Inspired by the Council of Europe School of Participatory Democracy, the first School of Youth Participation in Serbia is taking place from 31 October to 30 November 2023, through which youth participation in political decision making and democracy shall be encouraged.

The School of Youth Participation, which is organised by Opens, an association of local youth organisations, is based on the Council of Europe “UChange” game, a methodology to teach citizens the various avenues for direct participation in local and national decision-making processes. The final goal of the school is to make young people aware of the existing opportunities for them to participate in political decision making in Serbia, with a regional focus on the City of Novi Sad, where the office of Opens is based.

In the framework of the school event, on 22 of November 2023, a group of 16 high-school and university students visited the Council of Europe office in Belgrade, in order to learn more about different types of civic engagements, key concepts of participatory democracy and local and international projects supported by the Council of Europe in this field. Nadia Cuk, Acting Head of the Council of Europe Mission in Belgrade, welcomed the youth representatives and introduced them into the Council of Europe office. The on-site presentations were completed by an online contribution from the team of the Division of Elections and Participatory Democracy, who explained in detail innovative tools like the CivicLab Consultation tool, Uchange Game Methodology, School Participatory Budgeting and Citizens’ assemblies. The students were also introduced to the online platform BePART, where good practice examples for civil participation can be shared.