Bringing Europe closer to people: 6 years of Europe Café and 10 years of the Young European Ambassadors
Europe Café – the European Union (EU) Information Centre in Chișinău – marked six years of activity on 1 October with an anniversary event organised together with the Young European Ambassadors (YEAs) network, which is celebrating ten years since its launch. Held under the theme “Two Anniversaries, One Community”, the event brought together partners, young people, community representatives and friends of both initiatives for a day dedicated to dialogue, culture, creativity and the exchange of ideas.
Throughout the day, Europe Café became an open space for meetings and conversations about the European Union. Visitors were invited to enjoy a coffee in a relaxed atmosphere and discuss the projects, initiatives, people and communities behind them, as well as EU support for the Republic of Moldova. The Young European Ambassadors were also at the centre of activities and discussions focusing on youth engagement, European connections and the experiences gained over their ten years of activity.
The cultural programme of the anniversary included the opening of an art exhibition by painter Nichita Rădeanu, as well as a drawing workshop organised by the Urban Sketchers Chișinău community. The two activities complemented the anniversary programme by inviting visitors to reflect, create and connect.
Launched on 1 October 2020, Europe Café has become an open space for information and dialogue about the European Union. Over its six years of activity, the Centre has hosted more than 1,200 cultural and information events, press conferences, workshops and seminars, debate clubs, exhibitions and film screenings, bringing together around 15,000 people – representatives of European and Moldovan institutions, diplomats, journalists, activists, civil society representatives, young people and members of the wider public. In doing so, Europe Café has strengthened its role as a platform for communication, the exchange of ideas and connecting communities.
This year, Europe Café’s anniversary coincides with another important milestone: ten years since the launch of the Young European Ambassadors network. It is an opportunity to celebrate a decade in which young people have built connections, turned ideas into action and actively contributed to dialogue with and about the European Union. Managed by the EU’s regional communication programme EU NEIGHBOURS east, the Young European Ambassadors network has brought together more than 3,000 volunteers from the Republic of Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, the United Kingdom and EU Member States. Since 2016, Young European Ambassadors in Moldova have developed and carried out more than 1,000 activities.
“Europe Café – the European Union Information Centre in Chișinău – is celebrating its sixth anniversary, and this place in the heart of Chișinău continues to embody a European spirit that is open and welcoming to everyone. Every time I visit, I discover something new – an exhibition, a conversation or an event that brings people together. At the same time, the ten years of the Young European Ambassadors show just how important youth engagement is in promoting dialogue, European values and connections between people and communities. Both initiatives are a strong reflection of the growing closeness between the European Union and the Republic of Moldova, as well as of our support for people, ideas and active communities,” said Iwona Piórko, Ambassador of the European Union to the Republic of Moldova.
The two anniversaries highlighted a community built around the same shared principles – dialogue, openness, participation and bringing people together – while offering another opportunity to bring the European Union closer to the citizens of the Republic of Moldova. For more information about Europe Café activities, visit https://eu4moldova.eu/europe-cafe/, and for more information about the Young European Ambassadors, visit https://euneighbourseast.eu/yea10/
