
cultural cooperation projects in all artistic and cultural fields.
6.1.2.: New Culture Programme
The new Culture Programme is a Community programme established for seven years
(starting on 1 January 2007 and ending on 31 December 2013).
The EUs Culture programme (2007-2013) has a budget of 400 million for projects and
initiatives to celebrate Europes cultural diversity and enhance our shared cultural heritage
through the development of cross-border co-operation between cultural operators and
institutions.
The general objective of the programme shall be to enhance the cultural area common to
Europeans through the development of cultural cooperation between the creators, cultural
players and cultural institutions of the countries taking part in the programme, with a view to
encouraging the emergence of European citizenship.
The Programme shall be open to the participation of non-audiovisual cultural industries,
in particular small cultural enterprises, where such industries are acting in a non-profit-making
cultural capacity.
The Culture programme aims to achieve three main objectives:
to promote cross-border mobility of those working in the cultural sector;
to encourage the transnational circulation of cultural and artistic output;
to foster intercultural dialogue.
For the achievement of these objectives, the programme supports three strands of activities:
cultural actions;
European-level cultural bodies;
analysis and dissemination activities.

6.2: Types of actions

Strand I: Support for cultural actions
The first strand of the Culture programme encourages cultural organisations and operators to
work together on cultural and artistic projects.
This strand includes three sub-categories:
Multi-annual co-operation projects, running over a period of three to five years.
Co-operation measures, running over a maximum period of two years.

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Special measures, which relate to high-profile actions of considerable scale and scope.
The support to European Capitals of Culture and festivals with a European dimension
fall under this sub-strand.

