09:00-11:00
Opening Plenary (part 1)
Panel discussion
Fostering Youth Participation and Inclusion through Culture
Culture, and the protection of cultural and linguistic minorities and diversity, is essential to nurturing democracy. As asserted in the 2022 AER Statement “Making Culture a Strategic Resource for Europe and its Regions”, culture fosters societal wellbeing and human values, while generating added value for the economic ecosystem. In a pan-European network like the AER, the importance of building a resilient community which thrives and learns from each other through its cultural richness and practices is an inherent part of the Summer Academy.
As a transnational model of youth engagement studied in the context of the Erasmus+ project “Climbing the Ladder: Fostering a Culture of Youth Engagement”, the Summer Academy 2024 addresses the focal question of how to avail the potential of culture to foster youth participation. The Northern European venue of Bodø, European Capital of Culture 2024, sets the scene for intertwining this theme with the topics of access to culture and the importance of preserving and valuing linguistic and cultural diversity.
The availability, accessibility and inclusivity of cultural opportunities serve the purpose of both including youth in policy-making, while retaining and attracting youth, therefore addressing both youth participation and the issue of brain drain and depopulation in rural regions of Europe.
By bringing together the outlooks of the participating regions, institutional representatives, youth delegates, cultural stakeholders and local communities, this panel discussion will identify regional best practices, needs and challenges, related to youth impact in policy-making through culture, and to the accessibility and inclusiveness of culture in our societies.
Keynote speeches:
● Eivind Holst, Mayor of Nordland County Council
● Johannes Sundelin, AER Vice-President for Sustainability, Green Transition and Health, Region Norrbotten, Sweden
● Kine Olsen, Senior Advisor, United Nations Association of Norway (FN-Sambandet)
● André Wallann Larsen, Director of Bodø2024 - European Capital of Culture
Short break (10 minutes)
Panel discussion & Q&A with the audience:
- Tanya Hristova, Chair of EU CoR Commission on Social Policy, Education, Employment, Research and Culture
- Anna Ramkovica, Youth delegate for Latvia, Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe
- Nathaniel Holan Larsen, County Councillor in Nordland County Council, Sámi Pathfinders
- Norbert Nagy, President of the Youth Regional Network, Advisor to the Vice-President of Sălaj County Council
- Gianluca Rossino, Project Manager, ‘Climbing The Ladder’, DYPALL Network
- Amanda Jensen Youth Advisory Board, Nordland County Council
Moderator: Florian Wunsch, Participant in the Young Elected Politicians' programme of the European Committee of the Regions
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