EYP is a training-based organisation. We strive for a high degree of professionalism in our work by young people for young people. By taking part in the European Youth Parliament’s activities, young participants improve their participation skills and engage in active European citizenship.
To support the personal development of these young volunteers, and further their skills development to take up various roles within the organisation, the EYP organises capacity building training courses focused on a diverse set of skills, such as facilitation, leadership, communication, fundraising, organising, project management, inclusion, outreach, and intercultural dialogue.
EYP thereby prepares these young European citizens to not only take an active role in our network, but to also use these skills to the benefit of society as a whole.
EYP Summer Academy
The EYP Summer Academy is a training event aiming at supporting the work of our National Committees by providing training courses for board members and active member of the National Committees. The training course focuses on four areas: National Committee Management and Development, Fundraising, Outreach & Inclusion and PR & Communications.
In 2019, the EYP Summer Academy will take place in Echternach, Luxemburg from 30 August – 2 September, hosted by EYP Luxemburg. The training will last four days, including parallel training modules. It aims to enable trainees from all over Europe to develop their skills and help them better run and further develop the work of their EYP National Committee. Read more about the training event here.
Training for EYP Trainers
Trainings for EYP Trainers (T4ET) are an integral element to the development of the organisation, contributing to the development of our active members and ultimately assisting the enhancement of their educational experience, increasing the quality of events and strengthening EYP as a training-based organisation.
Training fields
Project management
As a network for young people by young people, thousands of volunteers are involved as project managers, organising the hundreds of annual events in their spare time. Youngsters learn by being part of a team of dedicated volunteers and receiving hands-on education in the build-up to their event. While much of the learning about event management happens through this learning-by-doing principle, our National Committees offer many different workshops and separate training courses to prepare our volunteers for these tasks. Key components of these trainings are modules on the planning, implementation and evaluation of a project as well as human resources management and the basics of communications.
Group Facilitation
At every EYP session a group of young moderators work with the different committees, to prepare topical materials, run teambuilding, facilitate
discussions and chair the parliamentary assembly. EYP moderators therefore take part in group facilitation trainings before every event and are guided by experienced trainers throughout the events. Separate training weekends on these topics are also organised, with the highlights being the annual facilitation trainings in Berlin, which bring together the moderators of our flagship International Sessions.
Outreach and Inclusion
The EYP long-term strategy explicitly identifies “Strengthening our human resources to develop Outreach and Inclusivity methods” as a strategic goal of EYP. For this, the national committee in Russia hosted a group of sixteen young people from all over Europe in Moscow in 2018 for a dedicated training weekend in August. During the weekend, participants learned more about existing inclusivity and outreach methods, but also shared best practices and developed new ways of involving people from all backgrounds.
PR & Communication
Young volunteers in EYP are eager to tell others about their work and the EYP. Using for example social media, online campaigning tools and press work, our volunteers are actively communicating about our aims, projects and mission. In order to develop their communication in a coherent manner and to share knowledge about new techniques and channels to communicate, trainings on PR & communication are a substantial part of the EYP training courses. In 2018 a key part of this was the Media Lab organised in Berlin, where young Europeans gathered for a weekend of training and best practice sharing.
Organisational Management and Development
As a constantly growing network of volunteers, EYP has an increasing need for developing its capacities in NGO management and development. To this end, EYP Czech Republic organised a “National Committee Management and Development Training” in Břežany. Bringing together 20 young people currently running a national committee, the weekend focused on knowledge management in NGOs, human resources management, networking and fundraising.
Fundraising
As a network of independent organisations, EYP raises funds to support its many activities from many different actors and partners. As most fundraising is done by our National Committees, we support our volunteers in building the case for EYP and forming a diverse range of partnerships with institutions, the private sector and other NGOs. To this aim, EYP organised its annual Fundraising Summit, bringing together volunteers from across Europe.
Training for Trainers (T4ET)
To train all these volunteers, EYP also needs more and more trainers with relevant experience and skills, who can enable knowledge transfer and best practice sharing in interactive ways. Since 2010, EYP organises an annual Training for EYP Trainers where more experienced members of the network are taught innovative, interactive ways to enable the skills development of young volunteers.
Understanding Europe
At the events organised in the EYP network, young people are encouraged to debate about current topics in European politics. In order to enhance the basis for a better knowledge of the political framework and general development of the European Union, the EYP network offers a basic four-hour EU Crash Course in schools and to their active members. These trainings are offered by an international team of volunteers which are meeting twice a year in Berlin for an intensive training to work on the methods and update the content of the courses. More about the EU Crash Courses you can read on the pages of the Schwarzkopf Foundation.
The Training and Alumni Development Council
The Governing Body has established a permanent working group, the Trainings Council, which includes experienced EYP Alumni who have been trained as trainers, have plenty of training experience and are passionate on the issue.
To get the latest news about EYP Trainings, follow the Facebook page!
Get to know and contact the members of EYP’s Training Council!