The thrust of this strand is to help organisations, such as theatres, museums, professional
associations, research centres, universities, cultural institutes and public authorities from
different countries participating in the programme to cooperate so that different sectors can work
together and extend their cultural and artistic reach across borders.
Co-operation among cultural organisations receives the largest share of the overall programme
budget (approximately 77%).
(a) Multi-annual cooperation projects (lasting over a period of three to five years)
The first sub-category seeks to lay down multi-annual, trans-national cultural links by
encouraging a minimum of six cultural operators from at least six eligible countries to cooperate
and work across sectors to develop joint cultural activities over a period of three to five years.
EU support for the actions is limited to half of the total eligible cost and is set at a maximum of
Euro 500 000 a year. The funding is intended to help set up or extend the geographical reach of a
project and make it sustainable beyond the funding period.
(b) Cooperation measures (projects lasting over a maximum period of two years)
The second sub-category concerns actions shared by at least three cultural operators, working
across sectors, from at least three eligible countries over a maximum period of two years.
Actions that seek to develop long-term co-operation are especially targeted.
EU support for the actions is limited to half of the total eligible cost and is set between Euro
50 000 and Euro 200 000. Literary translation projects are also supported under this sub-strand.
(c) Special measures
The third sub-category refers to high-profile actions of substantial scale and scope. They should
make an impact on European citizens and help to promote a sense of European identity. These
actions are supposed to raise awareness and appreciation among citizens of the richness of
Europe's cultural diversity and to contribute to intercultural dialogue.
For example support for European cultural festivals is allocated under this sub-strand. The aim is
to support festivals that have a European dimension and which contribute to the general
objectives of the Programme (i.e. mobility of professionals, circulation of works and intercultural
dialogue).
The European Capitals of Culture are also supported within this sub-strand. This has grown, over
two decades, into one of Europes major cultural events.
A further aspect of this sub-strand is the award of prizes to celebrate artistic talent among young
Europeans.
Finally, this strand also supports our joint actions in the field of culture with the Council of
Europe.
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The selection procedures as well as the potential beneficiaries of the EU support depend on the
action in question.
Strand II: Support for cultural bodies
Cultural organisations, associations and institutions play a crucial role in promoting culture and
advancing its interests. However, cultural bodies operating at a European level are still few and
far between. This strand of the Culture programme supports cultural bodies which operate or
seek to operate at a European level.
This strand is aimed at promoting a sense of shared cultural experience. To be eligible, applicant
organisations must show a truly European dimension, whether individually or as a network,
association or federation.
Their influence should be felt in at least seven European countries, and preferably at the EU level
as a whole.
With a budget of approximately 10% of the programmes overall budget, it provides cofinancing for the permanent work of these organisations.
Support to cultural organizations
Support is available for organisations engaged in providing representation at EU level, collecting
or disseminating information to encourage trans-European cultural co-operation, networking at
European level for cultural bodies, participating in cultural co-operation projects or acting as
ambassadors for European culture.
One of the advantages of supporting activities of this type is that the work of these bodies can
become a permanent feature of European cultural life. They produce publications, recordings,
and other products which means that their work can continue to circulate even after a specific
event, tour or conference is over.
Strand III: Support for analysis and dissemination activities
To maximise the benefits from the projects which receive EU funding, the results need to be
communicated as widely as possible. It is also important to regularly assess whether the
objectives are being met.
This is precisely the purpose of strand three (about 5% of the programmes budget). It supports
analysis and dissemination activities in three ways.
Firstly, this strand supports studies to help improve understanding of European cultural cooperation and the conditions which help it to flourish. Subjects such as the mobility of cultural
workers, the circulation of works of art and artistic and cultural products, and intercultural
dialogue are of particular interest.
Secondly, the programme supports cultural contact points in each participating country. Their
function is to promote the Culture programme locally and raise awareness of its activities and the
opportunities it offers among potential participants and citizens at large in each participating
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countries.
These culture points also exchange information with national cultural institutions and
organisations, maintain contact with the participants in EU programmes and liaise with other
sources of information.
Lastly, the collection and dissemination of information on the various EU-funded cultural
activities and projects is intended to raise public awareness across the EU of this important field
and to ensure that projects have a maximum impact.
An internet tool, EVE, has been developed whith aims to facilitate the exchange of experience
and good practice about cultural projects as well as projects under the other programmes in the
field of DG Education and Culture
.
This category also supports organisations involved in cultural analysis groupings and
cooperation projects between private or public organisations which have direct and practical
experience in the analysis, evaluation, or impact assessment of cultural policies at local, regional,
national and/or European levels, related to one or more of the 3 objectives of the European
Agenda for culture.

6.3: European capital of culture

Each year, cities chosen as European Capitals of Culture in 2010 Essen, Istanbul and Pecs
provide living proof of the richness and diversity of European cultures. Started in 1985, the
initiative has become one of the most prestigious and high-profile cultural events in Europe.
More than 40 cities have been designated European Capitals of Culture so far, from Stockholm
to Genoa, Athens to Glasgow, and Cracow to Porto.
A city is not chosen as a European Capital of Culture solely for what it is, but mainly for what it
plans to do for a year that has to be exceptional. Its programme for the year must meet some
specific criteria.
The European Capitals of Culture initiative was set up to:
highlight the richness and diversity of European cultures
celebrate the cultural ties that link Europeans together
bring people from different European countries into contact with each other's culture and
promote mutual understanding
foster a feeling of European citizenship.
In addition, studies have shown that the event is a valuable opportunity to:
regenerate cities
raise their international profile and enhance their image in the eyes of their own
inhabitants
give new vitality to their cultural life
raise their international profile, boost tourism and enhance their image in the eyes of
their own inhabitants.
The Council of the European Union is the only institution that can award the title of European
Capital of Culture.
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From 2011, two cities from two different EU countries will be European Capitals of Culture
each year.
The procedure for choosing a city starts around 6 years in advance though the order of Member
States entitled to host the event is fixed before then and is organised in 2 stages. It involves a
panel of independent experts in the cultural field responsible for assessing the proposals. Once
designated, the preparations of the European Capitals of Culture are monitored.

