A European Vibe and Meaningful Democratic Dialogue at the Youth Policy Dialogue
For two days at the beginning of June, our space came alive in a truly special way. Europe Café became the heart of the Youth Policy Dialogue, transforming into a vibrant hub of creativity, fresh ideas, and young voices.
The Youth Policy Dialogue is an initiative of the European Commissioners. 30 engaged and enthusiastic young people from the Eastern Partnership countries, the Western Balkans, and the European Union gathered in Moldova to help shape the future. The activities were dynamic, inspiring, and highly interactive, while the participants’ energy was nothing short of contagious.
Key Highlights of the Event
The dialogue officially opened with welcoming remarks from Marie Brancaleone, Programme Manager at DG ENEST, and Frederik Coene, Head of Cooperation at the EU Delegation to Moldova. Our facilitators, Daniel Vodă and Alina Gîrneț, then took over and, through a series of icebreaker activities, quickly transformed this diverse group of young people from across Europe into a united team.
Participants were then treated to an inspiring showcase of Moldova’s experience, featuring guests from the Citizens for Europe Coalition, the Neighbours East team, the creative minds behind Comedy Zebra Show, and JEF Moldova.
Then the Young People Took the Lead
During an interactive session, participants selected the topics they wanted to discuss and formed working groups around themes such as intergenerational communication, disinformation, social media, and other pressing issues.
The afternoon was dedicated entirely to brainstorming. Participants shared their experiences as young activists and explored ways to strengthen democratic resilience. Their ideas, challenges, and recommendations were creatively documented on digital boards.
The goal? To transform these insights into an official publication that will be shared with European institutions and partner organizations.
Day Two: Turning Ideas into Action
Building on the previous day’s discussions, the groups refined their proposals on a digital platform and developed concrete approaches for presenting their recommendations during a high-level dialogue with EU representatives.
It was an honor to host so much passion, creativity, and intelligence. Europe Café remains a meeting place for young people who prove every day that the future is European, free, and prosperous.
