Young Changemakers Academy 2021

Registrations are now closed for this event!

  The Young Changemakers Academy is a programme aiming to prepare young people to take active part in their respective communities by shaping their future in given policy areas, by means of three seminars and networking support with other young people and senior political figures from all over Europe with similar interests and objectives. The Young Changemakers Academy shall be a platform to connect young changemakers engaging in political advocacy. The Young Changemakers Academy is organised by the European Liberal Forum (ELF) with the support of LYMEC (European Liberal Youth) and our partners VVD International, the Boris Divkovic Foundation and KeFim. You feel passionate about a cause? You have an idea for a project? Learn how to advocate for your project and make change happen!   Event I  Friday 21 May to Saturday 22 May  - ONLINE This seminar will encourage young people to develop their own projects and present them to stakeholders. Introduction to the academy, presentation of participants' respective platforms/projects and personal development plans. “Getting your voice heard” -  Grassroot-/Mass-Movement activism and lobbying. By the end of this seminar, participants will:

• Have set their learning objectives;
• Learnt about grassroot activism and how to achieve a broader impact for youth;
• Worked on their personal and project branding;
• Present a clear development plan for their projects.

  EVENT SCHEDULE Times are in CEST (Brussels time) 21 May 2021 16:00    Opening of the 2021 YCA Hilde Vautmans, President, European Liberal Forum and MEP, Renew Europe Group Antoaneta Asenova, President, LYMEC Alexander Skouras, Director, KeFim 16:15    Objectives and priorities setting – introduction to the development plans Ines Holzegger, LYMEC Bureau 16:30    Networking and presentation of the advocacy projects Moderator: Laia Comerma, LYMEC Bureau 17:30    COFFEE/SHORT BREAK 17:45    Measure knowledge and networking – survey Laia Comerma, LYMEC Bureau Ines Holzegger, LYMEC Bureau 18:15   END OF THE FIRST DAY   22 May 2021 10:00    Grassroot activism and fighting for your cause/project  Giorgios Chraniotis, Actor and activist, MeToo movement Greece  Katarina Papanikolaou, Business consultant and activist Moderator: Eleni Siapikoudi, President, Young Liberals Greece 11:00    Mass-movements and advocacy – how does that work? Orosz Anna, Board member, Momentum Mozgalom Moderator: Bàlint Gyévai, Secretary General LYMEC 11:45    COFFEE/SHORT BREAK 12:00    Advocacy in the youth sector Silja Markkula, President, European Youth Forum Casper Pedersen, UN Youth delegate, Denmark Moderator: Ines Holzegger, LYMEC Bureau 13:00    LUNCH BREAK 14:00    Personal development Anna Bylina, Professional mentor 15:00    COFFEE/SHORT BREAK 15:15    Personal branding Anna Bylina, Professional mentor 16:30    END OF THE EVENT     Event II Friday 1 October to Sunday 3 October, Andorra (Andorra) The second event will focus on Social media and communication skills; creating a brand for the projects and how to communicate it - strategy. By the end of this seminar, participants will:

• Have a clear idea on the communication tools to use and how to use them for their projects;
• Know how to reach a greater impact for their causes through social media and outreach strategies;
• Have a clear vision of the next steps in the advocacy project process and how to make them happen - clear progress on the development plan is visible.

Event III  Friday 12 November to Sunday 14 November, Brussels (Belgium) In this final event, the participants will be paired up with an MEP and will be able to follow their work, in order to increase the hands-on understanding of advocacy on an EU level. The event will end with a joint discussion about what was learned and what insights the participants gained. In short, the event includes meeting with MEPs/shadowing, networking, evaluation and graduation ceremony. By the end of this seminar, participants will:

• Evaluate their experience and outcomes of their projects;
• Identify further actions and next steps for their projects beyond the Academy;
• Insights into democratic processes and how a project could get an even broader impact at a higher scale (European level for example);
• Have grown their network relevantly with relevant European political figures;
• Have an idea on how to engage MEPs for a cause and manage to represent their interests at a European level.

