From inspiration to action: One participant’s takeaways from the Exchange Forum on the EYWA

Written by Nik Paddison

Can you introduce yourself, who are you, where are you from and what do you do?

Hi, I am Caroline, I am from Luxembourg. I am the Director of Programmes for WeCitizens which was founded in 2018. We are a non-profit organisation working on initiatives that strengthen young people - though we also work with citizens in general. Our focus is on youth participation, civic engagement and social economy. At the end of 2024, we started to host a European documentation centre in Luxembourg City and in the beginning of 2025, we became the coordinator for the Europe Direct Information Centre for Luxembourg City.

My role is to design programmes and projects, work on building partnerships. I also support the young people, youth workers and others in the community of practice, for example social entrepreneurs and associations. We develop tools and training courses, and support various stakeholders to work on European collaboration.

This is the first time you've been on an exchange forum, what have been your impressions of these two days?

It has been inspiring. It has been a good mix of open discussion, reflections and practical insights. I like the resources I have heard about here, for example YOCOMO, a series of learning offers for youth workers based on the European Training Strategy (ETS). These days have also helped me to better understand the framework of the European Youth Work Agenda. I see that this framework can help us to structure our national efforts because it gives a common direction. It is also a good way to make our work more visible.

We are not very active in this area in Luxembourg which is one of the reasons I wanted to attend here. I wanted to better understand the context of the Agenda – which has been achieved – so now I can  propose some collaboration with the ministry representing youth in Luxembourg. I will also be taking some new ideas for future projects to propose.

What would be your key takeaways from these two days?

One of them is that I now see that the European Youth Work Agenda can be a drive of change – I see it as a space where different practices from different countries can support each other. I want to keep working on this and collaborate with the people that I have met here. Another key takeaway is that I have realised that we are all facing similar challenges. For example, a lack of recognition and a lack of resources. My third key takeaway is the importance of having this sharing space for sharing good practices.

Which of the sessions were most important for you?

I found the session for meeting with national colleagues really important. Even though there is no other Luxembourgish organisation here, I joined with my Belgium colleagues. This was very interesting for me because they have more experience and more insight into the Agenda. They shared with me some the things that they are doing.

Another important process for me were the interventions of the Council of Europe European Youth Foundation and the colleague from the network of SALTO Resource Centres.

If you were to encourage someone to attend the Exchange Forum next year, how would you convince them to come?

I would tell them that by coming to this Exchange Forum they can gain support from the European level and benefit from expertise from different countries – especially those that are more advanced in their youth work development.

Coming to this event you gain fresh energy to continue with youth work. Our work is a long work, meaning results don’t come in five minutes, it can sometimes take years. The Exchange Forum is a good way to get new energy and to have this feeling that we are not alone in our work.

What will be your next steps?

My next step will be to contact our national contact point and see what we can do together. Maybe I can propose some activities on capacity building and things like this. Now that I am entering this process, I will continue to follow the SNAC Growing Youth Work and maybe start thinking about how we can do the Exchange Forum in Luxembourg.

I would also like youth work in Luxembourg to become more visible and to develop a clearer common direction with national stakeholders. I also want that our youth work will be more empowering and inclusive, with stronger bridges between formal and non-formal education with schools. My connection with the SNAC can support this.