With the project “Young Artists For Inclusive Europe: Searching For Authentic Self" - YAS!20, VsI Susije / CONNECTED and our partners aim to create an international artistic exchange and capacity building laboratory that enables young people to grow professionally and individually, gives opportunity to experiment and collaborate artistically, encourages to rethink the meaning of authenticity in contemporary European societies with the focus on European identity, democratic awareness and active citizenship for inclusive Europe. Authenticity has been selected as the main topic of the exchange because it stands at the intersection between the most pertinent socio-political questions faced by current European societies and the personal struggles most of the young emerging artists have to tackle. European integration and globalization have produced social and political tensions, that are most visible in the rise of far right and populist political groups across the continent. In response to growing tensions and the spread of politics of hate and seclusion, there is a need to strengthen social and political participation of European youth and encourage awareness of European values upon which current politics have been built. The perceived tension between EU integration and protection of national identity leads to questions of what the value of authenticity is and how/ whether it is being threatened in today’s Europe. Analyzing the topic in Kaunas through site specific performances will help the participants to reflect the topic individually, share the different perspectives and thus enrich their opinions of their respective countries/ contexts. Having expanded their awareness, the participants will be better prepared to take an active part in the political life of their respective societies. The topic will be addressed through art and creativity - some of the most powerful informal learning tools - and will engage young artists, this way tackling another rampant problem faced by today’s European youth - unemployment. Choosing to create art, while immensely enriching for the society, can be a daunting and intimidating task for an emerging artist, especially in the context of surging youth unemployment and uncertainty associated with the work in the creative industry. However, supportive community experience and professional guidance can help young artists find their own voice, define their signature approach and establish themselves as original professionals in the field. By addressing those individual and socio-political issues through art, the project aims to achieve the following specific objectives: 1) Encourage more active participation in society and better awareness of the European project and values. YAS!20 will provide the participants with the necessary space to exchange ideas on authenticity, identity and its role in today’s societies. It will foster a dialogue between people of different nationalities; moreover, the participants will develop a shared perspective on the European project and its values. Finally, by expressing their analyses through art and presenting them at a public performance they will take a practical step in civic participation. 2) Increase young artists’ sense of initiative and entrepreneurship, enhance their employability and increase self-empowerment and self-esteem. The participants will go through the full project cycle, from the inception to full implementation and final performance, which will give them invaluable experience to initiate and implement their own projects in the future. Working under professional guidance and with people from a variety of different backgrounds (including different work ethics, communication styles, etc.) will enable them to tackle more ambitious multi-cultural projects in the future. 3) Improve learning experience, enhance intercultural awareness and strengthen foreign language competences. Participants will be exposed to a high level of diversity among and within teams, which will strengthen their awareness of different needs and lifestyles. By sharing their craft with each other - giving workshops, teaching one another and preparing a joint final performance - they will learn to effectively teach and learn across cultures. English will be the main working language and the participants will be encouraged to overcome linguistic barriers if they have any. 4) Increase organizing partners’ institutional capacity to operate at local, EU and international levels and expand their network by bringing together a pool of organizations that have not worked together in the past (VsI Susije / CONNECTED, University of Tartu and EMPREINTE). The project will create new relationships between the organizations, allow to share the methods and good practices of working with youth, strengthen their management skills and credibility, and increase their capacity to foster the generation of high quality projects for youth in the future.