  Additional support/activities 

• Network: participants will be in touch with one another, put in groups of two and will be invited to support each other with their challenges/projects relating to the learning objectives of the programme;
• Additional training: participants will have access to the ELF Online learning platform and 1 online webinar taking place between the first and the second events;
• The ELF “My Academy” online learning platform will be used to deepen the knowledge and give additional tools to the changemakers as well as evaluate their progress throughout the project.

  Application criteria

• CV (IN THE FORM)
• Motivation letter (IN THE FORM)
• Nomination letter by a LYMEC Member Organisation (to be sent by email to [email protected] and [email protected]) 
• Completing the form and replying to all the questions
• Short description (maximum 250 words) about the advocacy project the applicant is planning to work on to shape his/her future and community (IN THE FORM)
• The advocacy project must be personal (not the project of an existing/established organisation, member organisation or platform) and it can be an existing project if there is a willingness/possibility for further development or improvement of the project during and after the Academy
• The applicant must be between 18 and 35 years of age
• Applicants cannot be candidates at elections (at any level of governance) before, during and 12 months after the last YCA events take place. 

  Call for Applications

• Every LYMEC Member Organisation (MO) will be able to nominate one person as an applicant (including the IMS).
• The official MO representative to LYMEC, normally the International Officer or a reported MO Board Member, will have to fill out the registration form with answers to all questions (including the short CV of the chosen candidate for the spot, the written motivation by the applicant, and most importantly a short description of the advocacy project).
• A nomination letter signed by a representative of the MO should be sent by email to [email protected] and [email protected]. All has to be submitted before the deadline.
• All applications, fulfilling all specified application requirements, have to be submitted by Monday, 19 April 2021 at 16 h CEST (Brussels time). REGISTRATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED!
• Only 10 spots are available for this programme. Therefore, MOs are encouraged to look thoroughly for a promising participant and project in their organisation.

  Evaluation criteria:

• Having a strong and preferably demonstrable interest in becoming involved in youth advocacy,
• Full commitment to making it to all the programme sessions (if need be skipping other commitments), as well as to proactively participate in the broader (online) e-learning and networking process involved during the duration of the programme,
• Be an actor of change that has the potential to shape the future of the given community or society in a certain way,
• Work seriously on the development of an advocacy project with clear objectives defined,
• In addition, if the number and level of quality of applications overcome our expectations, extra priority will be given to those applicants that show the greatest level of need for the skills hereby provided and better pitched/presented project plan.

  Travel reimbursement and no participation fee:  There will be no participation costs, meals and accommodation will be covered. There will be at least partial travel refunds, participants must buy their own tickets and request a reimbursement after the event. Please keep all original receipts, tickets, invoices and boarding passes.

As all LYMEC related events, this seminar also applies the rules of late cancellation and no show fees: Cancellation less than 2 weeks prior to each event leads to a late cancellation fee of 25 EUR, and cancellation less than 48 hours prior to each event or not attending at all leads to a no show fee of 50 EUR.  

Participants need to be minimum 18 years old at the start of the event. By registering for this event you agree to our updated privacy policy and understand that your personal data will be shared with the European Liberal Forum for administrative purposes. You also agree your name to appear during the online event to other participants and to a broader public during live-streamed sessions.    

Events organised by European Liberal Youth (LYMEC) and ELF (European Liberal Forum) may be audio- and video-recorded as well as web-streamed. A photographer and/or a cameraman, contracted by LYMEC, may have access to the meeting room in order to take pictures and videos for communication and publication purposes. Videos and pictures taken by the photographer and/or cameraman, contracted by LYMEC, may also be published on the LYMEC website and on related social media accounts (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, etc.). They may also be used in other media and means of communication in order to pass on information about the event and activities of LYMEC. The European Liberal Forum might also use the pictures, video or audio in their communications. ***Disclaimer: By registering for this event you give your permission for LYMEC and European Liberal Forum to use your picture in their promotional campaigns and materials and communication about the event. Please make clear in advance if you do not wish your picture to be used by LYMEC or ELF.***