6.4: Projects in images

I. Action 1: Cultural Heritage
Project "Delphi - House of Questions", realized within the program "Culture 2000"
Description
Based on the visitor questions of the archaeological open-air museums in Europe, a multimediabased project could be realized on three locations in Latvia, the Netherlands and Germany from
June 2004 to June 2005 under collaboration of 25 further museums. Visitor orientation and
contextualization are important modern tasks in the European museum world. Therefore we
forged new paths together across state boarders.
In the archaeological park Archeon (NL) early-mediaeval houses with explanation boards and
an extern time island in the town hall were built and a new website created.
In Araisi Lake Fortress (LV) a Bronze Age House was added to the existing open-air museum,
a new multilingual information trail was developed and brochures were published.
In the lake-dwelling museum Unteruhldingen (DE), the leader of the project, a house of
questions with richly-illustrated answers was constructed as well as a time trail of 2 km length
with "Time Islands" that give information, leading through 10 000 years of village history.
Together with all partners of the European network of open-air museums a new internet platform
in 13 different languages was created. It also provides the opportunity to ask questions about
Europe's archaeology. The installations in the web and in the museums have been used by more
than 500 000 people this year.
Objectives
The project answers the most frequently asked visitors' questions for the archaeological cultural
heritage in the open-air museums of Europe. The aim is to give a better and sustainable cultural
understanding in Europe for all classes of society, from the Stone Age right through the different
epochs to the present day. The project will improve the pedagogical effect of the three museums
and ease the access to cultural-historical topics.
Project Dates: 30/05/2004 - 30/05/2005
Project Leader: Delphi - House of Questions
Website: www.delphi.exarc.net
Photos: 3 partner museums Archeon, Araisi Lake Fortress and Pfahlbaumuseum Unteruhldingen
II. Action 2: Performing arts
Project DPARTS. Investing in the future of European dance
Description
The dance company Rosas, which was set up in 1983 by the choreographer Anne Teresa de
Keersmaeker and is currently in residence at La Monnaie, has taken an interdisciplinary and
international approach to contemporary dance.
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Its school, PARTS, set up DPARTS in 2001, an assistance scheme for mobility which is
designed to allow foreign students to train there.
DPARTS is a European network for young European dancers and choreographers. Through
establishing facilities for young people, visits by guest artists, summer studios, the allocation of
study grants and workshops DPARTS supports talented young people during their training and
gives them the opportunity to launch themselves into the professional world by presenting their
works.
Objectives
After several years of networking practice DPARTS core objectives are to provide young
artists with the possibility for a good training program and getting access to the professional
world.
DPARTS stands for a double start. There are two crucial starting points in the objective.
Dparts1: to give all talented young Europeans an equal opportunity to take part in the highly
qualified training programme of contemporary dance through an international recruitment and
providing of student grants.
Dparts 2: to offer former students of PARTS the opportunity to become professionally active
and to start building their career through presentation, support and co-production of their work.
The aim of the DPARTS-network is to invest to the maximum in the future of European
contemporary dance.
Project Dates: 01-09-2001 until 31-08-2003. Extended to 29-02-2004
Project Leader: P.A.R.T.S. Performing Arts Research and Training Studios/Brussels (BE)
Website: http://www.rosas.be/Parts/frames_P_about.html
Photos: David Berg

Bibliography:
1.Culture Programme,
http://ec.europa.eu/culture/our-programmes-and-actions/doc411_en.htm
2. European Capitals of Culture,
http://ec.europa.eu/culture/our-programmes-and-actions/doc413_en.htm
3. Delphi House of Questions,
http://ec.europa.eu/culture/eac/projects/action1/cult_heritage1/house_en.html
4. Departs. Investing in the future of European Dance,
http://ec.europa.eu/culture/eac/projects/action2/performing_arts2/parts_en.html

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Chapter 7: YOUTH PROGRAMME

STRUCTURE OF THE COURSE 6 (Part II):
7.1: Youth Programme:
7.1.1.: Description
7.1.2.: The EU Youth Strategy 2010-2018
7.1.3.: Priorities
7.1.4.: Types of measures
7.2: Examples of past projects

