Power in Youth Educational trip to Brussels

KOKEN, in the framework of the European project “Power in YOUth”, on 26 and 27 September, made a study trip to Brussels.

Six young people from Youth Clubs and  rural areas participated in the trip.
The Akrounda Youth Club was represented by Irini Constantinou and Stavros Agathokleous.
The Youth Club of Alassa was represented by Angelos Nikolaou and Chrysanthos Nikolaou and the Youth Club of Evrychou was represented by Konstantina Malta and Christiana Papapetrou together with the 2 youth workers of the Organization, Christina Stylianou and Evanthia Kepola.

On 26 October, participants had the opportunity to visit the European Parliament, the Parlamentarium and the European Disability Forum.

The visit to the Plenary Chamber and the Hemicycle provided the young volunteers with the opportunity to get to know the institutions of the European Union as well as to experience the atmosphere of the largest international parliament in the world and to learn about its powers and role.

Afterwards, the young people visited the Parlamentarium and with the help of a multimedia guide they were guided through the heart of the European Parliament and the road to European integration, the way the European Parliament works and what its Members do to face today’s challenges.

On the same day a meeting was held with a representative from the European Disability Forum.
The European Disability Forum is the umbrella organisation for people with disabilities, working with representative organisations of people with disabilities from all over Europe.
The European Disability Forum defends the interests of more than 100 million people with disabilities in Europe.
Young people had the opportunity to be trained on equal treatment of people with disabilities and to receive information on how to communicate equally and effectively with young people with disabilities.

A meeting with ENIL – European Network on Independent Living was held on 27 October.
The purpose of ENIL is to provide a platform for young people with disabilities to engage with youth and disability rights issues at European level.
Through the Youth Network, ENIL actively involves young people in all its activities, provides them with the opportunity to address policy makers and represent the organisation at key events and in various forums.
Since 2016, ENIL’s Youth Network has had a representative on the Council of Europe’s Youth Advisory Council.

The policy document has been circulated to the European Disability Forum and ENIL.
The policy document is planned to be delivered to Cypriot MEPs.

The purpose of the trip was for the young volunteers who participated in the programme to come in contact with European organisations working on accessibility, equality and rights of people with disabilities, in order to gain knowledge and as a result to be able to include in their voluntary activities young people with disabilities based on the European Union’s Strategy for People with Disabilities and the UN Convention on the Human Rights of Persons with Disabilities.