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Youth Encounter

Youth Encounter

Specific large scale activities in Program countries may be funded under Action 1 as “Youth Encounters” and should comply with the following selection criteria.

Partners

  •  Youth encounters must be multilateral, i.e. involve partners from a minimum of eight Program countries* (of which at least two must be EU Member States)

Participants

  •  Young people participating in a youth encounter should, in principle, be aged between 15 and 25 and legally resident in a program country (see section B.2)
  •  Any youth encounter should, in principle, have a minimum of 60 and a maximum of 200 participants (group leaders included)
  •  National groups must be balanced in terms of numbers of participants (the host country group’s size may be slightly larger)

Duration

  •  The duration of the youth encounter should be between six and twelve days (excluding travel)

Project content

In addition to the project content criteria set out for youth exchanges (see section C.4), youth encounters should comply with the following specific criteria:

  •  They must provide a clear added promotional value for the YOUTH program
  •  Debates during youth encounters must clearly focus on:
    - the general and annual priority objectives and themes of the YOUTH program (see section A.2) or,
    - the political priorities identified in the field of youth or,
    - the future of Europe
  •  They must develop the intercultural learning process and organize general debates and workshops during which young people will explore the chosen theme

Insurance contracted by the European Commission is recommended to both sending and host groups, particularly those sending organizations running mobility activities in the context of third country cooperation. However, they may also deal with other insurance companies, as long as the quality of the cover is the same.

How is a project financed?

The Community grant is based on the principle of co-funding, with other public and/or private contributions. The total project cost cannot be covered by YOUTH alone. Therefore, the contributions of organizers and/or participants can be either in cash or in kind, or a combination of both.

The Community grant is calculated on the basis of actual costs and may cover up to 30% of the total costs directly linked to the organization of the project (up to € 50 000 maximum).

How to apply?

The National Agencies and the European Commission provide the official application forms. They may also be downloaded from the Commission’s and other websites (see Applications). On behalf of all partners, the host organization submits its application to its National Agency by the deadlines for selection at European level given in section B.5. Please contact your National Agency for assistance with filling in the forms.

Contractual obligations

Once the youth encounter has been approved, a financial agreement (contract) with the beneficiary will govern the use of the Community funds. The beneficiary undertakes to fulfill its contractual obligations and to justify all project costs actually incurred. It should implement the project according to what is set out in its application as well as ensure evaluation and follow-up of the project.

The European Commission may carry out on-site visits to check that all contractual obligations are being properly fulfilled.

If, in the course of the project, unforeseen circumstances disrupt its implementation, the beneficiary should immediately contact the European Commission to make appropriate arrangements.

Failure to carry out the project as agreed could lead to the European Commission recovering part, or all, of the grant.

* Note that Third Countries cannot participate in Youth Encounters.

Foreword Glossary Introduction "YOUTH" Participation Action 1: Youth for Europe Action 2 : EVS Action 3 : Youth Initiatives Action 4: Joint Action Action 5 : Support Measures Third Countries List of contact details


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 Action 5.1 activity 9 “Support for quality and innovation of the Program Youth.” Project no: 5.1/R1/2003/06 Made by Hienet working Teams in cooperation with T.E.S.