7.1: Youth Programme

7.1.1.: Description
Youth in Action is mobilising the potential of young Europeans.
On 15 November 2006, the European Parliament and the Council adopted Decision No
1719/2006 /EC, which establishes the Youth in Action programme for the period 2007 to 2013.
This document is the legal basis of the Programme for its entire duration.
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.
Youth in Action is a programme for all! It promotes mobility within and beyond the EU borders,
non-formal learning and intercultural dialogue, and encourages the inclusion of all young people,
regardless of their educational, social and cultural background.
Youth in Action is the successor of the YOUTH Programme (2000-2006). Building on the
experience of the previous programmes for youth, Youth in Action is the result of a large
consultation with the different stakeholders in the youth field and aims to respond to the
evolutions and needs of young people at European level.
With a total budget of 885 million euros for seven years (2007-2013), the Programme supports a
large variety of activities for young people and youth workers through five Actions.
Youth in Action in figures
Duration: 2007-2013
Budget: 885 million euros for seven years
Geographic reach: EU Member States, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Turkey, the EU
neighbours (Eastern Europe and Caucasus, the Mediterranean region, South-East Europe)
and other partner countries in the world
Age brackets: 15-28 (in some cases 13-30)

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7.1.2.: The EU Youth Strategy 2010-2018

The current generation of young Europeans is the first to have grown up in a largely borderless
and peaceful Europe. This is a Europe where they can move around freely, work and learn more
easily than ever before - and it is very different to the one their grandparents, or even parents,
grew up in. Young people nowadays are intelligent and independent young men and women,
who know what they want, and who are doing their best to reach their goals. But sometimes
obstacles come in their way and they may need a helping hand. The EU tries to support and help
if something goes wrong and to encourage reaching new and better horizons.
The inclusion of Youth as a concept in European policy is a relatively recent phenomenon. The
Treaty of Maastricht in 1993 extended the scope of EU policies to include the youth field, by
virtue of Article 149 2. This states that the EU should encourage the development of youth
exchanges and of exchanges of socio-educational instructors
Before 2001, the activities of the European Institutions in the youth field mainly focused on the
consideration and implementation of specific programmes, such as Youth for Europe, launched
in 1988. However, a consensus remained that this action and cooperation needed to be built on
further and that young people themselves needed to be more involved.
The White Paper on Youth was adopted in November 2001. This contained a proposal to the
EUs Member States to increase cooperation in four youth priority areas: participation,
information, voluntary activities and a greater understanding and knowledge of youth. The White
Paper proposed to take the youth dimension more into account when developing other relevant
policies, such as education and training, employment and social inclusion, health and antidiscrimination.
On the basis of the White Paper, the Council of the European Union in June 2002 established a
framework for European co-operation in the field of youth. Later, in November 2005, the
framework was updated to take into account the European Youth Pact.
In April 2009, the Commission presented a Communication entitled "An EU Strategy for Youth
Investing and Empowering. A renewed open method of coordination to address youth
challenges and opportunities".
The new Strategy invites both the Member States and the Commission, in the period 20102018,
to cooperate in the youth field by means of a renewed open method of coordination. It proposes a
cross-sectoral approach, with both short and long-term actions, which involve all key policy
areas that affect Europe's young people. It emphasises the importance of youth work and defines
reinforced measures for a better implementation of youth policies at the EU level. The Strategy
invites all Member States to organise a permanent and regular dialogue (Structured Dialogue)
with young people. Furthermore, the Commission in its Strategy encourages a more research and
evidence-based youth policy.
The Commission's adoption of the new strategy on youth followed an extensive consultation
exercise undertaken in 2008, involving national authorities, the European Youth Forum, youth
organizations and other stakeholders. Young people themselves were consulted on-line and
subsequently invited to react to the Commission's proposals in a new phase of the permanent
dialogue between the EU and its youth.
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In November 2009, the EU Council of Youth Ministers, composed of the 27 Member States of
the European Union, adopted a Resolution on a renewed framework for European cooperation in
the youth field for the next decade. It is based on the Commission's Communication of April
2009 "An EU Youth Strategy: Investing and Empowering".
The new EU Youth Strategy defines two overall objectives of the new framework:
More and equal opportunities for young people in education and in the labour market
Active citizenship, social inclusion and solidarity of young people
7.1.3.: Priorities
The Youth in Action programme has four permanent priorities 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 peoples
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 peoples 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 peoples 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. Annual priorities of the Youth in Action Programme are aimed at
better defining the context of implementation of the Programme by clarifying the scope of the
permanent priorities (promoting young people's European citizenship, active participation in
democratic life, cultural diversity and the inclusion of young people with fewer opportunities)
and by better anchoring the Programme to topical issues at European level.
For 2010, the annual priorities are:
European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion
Youth unemployment and promotion of young unemployed people's active participation
in society
Awareness-raising and mobilization of young people around global challenges (such as
sustainable development, climate change, migrations, the Millennium Development
Goals)

