The 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum – Innovative approaches to foster young people's employability

The 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum* is organised by the Agency of International Programs for Youth, which is the Latvian National Agency of the Erasmus+ Youth in Action Programme, in cooperation with the European Commission, the Latvian Ministries of Foreign Affairs and of Education and Science and other stakeholders. The 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum is organised in the context of Latvia’s Presidency of the Council of the EU and the Eastern Partnership Platform 4 'Contacts between people'. The final results of the Forum will be presented in the 4th Eastern Partnership Summit which will take place in Riga/Latvia in May 2015. The 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum will showcase and further develop the Eastern Partnership and Erasmus+ Programme countries' joint youth cooperation. The Forum will provide space to discuss and recommend steps to be taken as regards young people's employability in this context with a focus on: - Mobility and partnership programmes (European Union, Council of Europe, United Nations and other programmes); - Cross-sectorial cooperation; - Exchange of good practices (innovative ideas); - Youth policy development. More specifically, the 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum will: - Foster sharing of good practices between participants of the Forum in the field of cross-sectorial cooperation; - Allow for a critical analysis of the above mentioned good practices and explore ways to adapt them to different realities; - Map challenges the various sectors face and discuss how cross-sectorial cooperation can foster the employability of young people; - Emphasise the impact of youth work and its relevance for the labour market; - Raise awareness for quality demands for mobility programmes supporting employability of young people; - Work on policy recommendations to improve youth employability/employment. The 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum will offer participants the possibility to present their views on these topics, to discuss the latest research findings and develop and put forward their conclusions to policy makers. Programme A preliminary draft programme of the 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum is attached to this invitation. Participants' profile** The 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum will bring together about 200 participants. Representatives/participants should have one of the following profiles: • Young person active in youth organisations; • Youth worker; • Researcher; • Ministerial representative; • Representative of business field (unions, employers’ organisations, job services etc.); • Representative of formal education; • Young journalist willing to spread the word about the 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum. We are looking for participants from Erasmus+ Programme countries and Eastern Partnership countries who: • Can communicate in English or Russian; • Are at least 18 years old; • Can commit to actively take part in the preparation phase before the Forum by looking for and sharing good practices, stating opinions on the themes of the Forum and getting acquainted with background policy planning documents; • Have the opportunity to apply and multiply the experiences and learning after the Forum. Working language: The 2nd Eastern Partnership Youth Forum will be mainly held in English. Simultaneous interpretation from and to Russian/English will be provided in the plenary sessions. In the working groups, linguistic support will be available. * The 1st Eastern Partnership Youth Forum was organised from October 22nd to 25th, 2013 in Kaunas, Lithuania within the framework of the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Main aims of the 1st Eastern Partnership Youth Forum were to enhance the recognition of youth work and non-formal learning especially in the context of social inclusion and to raise the quality and visibility of non-formal learning and youth work at the local level and foster the exchange of good practice in this respect between Eastern Partnership and Youth in Action programme countries. (www.youthforum2013.eu). **Candidates with special needs are encouraged to apply. The organiser is ready to provide the assistance needed (for example personal assistant, sign language, accessible rooms & transport, etc.).