YouthMetre: Open Data to Empower Young People to Engage in Democracy and Policymaking

Abstract

The Joint Report of the Council of Europe and the European Commission on the implementation of the renewed framework for European cooperation in the youth field (2010–2018) recognized that the participation of young people in democratic life is central to delivering successful EU youth policy, in which employment and entrepreneurship, education and social inclusion are priorities. YouthMetre (http://www.youthmetre.eu ) establishes an innovative Geo-ICT solution in the youth field, in at least 20 European countries, with the potential to improve and/or transform youth policies and practices. The project aims at directly providing youngsters with necessary skills and knowledge to foster effective implementation, by policymakers, of the guidelines provided by the ‘Youthmetre’. YouthMetre is established to support the engagement of young people in developing relevant youth initiatives in Europe addressing the European Union Youth Strategy Priority 7, using e-participation as an instrument to foster young people’s empowerment and active participation in democratic life, under the Erasmus Plus Programme. A data benchmarking process led to the establishment of a data dashboard and visualization of EU Policy achievements using geotechnologies.