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7.1.4.: Types of measures

The Youth in Action Programme aims to achieve the following general objectives:
promote young peoples 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 organisations in the youth field;
promote European cooperation in the youth field.
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 organisations across the
world.
Action 4 - Youth Support Systems
includes various measures to support youth workers and youth organisations 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.
7.1.4.1.: Action 1 Youth for Europe
Action 1 of the Youth in Action Programme offers a stimulating way for youth to become
involved in debating and promoting active citizenship and democracy.
This Action supports three main types of activities:
Youth Exchanges
Youth Initiatives
Youth Democracy Projects
(a) Youth Exchanges
The aim of Youth Exchanges is to get groups of young people from different countries together
so they can explore their social and cultural differences and similarities. Youth Exchanges are
targeted at young people between the age of 13 and 25. They receive the unique opportunity to
experience significant mutual learning situations and to strengthen their feeling of being
Europeans.

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Each exchange must have a theme that is relevant to the daily experiences of the young people
involved but also has a clear European dimension. Themes could cover numerous issues, such as
young people in society, racism and xenophobia, local heritage, drugs, the environment, etc.
In accordance with its inclusion strategy, the Youth in Action programme particularly
encourages youth exchanges involving young people with fewer opportunities.
By participating in a youth exchange, young people go through a non-formal learning
experience, which is recognised through a specific certificate called Youthpass.
(b) Youth Initiatives
Youth Initiatives are projects entirely devised, planned and implemented by young people at
local, regional or national level. The goal of these important non-formal learning experiences is
to stimulate young peoples creativity, enterprise and initiative. Youth Initiatives are aimed
primarily at 18-30 year olds, but 15-18 year olds can take part if accompanied by a coach or
youth worker.
There are two types of initiative: National Youth Initiatives, which are developed by single
groups in their own countries; and Transnational Youth Initiatives where two or more groups
from different European countries are involved. The themes that groups choose to work on must
be relevant to the young people themselves and to the local community. Possible topics include
art and culture, social exclusion, homelessness and unemployment, youth sports and leisure,
media and communications, etc. The European dimension is crucial. This could be highlighted
by ensuring that a chosen theme is examined in a European context. Project teams could also
choose a specific European theme, such as enlargement and its cultural impact on young people.
These strategies offer the chance to promote common European values like equal opportunities,
human rights and democracy.
(c) Youth Democracy Projects
Youth Democracy Projects aim at boosting young peoples involvement in the democratic
process at local, regional and European level.
The objective is to provide young people with ideas about and experiences of democracy, to
spark new national and transnational networks and exchanges of good practice.
Youth Democracy Projects improve young peoples understanding of how democracy works,
helping them to make the most of their right to participate in the decision-making structures of a
democratic society.
Among other things, projects could aim at developing actions to support a structured dialogue
between decision-makers and young people.
Aimed at 13 to 30 year olds, Youth Democracy Projects should focus on such themes as
European citizenship, active participation, cultural diversity, social inclusion, the future of
Europe or other priorities identified in the field of European cooperation in the youth field.

