Youth participation and active citizenship: can civic tech truly enhance our democracy?

Youth participation and active citizenship: can civic tech truly enhance our democracy?

The NEXUS event in Brussels will be an occasion to present the work conducted within the NEXUS project and discuss its results. This stakeholder event will discuss and debate the results of the NEXUS project. Between 2019 and 2022, NEXUS explored the relationship between digitally enabled participatory tools and democracy to build upon the existing literature focusing on empowering students (especially migrants) to exercise their rights, uphold human values and contribute to society. 7 project partners from different European countries came together to further innovate the civic educational process with the aim to increase participation of students in their communities.

NEXUS aimed at innovating the civic educational process resulting in increased participation of students in their communities. A MOOC on Civic education subdivided in micro-learning units and a knowledge-sharing platform (building on open educational resources and practices) for civic educators were developed. The notion of Civics was re-written to version 4.0, connecting students to institutions in the digital age. Finally, an inventory of digital tools for Open Democracy and digital citizenship education has been compiled, together with a handbook for educators on civic education for a digital age.

The event will bring together project partners, civil society, stakeholders working on civic education and civic tech, and policy makers to discuss the potential of technology to enhance young people’s participation in European democracy. The two discussions will explore:

  • Young people’s participation in democracy: is participation only for the highly-educated or can we be more inclusive?
  • Civic tech and its appeal to young people: can technology truly enhance democracy in Europe?

The event will end with a networking lunch to continue the discussions. We are looking forward to seeing you on the 28 June… and don’t forget to bring along your best ideas for more youth participation in European democracy!

SIGN UP

Agenda

9.45 – 10.00 | Welcoming

Moderated by Elisa Lironi, Programme Director for European Democracy, ECAS

10.00 – 10.45 | Young people’s participation in democracy: is participation only for the highly-educated or can we be more inclusive?

  • Jasna Maric Krajacic, European Commission, Policy Officer – European Youth
  • Timothy Read, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, NEXUS project
  • Andrea Lapegna, Lifelong Learning Platform, Deputy Director
  • Perle Petit, EPC, Junior policy analyst (tbc)

10.45 – 11.15 | Q&A and Discussions

11.15 – 11.30 | Coffee Break

11.30 – 12.15 | Civic tech and its appeal to young people: can technology truly enhance democracy in Europe?

  • Ivana Stanojev, Knowledge Innovation Centre, NEXUS project
  • Tom Matthew, European Youth Forum, Board Member, Digitalisation
  • Bert Hendrickx, CEO Bpart
  • Giovanna Tanzi, European Partnership for Democracy, Programme Officer

12.15 – 12.45 | Q&A and Discussions

12.45 – 13.00 | Concluding remarks

13.00 – 14.30 | Networking Lunch