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Description
The project aims to strengthen the role of youth municipal councils in shaping local and school climate policies. The project responds to the need to increase youth civic participation. According to the Public Opinion Research Center (2019), 47% of young people are not interested in public affairs, 66% believe they have no influence on national affairs and 48% on municipal affairs. 47% are dissatisfied with the functioning of democracy. We observe the withdrawal of young people from social and civic activity during remote education. We see a need to activate and support young activists, to develop knowledge and competences of youth councillors on participatory democracy and climate challenges. One way to increase youth engagement is to strengthen the democratic role of youth municipal councils and to encourage their members to address relevant issues from the perspective of young people. We also want to offer young people the opportunity to take constructive action in their community to contribute to reducing the effects of global warming at school and municipal level. Within the project we will conduct training, thanks to which we will strengthen the competences of 6 youth municipal councils and their tutors (3 from Mazovia, 3 from Silesia) in the field of participation mechanisms and climate challenges. Young people, in cooperation with the inhabitants, will carry out climate audits in schools, community climate debates and will prepare legislative initiatives, and thus they will gain real influence on the local climate policy. The project will contribute to the strengthening of the role of youth municipal councils, better cooperation of municipal youth councils with local government and residents. A website addressed to the youth councils from all over Poland will be created, where participatory tools and inspirations in the field of pro-climate actions of youth municipal councils will be promoted.
Summary of project results
The essence of the project was to strengthen the civic involvement of young people through the development of youth municipal councils as organizers of democratic processes devoted to school and municipal climate policies and the nationwide promotion of this idea. We wanted to increase the civic involvement of young people by increasing the effectiveness of the activities of existing youth participation institutions, i.e. youth commune councils and student governments. We believe that these two institutions equipped with democratic and participatory methods of operation can give voice and influence to young people - locally, but also throughout the country.
The project focused on responding to challenges such as:
1. Increasing the civic activity of young people
2. Strengthening youth councils (development of knowledge and competences in the field of participatory democracy and climate challenges; strengthening the agency and influence of youth councils on key local issues; increasing the scope of youth councils'' activities by improving cooperation with student governments)
3. Strengthening the civic activity of young people in the area of climate challenges
4. Development of dialogue between young people and the local environment, including representatives of the older generation
As part of the project, we wanted to develop, implement and disseminate a model for the youth council''s involvement in local community affairs, using the problem of climate change. Through the instructions we developed and the training we conducted, we wanted to strengthen the skills of people involved in the activities of youth councils in carrying out processes in their local environment that would allow them to experience a sense of success, influence on important residents'' issues and make real changes. We wanted to disseminate the model developed as part of the project on a nationwide scale, providing other youth councils and their guardians with ideas, instructions and inspiration for effective action.
Teams from 6 youth councils from Silesia (Pawłowice, Mysłowice, Mikołowów) and Masovia (Łomianki, Ostrołęka, Wołomin) participated in the project. As part of the project, we carried out a number of activities that contributed to the development of youth councilors'' competences and strengthening their position and agency. Youth councilors completed the Young Leaders Academy training - we developed their knowledge and skills in areas such as: leadership competences, civic participation tools, climate challenges, methodology of school climate audits, municipal meetings and legislative initiatives. People participating in the project established cooperation with student governments from their communes and jointly conducted climate audits in 25 schools, checking to what extent they operate in a climate-friendly and safe way in areas such as: recycling, energy, water, food, teaching aids, transportation to school. Then they organized climate meetings in 25 schools, which resulted in the development of pro-ecological solutions for schools. Youth councils organized 6 municipal climate meetings with residents of different ages, including young people, seniors, and local government officials. People participating in the meetings developed proposals regarding pro-ecological activities in their local environments. Youth councils submitted legislative initiatives to municipal councils regarding various pro-ecological activities, e.g. exemption from fees in paid parking zones for owners of hydrogen-powered cars, development of a plot of land into a recreational area for residents, placing waste segregation containers in every school room and conducting educational classes increasing ecological awareness. The effects of the project were promoted nationwide - we organized two conferences and created the website mlodziezowarada.pl, where we gathered knowledge and inspiration for the operation of youth councils.
In 6 local communities (Wołomin, Łomianki, Ostrołęka, Pawłowice, Mysłowice, Mikołów), we strengthened youth councils and student governments in the process of youth involvement in designing municipal climate policies. We strengthened the competences and sense of influence of 6 youth councils, which took part in training and implemented 3 tools/methods of participatory democracy in their communities: school climate audit, municipal climate meeting, legislative initiative.
In 25 schools, youth councils, in cooperation with student governments, conducted school climate audits and climate meetings. We stimulated students to speak out on issues important to young people and concerning them.
Youth councilors organized 6 municipal climate meetings. Residents participated in an event organized by the youth council, which increased the recognition and importance of youth councils in the local community.
We strengthened the competences of adults working with youth - caregivers and guardians of youth councils and student governments who were involved in the project.
We have launched the website mlodziezowarada.pl, which contains useful tools and working methods for youth councils. We also published the publication "Good practices of youth councils". Through the website www.mlodzieozowarada.pl, content regarding the legal and organizational basis for the operation of youth councils and good practices in the field of civic involvement of youth councils are and will continue to be disseminated.
In 6 communes, we have strengthened the dialogue of citizens and local authorities in solving local problems, including in the area of environmental protection, which will result in greater attention to ecological problems by entities involved in the project and better cooperation between youth councils and local authorities.