Shaping active citizenship in EU: Reflections from our Civitas 2025 project

From 23 to 31 May 2025, we took part in the project Civitas in Veli Iž, Croatia. The project brought together youth workers from different European countries to improve their knowledge of the European Union and strengthen their ability to promote active citizenship, media literacy, and critical thinking among young people. By connecting professionals from diverse backgrounds, the project fostered collaboration and exchange of best practices. 

Before the main training in Veli Iž, representatives from each participating organisation gathered for a two-day preparatory meeting in early May. This crucial stage enabled us to align our expectations, build connections, and collaboratively design a learning agenda that would be both relevant and adaptable to the needs of youth workers and the communities they serve.

During the meeting, participants exchanged insights about their local contexts, discussing the challenges and opportunities related to youth engagement, media literacy, and active citizenship across Europe. These conversations provided valuable perspectives, allowing us to identify common themes and shape the programme in a way that would maximise its impact. By pooling our expertise, we ensured the training would be practical, meaningful, and applicable to a diverse range of settings.

The preparatory meeting also fostered a strong sense of collaboration and trust among the participating organisations. Strengthening these connections ahead of the main training meant that participants arrived in Veli Iž already familiar with one another, making it easier to engage openly in workshops, discussions, and activities. With a well-defined roadmap in place, we were fully prepared to immerse ourselves in the training and make the most of this invaluable learning experience.

Before the training seminar commenced, participants prepared by reading selected materials and watching videos to get familiar with the topics. The training itself was based on non-formal education methods, including workshops, group work, discussions, and games. We learned about how the EU works, its values, and how to encourage young people to participate more in democratic life. Through these collaborative approaches, we explored in more depth the inner workings of the EU, its core values, and effective ways to encourage young people to participate more actively in democratic life.

A significant component of the program involved exploring strategies for teaching media literacy and supporting critical thinking among youth. Each participant had the opportunity to reflect on their learning experience, gaining insights into how to apply new concepts in their work. At the end of the course, participants received a Youthpass certificate, recognising their commitment and engagement in the training seminar.

After the training seminar, we're in the process of disseminating our newly acquired knowledge through our networks, ensuring that the project’s impact extends beyond our immediate group. We're eager to share insights, using our learnings and tools provided by our Croatian partner organisation, Udruga Prizma, which will offer valuable feedback and ensure the long-term influence of the project and its outcomes.

Civitas 2025 gave us new tools and ideas to improve our work with young people and support active and informed (young) citizens in their initiatives and endeavours. A big thank you to our 6 European partner organisations and Co-literate members who participated and played an important role in ensuring the success of this project.

Take a look at our toolkit 'Get Involved - Active Citizenship for Young People'. 

Civitas 2025 is co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union who cannot be held responsible for them.