The project “mooveEUforward” is implemented under the Erasmus+ KA152 YOU – Youth Mobility Call and is promoted by WeEurope Network – European Civic Association. The mobility activity will take place in Rio Tinto, Portugal (the headquarters of the coordinating organisation, in the metropolitan area of Porto) from 8 to 13 April 2026, bringing together 32 young people with fewer opportunities (aged between 18 and 30) and 8 adult group leaders (one per partner organisation, with no age limit). This project arises from a shared observation among all partner organisations: a significant portion of European youth, especially those in vulnerable situations, remain disengaged from European affairs, exhibiting low levels of civic, political and democratic participation. This disengagement results in a fragile form of European citizenship, often limited to consumer behaviour or a distant perception of institutions, rather than reflecting active democratic and transformative engagement. General Objectives The primary aim of the project is to bring young people with fewer opportunities closer to the European project, fostering understanding and appreciation of the core values of the European Union — freedom, democracy, active citizenship, equality, and respect for human rights — while complementarily developing digital literacy. The choice of the target group, young people with fewer opportunities, is based on four main reasons: a) Universality of access: All young people should benefit from European programmes, regardless of the obstacles they face. b) Social justice: Society has a duty to pay greater attention to young people at risk of exclusion. c) Pedagogical effectiveness: Non-formal education is particularly effective for young people who have fewer opportunities to succeed in formal educational settings. d) Equity in the use of public resources: European Union funding should be accessible to all, without exclusions. Justification and Context The absence of young people — particularly those facing social, economic, geographical, or cultural barriers — from public and political life represents one of the greatest contemporary challenges for consolidating European democracy. Civic and democratic participation, along with the development of genuine digital literacy, is not only a right but also an essential condition for institutional legitimacy and for designing policies that effectively meet the needs of the new generation. When young people are excluded from decision-making processes or have low digital literacy, their perspectives and priorities are no longer represented, resulting in governance that is partial and often insensitive to structural issues affecting them, such as youth unemployment, job insecurity, climate crises, or digital exclusion. This lack of representation reinforces a vicious circle of distrust: THE LESS YOUNG PEOPLE PARTICIPATE, THE LESS THEY ARE CONSIDERED IN DECISIONS; THE LESS THEY ARE CONSIDERED, THE LESS MOTIVATED THEY ARE TO PARTICIPATE! In particular, young people with fewer opportunities (including those living in isolated rural areas, facing financial hardship, coming from migrant backgrounds, or experiencing cultural, ethnic or gender discrimination) are at an even greater risk of exclusion from public life. Many of these young people lack access to spaces for debate, are not encouraged to develop critical thinking, and rarely encounter civic participation opportunities adapted to their realities. This disengagement weakens European democracy in two ways: a) Erosion of institutional legitimacy: If a significant portion of the young population does not see itself represented in political processes, the democratic legitimacy of institutions is undermined, opening the door to populism, abstention, and radicalisation. b) Loss of transformative potential: Young people bring energy, creativity, and social innovation. Their absence diminishes European societies’ capacity to renew themselves and respond effectively to emerging challenges, such as the digital and ecological transitions. Strategic Importance It is therefore urgent to establish inclusive mechanisms for youth participation, capable of overcoming barriers and ensuring that all young people — not only those with greater resources or cultural capital — can fully exercise their citizenship. Through non-formal education, participatory methodologies, and intercultural experiences, projects such as “mooveEUforward” play a strategic role: transforming absence into presence, apathy into participation, and exclusion into active belonging within the European democratic space. A key pillar of the project will also be the development of critical thinking and media literacy skills, empowering young people to confront challenges such as disinformation, hate speech, anti-democratic radicalisation, and growing threats to the rule of law.