“Democracy IRL: Civic Education for Democratic Resilience” was an Erasmus+
youth exchange organised in Cumpăna, Constanța County, Romania, between 20 and
27 July 2026. The mobility was implemented within GEYC’s Erasmus+
accreditation under project reference 2026-1-RO01-KA151-YOU-000390817.
The youth exchange brought together 36 young people, group leaders and youth
workers from Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Slovakia, Türkiye and North Macedonia.
GEYC coordinated and hosted the mobility in cooperation with
WOLF from
Bulgaria,
Growth Hub from Greece,
Youth for Youth from Slovakia,
Genç Zihin Derneği from
Türkiye and a
Center for Intercultural Dialogue
from North Macedonia.
The activity was designed for young people, with a particularly strong
participation of minors. Twenty-seven participants were between 13 and 17
years old, while nine participants were young adults, group leaders and youth
workers between 18 and 30 years old. More than half of the participants were
young people with fewer opportunities, including participants facing economic,
geographical, educational or social barriers. The group was gender-balanced,
and gender equality was reflected in the division of responsibilities,
participation in discussions, facilitation roles and opportunities to
represent the national and intercultural teams.
Because the majority of participants were minors, the programme was designed
to be accessible, highly interactive and appropriate for different levels of
prior knowledge and confidence. Group leaders and facilitators supported the
young participants throughout the learning process, while structured group
agreements, regular reflection sessions and team leader meetings provided
spaces for feedback and group management.
Objectives
The youth exchange aimed to help participants understand democracy as
something that extends beyond elections and formal institutions. Participants
explored how democratic values influence everyday relationships, rights,
responsibilities, schools, communities, online spaces and access to public
decision-making.
The programme pursued four main learning objectives: connecting democratic
values with everyday situations, developing critical civic thinking,
recognising both online and offline civic spaces, and strengthening
intercultural understanding through the meaningful inclusion of diverse
voices.
Rather than approaching civic education only through theoretical information,
the exchange encouraged participants to experience democratic principles
through cooperation, dialogue, decision-making, negotiation, peer learning and
reflection.
International partnership and peer-led implementation
An important feature of the youth exchange was the active involvement of all
partner organisations in the learning process. The programme was not delivered
exclusively by the coordinating organisation. Each national team contributed
to the implementation by preparing or facilitating activities related to
democracy, public institutions, communication, civic participation and
intercultural learning.
This peer-led approach gave participants and group leaders the opportunity to
assume responsibility for parts of the programme, adapt activities to their
national experiences and share knowledge with the wider group. The methodology
was developed collaboratively with the group leaders, and national groups were
expected to facilitate activities during the mobility.
The Romanian team coordinated the overall learning process, introduced the
project objectives, facilitated the sessions on civic participation and
supported the final European consultation activity. The Bulgarian team led the
mapping of national democratic realities, the Greek team explored the role of
local, national and European institutions, the Slovak team addressed
communication and public opinion, and the Turkish team facilitated activities
on democratic values and pathways from ideas to impact.
This distribution of responsibilities strengthened the European dimension of
the exchange. Participants did not receive one fixed interpretation of
democracy but encountered several national perspectives, facilitation styles
and civic realities.
Green travel and sustainable mobility
All participating teams travelled through green travel arrangements,
reinforcing the environmental responsibility of the mobility. Participants
used lower-emission transport solutions for their international journeys and
complied with the project’s green travel approach.
Using green travel for the entire exchange added a practical sustainability
dimension to the project. Participants experienced how European mobility can
be organised responsibly and how individual travel choices can be connected to
wider European environmental objectives. For several teams, green travel also
meant longer journeys and greater logistical effort, making their
participation and commitment particularly significant.
Non-formal education methodology
Through national mapping, advocacy exercises, Democracy Bingo, Kahoot and a simulation on allocating limited resources to democratic institutions and values, participants connected abstract concepts with real community challenges. A media exercise, in which the same news story was adapted for television, print, a press conference and social media, helped them understand how framing and selective presentation can shape public opinion.
A key highlight was the study visit to the Mayor’s Office at Cumpăna City Hall, where participants learned about local governance, community initiatives and the responsibilities of public authorities. The visit enabled them to discuss directly with local representatives and better understand how citizens can interact with institutions.
We extend our sincere thanks to the Municipality of Cumpăna and the Mayor’s Office, who also acted as the project’s on-site logistics partner, for their support, hospitality and contribution to the successful implementation of the youth exchange.
European participation and participant proposals
Towards the end of the mobility, participants were introduced to the
European Citizens’ Panels, democratic resilience and the European
Commission’s Citizens’ Engagement Platform.
Working in intercultural teams, they reflected on the challenges discussed
throughout the exchange and developed six proposals for strengthening
democracy in Europe. The proposals addressed stronger EU visibility in
mainstream media, local EU contact points for public participation,
increased opportunities for young people, mandatory media literacy education
in schools, a European anti-disinformation and fact-checking platform and
the responsible exploration of secure online voting.
The proposals were uploaded to the European Commission’s platform as the
main civic contribution produced by the participants. Although the
proposal-development activity was an important output, it represented the
result of the broader learning process rather than an isolated consultation
exercise. Participants based their ideas on the national comparisons,
institutional learning, media exercises, advocacy activities and discussions
completed during the previous days.
Main outputs
The youth exchange produced several concrete and intangible results.
Participants created six national posters or infographics mapping democracy
and public institutions, community participation plans, adapted media
products, group reflections and six European proposals on democratic
resilience.
They also produced less tangible but equally relevant results: increased
understanding of democratic concepts, stronger awareness of local and
European institutions, improved ability to evaluate media messages, greater
confidence in expressing opinions and a better understanding of civic
participation.
The peer-facilitated sessions also strengthened the capacity of the national
teams and group leaders to design and deliver non-formal education
activities. Partner organisations gained methods that can be reused in
future youth work, civic education and media literacy programmes.
Conclusion
The strong participation of young people under 18 was especially important. Although they cannot yet vote, they are already affected by public decisions and are active in schools, communities and online spaces. The exchange showed that, when activities are adapted to their age and experience, minors can understand complex democratic topics, express informed opinions and contribute meaningfully to European discussions.
Participants left with a better understanding of democratic institutions and civic participation, as well as stronger communication, critical-thinking, teamwork and intercultural skills. Through national mappings, media activities, action plans and European proposals, they demonstrated that young people are not only future citizens, but active civic actors who can already contribute to more inclusive and resilient democratic societies.