The project “Active Citizens: Youth for Democracy and Participation” was implemented to support young people in becoming more active, informed, and responsible citizens both in their local communities and at the European level. Through this youth exchange, we wanted to create an international learning environment where young people from different countries could meet, exchange ideas, learn from each other, and better understand the importance of democracy, participation, inclusion, and European cooperation. The project gathered 30 participants from Germany, Spain, Latvia, Romania, and Türkiye, including 25 young people and 5 group leaders. The participants came from different educational, cultural, social, and economic backgrounds, and around half of the participants had fewer opportunities connected to geographical, social, cultural, or economic barriers. One of our aims was to create a safe, supportive, and inclusive environment where all participants felt respected, accepted, and encouraged to express their opinions freely. By implementing the project, we wanted to help participants better understand democratic processes, active citizenship, human rights, media literacy, and youth participation. We wanted young people to explore these topics not only in theory, but also through practical activities, simulations, discussions, role plays, and intercultural learning experiences. We believed that non-formal education methods would help participants understand complex social and political topics in a more accessible and engaging way. Another important aim of the project was to strengthen participants’ critical thinking skills and help them better recognise misinformation, stereotypes, discrimination, and manipulation in media and everyday life. During the project, participants learned how to analyse information more critically, respect different perspectives, and participate in discussions in a constructive and respectful way. The project also aimed to develop participants’ personal and social competences, including communication, teamwork, leadership, public speaking, problem-solving, empathy, intercultural understanding, and self-confidence. Through international cooperation and group activities, participants improved their ability to work with people from different cultures and backgrounds and became more open-minded and tolerant. We also wanted to encourage participants to continue their civic engagement after the project ended. An important result of the project was the co-creation of the “Active Citizens Guide”, which included participants’ reflections, ideas, practical methods, and learning outcomes connected to democracy, participation, inclusion, and active citizenship. The guide was created as a long-term educational result that could also be shared with other young people, youth workers, and organisations. Another important objective was to promote intercultural dialogue and European identity. By living and learning together for several days, participants had the opportunity to better understand cultural differences and similarities, challenge stereotypes, and build international friendships and future cooperation opportunities. The intercultural evenings, discussions, and teamwork activities helped participants appreciate diversity and strengthen the feeling of belonging to a wider European community. The objectives of the project were: * to make democracy and active citizenship more understandable, accessible, and interesting for young people; * to strengthen critical thinking and media literacy competences; * to support young people in developing leadership, teamwork, communication, and participation skills; * to encourage active participation in local communities and democratic processes; * to promote inclusion, intercultural dialogue, tolerance, solidarity, and European values; * to create a safe and supportive international learning environment for participants from different backgrounds; * to encourage youth-led learning, cooperation, and active involvement through non-formal education methods; * and to create sustainable project results and follow-up activities that would continue after the youth exchange.