The world is in heavy waters: climate change, economic disparities within societies and among societies, stiff competition between political systems and nations that are often on the brink of war, technological developments that change our societies so profoundly that has never been seen before. And on top of it all a pandemic raged in the past years. Against this background many people get scared – they do not believe that this mess can be handled, that we will be able to take back control. This fear often leads people to wish themselves back the “good old days” - disregarding the fact that the roots of many of today’s problems lie exactly there. This fear does also make people call for “strong men who take care of our problems” – willing to sacrifice democratic and humanistic values. They lack the trust in their own strength and capabilities. They lack the trust in the strength of our democratic societies. Does everyone have this fear? No, youngsters do not. Youngsters show astonishing resilience to such emotions. They are willing to work, they are willing to activate, they are willing to change the status quo for the benefit of a better future. It is not by accident that the “Fridays for Future” movement is originating with youngsters and is spreading so easily around the world. At the same time, youngsters are typically one of least regarded group of the population. Their concerns are rarely on top of the political agenda despite contrary assertions of politicians. Youngsters have no real lobby because they are not delivering immediate votes – the main currency of a democratic political system. However, as the “Fridays for Future” movement also shows youngsters can have an impact if they press the right buttons and learn how to exert influence in a democratic society. This project was based on two premises: First, youngsters have the energy to fight for and implement the necessary transformations that our society, our state, our continent and planet needs. Second, our democratic society grants us citizens plenty of rights that empower us to fight for our interests and succeed in effecting a change. This is the essence of our democracy: we do not only exert our democratic powers at the voting booth, on conventions of political parties or on political demonstrations. We exert our democratic rights by writing poems, by playing music, by supporting our immediate communities in case of hardship. We exercise our democratic rights by activating for a specific purpose without being repressed by the state in any form or manner. However, we need to learn how to participate democratically, what the rules of democratic participation are, how to get heard and then do it! This was what this project was all about. General Objectives This project brought both together juvenile energy on the one hand and the full range of democratic possibilities on the other. Therefore, the 1st general objective of the project was to EMPOWER youngsters to shape their own future by claiming their needs and to become politically and societally involved. Therefore, the students acquired knowledge about voice their interests, how to start a democratic debate which is leading, eventually to political action. This connected also with the 2nd general objective which was to deconstruct the perception that politics is an elitist project that only adults can get involved in. European youngsters should re-CONNECT with politics and claim their role in the political process. The 3rd general objective of the project was that the participants EXPERIENCE the development of a democratic participation process by formulating and planning a campaign around an issue that is of interest to them. Thereby, they would understand the complexity of public participation and experience the difficulty of finding a consensus within their group. The 4th objective of the project was to build up trust and the feeling that youngsters are taken seriously by ENGAGING them in an open DIALOGUE with a political decision-maker. This dialogue enabled a direct communication between the youngsters and the political sphere and was intended to strengthen their confidence in the responsiveness of the political system. SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES We planned to implement nine #CYF events. Each event was supposed to consist of two project days that could be held on-site or as an online format. It was envisaged that: - On the first day, the youngsters learn about participatory processes and participatory options for European citizens and especially young people. It includes group work, group discussions and moderated class discussions. - On the second day, the youngsters develop n/a a campaign based from the context of the European Green Deal that is most important to them and that is most relevant in their direct environment. The second event day includes group work, group discussions and moderated class discussions.