Joining the EU Youth Stakeholders Group in March 2025
Representing One Hour for Europe at the first meeting of a European Commission forum connecting youth organisations, institutions, researchers, and national representatives.
From 26 to 28 March 2025, I was in Brussels for the first meeting of the EU Youth Stakeholders Group, representing One Hour for Europe. The Group was created by the European Commission to maintain a structured exchange with youth organisations, national youth councils, researchers, Member States, and other people working on youth policy.
Representing a youth-led organisation
I joined the meeting with the experience of One Hour for Europe: projects built around youth participation, active citizenship, European mobility, and international cooperation. My role was to listen, contribute, and connect institutional discussions with what youth organisations and young people experience in practice.
This representation also means supporting the programmes that make European participation tangible. Erasmus+, the European Solidarity Corps, DiscoverEU, and other mobility opportunities give young people practical ways to learn, volunteer, build relationships, and take part in European life.
Learning from different perspectives
The first meeting brought together people with different roles and forms of expertise. That diversity matters. Youth policy is stronger when institutional knowledge, research, national perspectives, and the direct experience of youth organisations can meet in the same conversation.
For me, the meeting was both a responsibility and a learning opportunity. It offered a clearer view of how the European Commission consults stakeholders, how priorities are discussed, and how organisations can contribute constructively without losing sight of the people they represent.
Contributing to the discussion as a representative of One Hour for Europe.
The beginning of an ongoing contribution
The March 2025 meeting was not an isolated event. It marked the beginning of an ongoing relationship with the Group and a continuing commitment to bring youth perspectives into European conversations. The value of this work lies in continuity: listening between meetings, sharing relevant experience, and helping turn participation into something that can inform decisions over time.