On 24 April 2018, ALDA, in partnership with 5 other European organisations, hosted the final conference of the project YouthMetre. The final conference took place at the Committee of the Regions (Brussels), and gathered together representatives from more than 60 European institutions, local and regional authorities, civil society associations, experts and ordinary citizens to exchange knowledge, experiences and good practices on how to use digital tools to foster youth engagement in policy-making. The event opened with welcome speeches from Ms. Yoomi Renström, Member of the Committee of the Re ..read more

“Structured Dialogue: the use of digital tools to foster youth engagement in policy-making” within the framework of the project “YouthMetre: a tool for forward looking youth participation”   24 April, Brussels Committee of the Regions, Brussels   ALDA – the European Association for Local Democracy, in partnership with the European Association of Geographers (EUROGEO), the University of Zaragoza (UNIZAR), the European Youth Press, ARS for Progress People and CESIE invites you to participate in the YouthMetre final conference on “Structured Dialogue: the use of digital tools to foster ..read more

In the past few years, the global economy has been severely tested by the economic crisis started in 2006. Everywhere in Europe, economic growth has stagnated and the employment opportunities for youth have decreased. The data shown by the YouthMetre e-tool give us a gloomy picture of the employment issue among youth in Italy. Indeed, although the percentage of youth population in the country aged 15-29 is not very high (15.18% of the total population), 42.70% of these young people in 2014 were unemployed. Looking at the variation since 2006, the figure has dramatically increased by 20.9%. The ..read more

Malta’s youth are some of the most overweight in the EU. The country’s high level of obesity can be linked to smoking, alcohol use and social inequality. Can Malta sport its way out of the problem? New habits and social routines have pushed Malta’s youth into an unhealthy direction. Rising overweight among the country’s young people has lead to a so-called 21st century problem. Obesity. YouthMetre’s data show this specifically concerning the panorama of the youth’s health in Malta, when compared to the rest of the EU. With a 5,20% share of obese youths aged 2 ..read more

Sweden received the highest number of unaccompanied minors in Europe in 2015. Continuously rated as Europe’s most pro-immigration population, Swedes should be easy for young newcomers to mingle with. Our case study, however, shows the truth is not quite so simple.  Sweden has had a long history of welcoming migrants. Many of the newcomers with a foreign background however have trouble finding their place in Swedish society. The suburbs of Stockholm face high levels of unemployment, limited economic means and the absence of public spaces to socialise in. All th ..read more

WORKSHOP Interactive and InnovativeEngage your youth with e-participation YouthMetre closes the gap between youths and policy makers. At the European Local Democracy Week’s 10th anniversary, we want to invite local authorities to our interactive workshop. We will teach you new ways of drawing youths’ ideas into your policy making – and show you the simplest way to learn about their needs. Join us on October 12, 2017 to discover our tools, our network for policy makers and to meet our young influencers from your region. Our tools and training let local and regional authorities i ..read more

This post is about higher education and employment in Madrid and asks the question, during my last year at high school, which bachelor degree should I go for? Spain is one of the European countries with the highest rates of unemployed people in the European Union, and in particular on youth unemployment, both in terms of youth unemployment rate -share of unemployed among active population- (53% versus 22% – the EU average), and youth unemployment ratio -share of unemployed among total population (19% versus 9% EU average). In every survey made by INJUVE to Spanish youth people, un ..read more

Youths in Ireland are the heaviest users of cannabis in Europe, recent research shows. The more illegal, the more the drug is used, some statistics suggest.  By Christoforo Simonetta  16% of interviewed Irish youths admitted to having used cannabis in the last 30 days. Interestingly, the countries with the highest percentage of people using cannabis, are also the countries where it is illegal. Particularly Ireland has one of Europe’s severest legislations against cannabis. In the Netherlands and Spain, where legislation is more tolerant, the use of the cannabis is noticeably low ..read more

Young? Looking for opportunities? Move to the capital! This is the clear conclusion to be drawn from the European Commission’s 2015 Youth Report. By Christoforo Simonetta  According the Youth Development Index, all European capital regions (with Lazio in Italy as the only exception) score better on youth friendly performance compared to the averages of their respective countries. In some cases, the difference between country and capital is more than 10 points on the scale. The Youth Development Index is an aggregate indicator that aims to show which regions in Europe are more ‘friendly’ t ..read more

In 2013, 87.8% of Slovakian youths lived with their parents. Three years earlier, this number was only 86.2%. All over Europe, the financial crisis has meant a rise in young people who cannot afford to leave home. By Christoforo Simonetta  Overall, 60% of Europe’s youth between 18-34 years stay at home. The trend has increased over the last years. But despite a common trend, European countries vary a lot, upon closer inspection. In fact, when we analyse the percentage of young adults (from ages 18 – 34) living at home, There are countries like Denmark, where barely 30% live under the pare ..read more