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Empowering youth and amplifying their voices is fundamental to rejuvenating our democracies and driving higher voter turnout. Active youth participation is pivotal in shaping the legitimacy and future of our democratic institutions. As we stand at a critical juncture, it is imperative to recognise the significance of youth engagement. The demands and measures outlined, represent OBESSU’s manifesto to the incoming European Parliament taking place between the 6th and 9th of June 2024.

The purpose of this handbook is to accompany all stakeholders at school in the process of democratic school development. It is based on the Council of Europe’s Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture (RFCDC) and it includes both theoretical explanations as well as practical tools for a whole school approach in citizenship education.

The idea of this toolkit is to give you an opportunity to create your own national Mobility Passport. As we explain in the introduction to the Passport, we propose having a national version for two reasons. First and foremost, information about different international mobility opportunities differs from country to country and there are different schemes available at national level. Secondly, we believe that having access to a passport in each person’s language can help with inclusion and sharing the information more widely.

The Guidelines for Teachers on Online and Blended Learning are part of Innovation Station: A New Approach Towards Online and Blended Education. This project is coordinated by the Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions (OBESSU). Innovation Station is a response to the needs and challenges experienced by educators and secondary school students across Europe during the COVID-19 pandemic. The sudden onset of the pandemic forced educators and students to rapidly adapt to an online and blended learning environment. This transition was smoother for some than for others. Most schools, educators, and learners found themselves in a situation where they had to experiment and work with the tools available at the time.

Welcome to our International Mobility Passport! A passport with no stamps, you might wonder? Yes, but we still hope you want to keep it in your pocket! The idea of the International Mobility Passport is to give you an opportunity to discover what are the different opportunities available to you to discover Europe with your own eyes

The general decline of voter turnout in recent decades worries policy-makers and intrigues researchers. Some speak of it as a ‘crisis of democracy’, others of a ‘democratic deficit’. The decline is sharper amongst young people. The EU is not immune to this trend - in 2019, for the first time since 1994, voter turnout for European Parliament (EP) elections climbed back up reaching 50% of the total eligible voters in the EU (European Parliament, 2022). Hailed as a success, a small majority of eligible citizens voting poses a problem of legitimacy of both national and supranational political systems. But why is it that young people vote, on average, less than other cohorts?

We all know that fixing something requires the appropriate tools to fix that problem. Want to fix a broken arm? You need a cast. Want to fix a beautiful bookshelf to the wall? You need a drill. Do you want to fix a broken education system? Well. You need this toolbox! In this toolbox you will find inspiration on how to protect and advance your rights as school students, whether you want to do it at school level, nationally or internationally. We will walk you through the concept of the Declaration of School Student Rights, how we redeveloped it with school students from all over Europe and how you can act individually and collectively to make it become a reality. Take your student collective, friends or school student unions fellow activists and get ready to go on this journey!

Check out OBESSU's 2022 achievements!

International Mobility programmes such as Erasmus+ have been, since their conception, a way to foster European integration and to equip young European citizens with a set of skills and competences to deploy both in their personal development and in the labour market. Yet, the impact of Covid-19 raised questions about the programme’s accessibility and internal diversity. This research report aims to fill a specific gap in the analyses of the main international institutions, by providing descriptive data relating to the International Mobility of secondary and VET students in Europe.

In May of 2022, the Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions, together with the Global Student Forum, organised a week-long Study Session at the European Youth Centre in Strasbourg with the support of the Council of Europe. Around 30 participants, student representatives, and activists from all across the world took part in discussions on decolonising school curricula as a way to build more inclusive, less oppressive societies.

A Toolkit developed by the Working Group on education Funding and Reforms to support OBESSU MOs in their advocacy efforts.

One of the most significant challenges of today’s society is fostering inclusive and quality education for all. This challenge has become more and more prominent in the last decades with cuttings in education funding and significant social issues that have arisen. For the Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions - OBESSU, inclusive education sits at our organisation’s heart. We try to envisage a society and an education where one’s rights are respected equally through our efforts.

Check out OBESSU's 2021 accomplishments

In the scope of the project ​"Europe@Home: European Civic Education through the Mobile", the current document presents the results of an extensive reflection about digital learning, with a particular focus on youth organisations, inevitably impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The reflection developed in the Output 1 is based on state-of-the-art research, which provided a theoretical framework, plus findings collected from 33 youth organisations in over 10 different countries in Europe. Output 1 will take the reader through a journey that aims to elucidate the critical points in the design, implementation and evaluation of digital learning activities or more sophisticated protocols, with a particular focus on how digital methodologies, approaches to learning and tools can be applied in the area of European Civic Education.

The COVID-19 pandemic has moved many professional and civic activities into the online sphere, highlighting the importance of online education. It has also shown numerous technical and competence gaps even though the new technologies have been available in the educational sector for many years. This change has demonstrated that the implementation of online activities, through competence development and online adaptation of educational tools, can be done in a professional way and provides a chance to complement face-to-face activities.

This is a toolkit to help you discuss your ideas for the future of Europe. It can be used by classes, in large groups of up to 40 people, or just by a few students who want to discuss together. We’ve tried to make it as flexible and adaptable as possible.

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic represented, for many EU countries, the biggest disruption to educational continuity since the Second World War. School closures impacted over 17 million students. National governments set their priorities: reducing the number of deaths, managing borders, alleviating the pressure on strained public healthcare systems, protecting the economy. Yet a consensus is building that this crisis is and will disproportionately affect young people, if only for the sole fact that they are going to live the longest through its consequences. This report seeks to amplify school students’ voices bridging the last two academic years disrupted by the pandemic. It focuses on the instruction they received, its contents and modalities, students’ overall well-being, and their views on the actions to take in order to “build back better”.

This publication was produced by the Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions (OBESSU) with the support of the European Youth Foundation of the Council of Europe. It does not necessarily reflect the official position of the Council of Europe.

The short version of the Toolkit on Online Participation: with tips and tricks for an easier digital transition!

Ceci est un guide pour vous aider à discuter de vos idées pour l’avenir de l’Europe. Il peut être utilisé dans les classes, par des groupes de quelques personnes ou de grands groupes allant jusqu’à 40 personnes. Nous avons fait de notre mieux pour le rendre le plus flexible et adaptable possible.

This is a toolkit to help you discuss your ideas for the future of Europe. It can be used by classes, in large groups of up to 40 people, or just by a few students who want to discuss together. We’ve tried to make it as flexible and adaptable as possible.