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7.1.4.2.: Action 2 - European Voluntary Service (EVS)

The Youth in Action programme offers young Europeans the chance to make a real difference to
the world and to their own lives through the European Voluntary Service.
The European Voluntary Service (EVS) provides young Europeans with the unique chance to
express their personal commitment through unpaid and full-time voluntary activities in a foreign
country within or outside the EU. In this way, it seeks to develop solidarity, mutual
understanding and tolerance among young people, thus contributing to reinforcing social
cohesion in the European Union and to promoting young people's active citizenship.
Learning for life!
Open to all young people aged 18 to 30, EVS is a true learning service. Beyond benefiting the
local communities, by participating in voluntary activities, young volunteers can develop new
skills and, therefore, improve their personal, educational and professional development.
Volunteers can benefit from specific training throughout the activity and agree on their expected
learning outcomes, processes and methods in advance. Their learning experience is formally
recognised through a Youthpass. Participation is free for the volunteers who also get board and
lodging, insurance cover and an allowance for the duration of the project. Special conditions
apply to encourage the participation of young people with fewer opportunities. For instance, they
can participate as of the age of 16. Further information can be found in the Youth in Action
Programme Guide as well as in the Inclusion Strategy of the Programme.
Co-operation and friendships
A successful EVS project requires close co-operation among at least three key players: a sending
organisation, a host organisation and the volunteer. One of the organisations involved in this
partnership also plays the role of coordinating organisation and applies for an EU grant on behalf
of the partnership. Organisations perform a number of roles: they identify volunteering
opportunities and develop projects that benefit the local community. They also recruit and
prepare the volunteers, host them, and ensure follow-up.
EVS activities can be carried out both individually or in group. Up to 100 volunteers can now
participate in the same EVS activity!
The European Voluntary Service spans a wide range of areas, such as culture, youth, sports,
social care, cultural heritage, the arts, civil protection, the environment, development cooperation, etc. One thing all the activities have in common is a clear European and intercultural
learning dimension. EVS is a mutually beneficial process, where everybody gains from getting to
know the other's culture.
Accreditation
The EVS has certain core values and quality standards which are laid down in the EVS Charter.
In order to protect and uphold these, organisations interested in sending or hosting EVS
volunteers or coordinating an EVS project need first to be accredited.
To receive accreditation, organisations submit an expression of interest and, once their
application is approved, they sign up to the EVS Charter. Accreditation lasts for three years, but
can be withdrawn immediately in cases of non-compliance with the Charter.

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7.1.4.3.: Action 3 Youth in the World

