The informal meeting of EU ministers responsible for education and youth, taking place on 27 January 2022 in Strasbourg, brought the ministers together with European youth delegates for the first time, to discuss European best practices for sustainable development, whether in schools or through youth engagement. The aim of these discussions is to further develop the European strategy in this area, in anticipation of the Council meeting of ministers for education and youth on 5 April 2022. Following the EU Youth Conference that ended on 26 January, the European youth delegates were invited to take part in discussions with the ministers for education and youth on the topic of youth civic engagement, in particular to promote sustainable development. This event was at the crossroads of two major European concerns: the role of young people in EU governance, with 2022 designated as the “European Year of Youth”, and fostering active European citizenship, for a people-focused and socially committed Europe. It is above all a matter of equipping young people with the means of understanding the complex issues of the world today by drawing on their academic knowledge and exercising their critical thinking skills, the first prerequisite of a renewed, confident citizenship. This is the pedagogical challenge of sustainable development education that must combine the social, economic and environmental aspects. As Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, reiterated, education is fully a part of the European Green Deal. These discussions will contribute to European initiatives and will inform the discussions of the Council of the European Union on young people’s involvement in protecting the environment and on education in environmental sustainability. The informal ministerial meeting also included the awards ceremony for the “Young and Eco-Committed” call for projects, rewarding young people’s innovative and concrete initiatives to promote sustainable development. This call for projects, aimed at young Europeans between 18 and 30 years old, saw a total of 117 participants from 15 Member States. 14 finalist projects, selected from among the 55 entries, were presented at the EU Youth Conference before a jury presided by Sarah El Haïry, the Minister of State for Youth and Engagement. The winners of the Jury Prize were: The project “Green Tsunami” with the creation of a eco-friendly festival bracelet, offers festival-goers access to advantages during the event and encourages organisers to take responsibility The project “Ouroboro” aims to establish local recycling points to collect plastics and recycling waste as well as raise active awareness at schools The project “Recypient” has the goal of setting up a system for eco-friendly standardised, returnable packaging in supermarkets. The project “Wonderlab” proposes an interactive travelling exhibition on sustainable development geared toward schoolchildren, in particular students in priority education zones. The “public choice” prize was also awarded to the project “La friperie du sport” to make sports equipment available at low cost while promoting second-hand goods. |
