The Conference

‘Rotterdam 2018’ is one of the flagship conferences held as part of the European Youth Parliament programme, which is active in 40 countries and aims to inspire and empower young Europeans to become open-minded, tolerant and active citizens. During the conference, taking place between the 13th and 21st of October 2018, 300 young people will come together to discuss current and relevant political topics under the theme ‘Discovering Global Europe’. The young people will discuss and debate, get to know each other’s cultures and work on innovative solutions to the world’s and Europe’s biggest problems.

The process raises awareness of European issues, encourage active European citizenship and motivate young people to get involved in European politics. It promotes international understanding, intercultural dialogue and diversity of ideas and practices. It contributes to the personal skills development of European youth. Lastly, it constitutes a forum in which young people of Europe can express their own opinions, without reverting to role play.

The entire conference is organised, managed and guided by young volunteers who were once delegates at conferences of the EYP themselves. Nonetheless, partnerships are made with prominent partners from all parts of society, and the quality of the conference is promising to be high.

In addition to the EYP’s overarching goals, Rotterdam 2018 distinguishes itself through giving additionnal attention to inclusion and approachability, and “Discovering Global Europe”.

Despite the accommodation, food, drinks and other costs being covered by the organisation of Rotterdam 2018, there exists a financial barrier to participate in the session in the form of a participation fee and travel costs. This barrier can prevent people from taking part, thereby potentially excluding them from an exceptional experience. To promote the diversity in backgrounds in participants, we strive to keep participation fees low, and to (partially) reimburse travel costs of participants who need this help.

Furthermore, the EYP has a cooperation with the UNHCR, as part of which 4 refugee will take part in the session. We are also working together with youth organisations in Rotterdam, to ensure that local youth can also profit from the event.