A LETTER FROM STRASBOURG - LET'S GET POLITICAL!
Our vice-chairman Filip Gajić shares his experience from Strasbourg:
From January 27th to 29th, alongside Aleksa Jovanović, co-chair of the Higher Education and Research Policy Working Group, I had the opportunity to participate in the consultative meeting "Let's Get Political" organized by the Council of Europe (CoE) at the European Youth Centre in Strasbourg. This event was convened to discuss Resolution 2553, adopted in June 2024 by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), which ensures formal political representation for young people at both the European and national levels.
The event was co-organized by the European Youth Forum and brought together young political leaders from across the democratic spectrum. During a Coordination Meeting prior to the official event, we agreed to launch a platform which would make a regular and more structured platform for cooperation between our political parties' youth organizations within the European Youth Forum.
One of the highlights was our discussion with Mr. Tobias Flessenkemper, head of the Youth Department of the Council of Europe. As a former Secretary-General of the European Youth Forum, he shared his insights on youth politics and compared past experiences with the current challenges faced by youth political organizations. He highlighted EDS as a longstanding advocate for students and youth, and we presented him with our Bull's Eye Magazine to familiarize him with our key topics. We are confident that we have gained another strong ally for EDS!
We also had the privilege of attending a session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. PACE, which meets four times a year, was in session during our visit, marking the first time that the new Secretary-General, Mr. Alain Bersed, addressed the assembly. On the sidelines of the PACE session, we met with Mrs. Yehveniia Kravchuk from the Sub-Committee on Youth and the Society of the Future to exchange views on the implementation of Resolution 2553 and strategies to engage more young people in politics.
Later that day, we attended a reception dinner hosted by Mr. Flessenkemper, where we interacted with members of parliament and learned about this year's European Youth Capital, Lviv, Ukraine.
Additionally, I had the opportunity to meet with the head of the Croatian delegation in PACE, Mr. Marko Pavić, alongside Representative Mrs. Zdravka Bušić, to discuss potential means for future collaboration within the Council of Europe and beyond.
After several years, the European Democrat Students (EDS) have returned to the Council of Europe. This event marks the beginning of our renewed cooperation. Through this experience, we have gained valuable insights into new opportunities for EDS, particularly in relation to the European Youth Foundation and the events hosted at the European Youth Centres in Strasbourg and Budapest. Inspired by this gathering, we aim to establish an annual event aligned with the winter session of PACE. The European Democrat Students support this initiative and look forward to fostering future collaborations with our esteemed colleagues from the Youth Department of the CoE, the European Youth Forum, and other political youth organizations.