Action 3 of the Youth in Action programme opens up new horizons to European youth and youth
organisations beyond the EUs borders.
Youth in Action features a strong international dimension. Through the Youth in the World
Action, it helps strengthen relations between the EU and its neighbours, as well as the rest of the
world by providing young people and youth workers from Europe with the opportunity to take
part in exchanges and other non-formal education activities with their peers living outside the
Union.
In this way, Youth in the World seeks to deepen mutual understanding, tolerance and
intercultural awareness among young people within the Union and beyond.
This Action supports various projects with EU Partner Countries, with a special focus on its
neighbouring regions Eastern Europe and Caucasus, the Mediterranean region, and South-East
Europe.
Co-operation with EU neighbours
This sub-action focuses on developing ties with partner countries that are part of the European
Neighbourhood Policy, along with the Russian Federation and countries from South-East
Europe. Reinforcing youth co-operation in these regions will ultimately also contribute to
boosting democracy and civil society in the involved countries, as well as to empowering young
people to play an active role in their societies.
Youth exchanges for young people aged between 13 and 25 are covered under this sub-action,
along with training and networking projects.
At least one group from an EU Member State must be involved in a project, along with one or
more groups from neighbouring partner countries. Projects may take place either in a Programme
Country or in a neighbouring Partner Country, with the exception of the Mediterranean region.
Youth projects taking place in a Mediterranean partner country may get funding through the
Euro-Med Youth Programme.
Projects should reflect the priorities of the Youth in Action Programme. Examples of possible
themes that could be covered include: strengthening civil society; tackling racism and
xenophobia; improving understanding between different ethnic and religious groups; women in
society; minority rights; regional co-operation; heritage and the environment, etc.
More information about these three neighbouring regions, as well as support and advice in
finding partners and developing activities, can be offered by the relevant regional SALTO
Resource Centre:
SALTO South-East Europe; SALTO Eastern Europe and Caucasus; SALTO EUROMED
Co-operation with other Partner Countries of the world
This second sub-action is open to all Partner Countries around the world that have signed a
youth-related agreement with the EU.
The aim is to promote the exchange of experience and good practice in the field of youth and
non-formal education, as well as to develop lasting partnerships and networks between youth
organisations from across much of the globe.
Detailed criteria on how to apply are specified each year in a specific call for proposals.
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7.1.4.4.: Action 4 Youth Support Systems

Young people are certainly the main target group of Youth in Action, but the Programme does
not overlook all those people and bodies that make it possible for young people to benefit from
highly enriching experiences.
Action 4 of the Youth in Action Programme is specifically targeted at building the capacity of
youth workers and organisations to develop quality activities, thus improving the overall quality
of the Programme.
This is done, primarily, by providing these important actors with opportunities to develop cooperation and partnerships, to exchange youth work good practice, as well as to receive training.
This will strengthen the impact of European co-operation in the field of youth policy and will
also support project development under the Youth in Action Programme.
Civil society, youth workers and other actors involved in youth work can apply for a whole range
of activities such as job shadowing, feasibility visits, evaluation meetings, study visits and
seminars, training courses, as well as partnership building and networking activities. For more
details on these activities, please consult section 4.3 of the Programme Guide.
In addition to this, Youth in Action provides financial support to European NGOs active at
European level in the field of youth and to the European Youth Forum. European Youth NGOs
which are based in one of the Programme Countries with members in at least eight Programme
Countries may receive support to cover part of their operating costs. The details are specified
each year in a specific call for proposals.
Other possibilities include:
Support to projects encouraging innovation and quality in the field of non-formal
education and youth work.
Information activities and partnerships.
7.1.4.5.: Action 5 - Support for European co-operation in the youth field
Through its Action 5, the Youth in Action Programme has become a tool to support youth policy
development at European level.
The main aim of Action 5 of the Youth in Action programme is to promote European cooperation in the youth field. In this way, the Programme offers concrete support to youth policy
development at European level.
The general objectives include:
encouraging the exchange of good practice between policy-makers and young people;
supporting structured dialogue between young people and policy-makers;
fostering a better knowledge and understanding of youth and promoting co-operation
with international organisations active in the youth field.
Three sub-actions have been created to achieve these goals:

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National and transnational youth seminars

Firstly, co-funding grants can be given to the setting up of meetings between young people and
those responsible for youth policy.
Targeted at young people aged 15-30, these meetings can take place either at national or
transnational level. They should aim at promoting the exchange of good practice and ideas in
relation to important topics in the field of European youth policy or the priority themes of the
Youth in Action programme and structured dialogue. Additionally, national youth seminars may
consist of gatherings at local, regional and national level in preparation for the youth presidency
events in the Member State holding the EUs rotating presidency.
Both types of seminars need to be dynamic, non-formal learning experiences. They should
contribute to young people's education, as well as to their knowledge and awareness of the
European and international context within which they live.
Improving knowledge and understanding of youth
This aims to improve the knowledge and understanding of youth in relation to the priorities
established in the youth field under the Open Method of Coordination. It will support the
development of studies and networks in order to gain greater understanding of the reality and
needs of young people.
Co-operation with international organizations
The Commission works closely with the Council of Europe and the two institutions have
established a partnership agreement in order to develop a framework for co-operation in the
youth field. Within this partnership a large variety of joint activities are implemented, including
training, conferences, workshops, seminars, as well as the management of the European
Knowledge Centre for Youth Policy, a research database for youth policy across Europe.
A Partnership between the Commission and the United Nations Volunteers is also being
strengthened in order to increase cooperation in the field of volunteering

