3rd EU Macro-Regional Strategies Week

The 2022 EU Macro-regional Strategies Week will stand under the motto ENGAGE, EMPOWER, EVOLVE  centered around three topics: Youth, European Green Deal and Social Innovation.

The purpose of the third edition is to ENGAGE with stakeholders from across the Macro-regional Strategies, the EU institutions and beyond to EMPOWER them to take charge of the opportunities Macro-regional Strategies offer in order to EVOLVE their Macro-Regions towards a smart and sustainable future. With 2022 being the European Year of Youth, we also want to put a special notion on how Macro-regional Strategies empower young people to become active citizens and actors of positive change, to promote opportunities provided by EU policies for young people and to include the ideas and visions of young people in Macro-regional Strategies.

An event of such kind will be a SEMINAR on YOUTH GUIDANCE CENTRES - supporting vulnerable groups of young adults to enter the labour market.

Policy Area Education, Science and Social affairs has the pleasure to invite you to a seminar discussing support to vulnerable groups of young people. Young adults not in education or training and without a job is a vulnerable group in our societies. This group is often referred to as NEETs (Not in Employment, Education or Training). A diverse group, difficult to find, difficult to motivate to take the first step, they seldom ask for help and when they are in contact with welfare services the needed measures are complex. Therefore so-called “Youth Guidance Centres”, providing multiple welfare services gathered under one roof has proved to be a successful model when organizing an effective response to this individual and societal challenge. This low-threshold service provision has become increasingly common, particularly in the Baltic Sea Region with for example “Ohjaamo” in Finland, “Navigatorcentrum” in Sweden, “Ungevejen” in Denmark and “Jugendberufsagentur” in Germany. At this seminar you will be introduced to the concept of “Youth Guidance Centres” and meet coordinators from two such centres in the Baltic Sea Region. You find more information in the attached invitation including the programme.

The SEMINAR will be held on 8 March 2022 at 15.30 to 17.00 (CET)  using ZOOM as digital platform. Welcome to register to the seminar at the latest on 28 February following this LINK. If you have any further questions regarding this seminar, contact anders.bergstrom@norden.se

Due to the pandemic situation, the majority of sessions will take place online with a strong notion to make the event as inclusive and lifelike as possible. Therefore the event, organised this year is changing from closed to mainly open sessions.

The Presidencies of the four EU MRS together with Marc Lemaitre, Director-General of DG REGIO, will join in to interact with the viewers in the opening session on Monday afternoon. The day will continue with Youth session.
The next day we will start with fresh and always interesting ideas related to European Green Deal and Social Innovation sessions.
After her keynote speech on wednesday morning, even Elisa Ferreira, Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, will engage in a question and answer session with the audience.
This year we are glad to let you know that the programme includes many stakeholders from all macro-regions and the EU institutions, which are actively involved in the process of designing a renewed #EUMRSWeek.
Even the 14th High-Level Group meeting, although in a purely listening mode, but still, will be for the 1st time open to the public. The only event remaining closed will be the 5th meeting of the Presidencies of the 4 EU MRS and Trio.

Further information will follow soon.
Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact:
REGIO-TRANSNATIONAL-AND-INTERREGIONAL-COOPERATION@ec.europa.eu