REGIONAL
WORKSHOPS
The first wave of Regional Workshops of the YouthDecide 2040 project brought together young people from all over Europe. Five workshops were organised across four regions, bringing participants from different countries together in a single host city for each workshop: Central and Eastern Europe (Bratislava, Slovakia), Southern Europe (Barcelona, Spain), Western Europe (Paris, France) and Northern Europe (Oslo, Norway).
The participants connected personal stories with scenario building for democracy, weaving those visions of democracy grounded in their everyday experiences and views. Formats ranged from podcast storytelling to futures thinking, guided by methods refined during the project’s Creative Retreat to keep improving the design for the next wave of workshops happening in 2026.
The result was a multiple and creative variety of space where young people explored not only how democratic futures might feel as well as function.
CENTRAL AND
EASTERN EUROPE
FUTURE
EUROPE
SOUTHERN
EUROPE
WESTERN
EUROPE
NORTHERN
EUROPE
EASTERN EUROPE
Bratislava, Slovakia
23-24 June 2025
Bratislava marked the starting point of the YouthDecide 2040 regional workshops. On 23 and 24 June 2025, young people from across Eastern Europe came together to challenge assumptions, test ideas, and reimagine democracy from the ground up!
Rather than long speeches, the programme offered hands-on creative ways of imagining futures and plenty of space to experiment. Using methods co-developed during the project’s Creative Retreat, participants explored what democratic futures could look like in their own communities.
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GALLERY
VIDEO
FUTURE EUROPE
Skopje, Republic of Macedonia
26-27 June 2025
In Skopje, the YouthDecide 2040 workshop held on 26 and 27 June 2025 brought together a vibrant mix of young minds ready to rethink Europe’s future. With a focus on cross-border collaboration and shared responsibility, the event became a lively space for dialogue and youth co-creation!
Participants explored big questions through foresight methodoly, mapping exercises and group reflection. Drawing on tools from the Creative Retreat, they imagined bold alternatives to today’s democratic challenges and left with fresh energy to act.
GALLERY
VIDEO
SOUTHERN EUROPE
Barcelona, Spain
7-8 July 2025
YouthDecide 2040 welcomed on 7 and 8 July young people from Southern Europe to Barcelona! On 7 and 8 July 2025 and it didn’t disappoint. Over two sun-filled days, participants connected personal stories with political imagination, weaving together visions of democracy and rooted in everyday experience.
Workshops ranged from podcast storytelling to futures thinking, all guided by participatory methods shaped during the project’s Creative Retreat. The result: a creative and energising space where young people explored how democratic futures might feel as well as function.
GALLERY
WESTERN EUROPE
Paris, France
6-7 Septiembre 2025
This September, the spotlight shifts to Paris. On 6 and 7 September 2025, the Western Europe Workshop of YouthDecide 2040 will bring together young Europeans eager to explore what democracy could look like in the future and how to start building it today.
The project will invite participants to test participatory tools and prototype fresh ideas for political transformation. With methods inspired by the Creative Retreat, this workshop will ask: what would it mean to truly develop a different future for Europe’s democracies?
NORTHERN EUROPE
Oslo, Norway
11-12 Septiembre 2025
On 11 and 12 September 2025, Oslo will welcome the final stop in the YouthDecide 2040 regional series. This Northern Europe workshop will bring together young changemakers to explore democracy in the context of a fast-changing world.
The two-day event will blend creativity with critical thinking: speculative scenarios, embodied exercises and collaborative design. Using the tools co-created in the project’s Creative Retreat, participants will shape future Visions of Democracy.