7.2: Example of past projects

I. BENEFICIARY: ASSOCIATION POUR LE PARLEMENT EUROPEEN DES JEUNES
(France)
Description
The youth encounter is entitled Discussing the construction, present and future of Europe.
Debates, proposals and visions of Europe's youth and is coordinated by the French branch of
the association of the European Youth Parliament. The organization is concerned with uniting
young people in discussions on current socio-political issues in the form of a youth parliament
and has vast experience in organizing international events and academic forums. The youth
encounter will take place in Paris (FR) with the participation of 190 young people from 25
different EU member states and pre-accession countries (FR, DE, AT, BE, CY, DK, EE, FI, GR,
IE, IT, LV, LT, NL, PL, PT, ES, CZ, SE, SI, UK, MT, NO, BG, RO, TR). The project objective
is to motivate young people to assume a more active role in the European society and this will be
achieved by providing them with the opportunity to get informed on the current European issues.
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The participants will acquire knowledge on themes such as the European Constitution, the future
of Europe, racism and human rights or the role of youth in the European society. During the
activities, the participants will be asked to debate the above themes following a participative and
democratic approach where each theme will be discussed from different points of view. The
encounter will also create a space of intercultural interaction for the participants through
teambuilding activities, cultural events and meetings with young people at local level.
Project theme(s): Youth policies, European Awareness
Contact : Vincent COURONNE
Address : ASSOCIATION POUR LE PARLEMENT EUROPEEN DES JEUNES FRANCE
(PEJ
FRANCE)
48, rue de Richelieu
FR-75001 PARIS
Reference: 125160-1.1-FR-3-2005-R3
Grant: 42066
II. BENEFICIARY: LIBERALIS FIATALOK EGYESULETE (Hungary)
Description
The project is a Conference on the European Constitution that will be coordinated by the
Union of Young Liberals of Hungary. The organization addresses young people and promotes
the ideas of liberalism through discussion groups with known personalities, film clubs and
political philosophy courses. Their aim is to encourage young people to become less apolitical
and become involved in civic social life. The youth encounter will take place in Budapest (HU)
where 174 young people from all over Europe will be hosted in the Hungarian Parliament
(64HU, and 4 each from AT, CY, CZ, DK, EE, FI, FR, DE, GR, IE, IT, LV, LT, LU, MT, PL,
PT, SK, SI, ES, SE, NL, UK, BG, RO and TR). The event will start off with a two day
conference followed by debates conducted in groups and the themes will focus on presenting and
analyzing the EU Constitution. The Constitution will be discussed in relation to topics such as
human and minority rights, the environment, the role of civil and public initiatives. The aim of
the youth encounter is to generate dialogue among young people concerning the above themes
and motivate them to become active citizens. All participants will be requested to make
presentations on the themes of the conference to their local secondary schools, thus diffusing
their knowledge and generating debates to an even wider audience of young people.
Project theme(s): Fight against racism and xenophobia, Equal opportunities, Social exclusion in
general, Youth policies, European Awareness, Environment, Youth information
Contact: Mikls ROSTA
Address LIBERALIS FIATALOK EGYESULETE
Stromfeld Aurl t 28.
HU-1124 BUDAPEST
Reference: 124368-1.1-HU-3-2005-R1
Grant: 50000
Bibliography:
1. European Commission - Youth,
http://ec.europa.eu/youth/index_en.htm

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