DAY Project in Naples sets a powerful precedent for expanding child participation across Europe
How 2,000 children and young people from nine schools in three districts of Naples with poor social and economic indicators got together to ask for changes in their municipalities
The Democratic Activation of Youth (DAY) Project, implemented by Eurochild, Fondazione l’Albero della Vita and CIDIS has held its final activities of the project these past weeks in Naples and Brussels.
Each of these activities involved members of the project’s Local Youth Advisory Board. These members are young people from 2,000 children and young people from 9 schools and 3 districts across the city of Naples that have led the way in creating and leading Civic Agendas for change in each of their districts.
Final activities of the DAY Project
- Peer-to-peer exchanges on child participation across the Eurochild network
To prepare young people from Naples to engage with European policymakers in Brussels, Eurochild’s Child Participation team coordinated three online peer exchanges with current and former Eurochild’s Children’s Council and National Eurochild Forums.
These sessions compared local realities in Naples and child advocates from 12 countries, allowed for best practice exchange, including comparing challenges at local and European level, and built advocacy capacities for engaging European policymakers.
- Face-to-face meetings to scale up the DAY project and engage EU Institutions
With the experiences from the peer-to-peer exchanges in hand, young representatives from Naples traveled to Brussels and met with EU officials, including the European Commission’s (DG JUST Child Rights team), Italian Members of the European Parliament (Vice President Guiseppina Picierno, MEP Sandro Ruotolo, MEP Cecilia Strada, and the team of MEP Brando Benifei), and the Italian Permanent Representation to the EU.
In these meetings, organised by Eurochild, the representatives promoted the importance of child participation, using the DAY model, and shared their recommendations with policymakers. Many endorsed the DAY model as a blueprint for child participation.
- Final project conference at Naples’ Castle Nuovo, 18th September
Finally, on 18 September, the project partners held a closing conference in Naples, bringing together 100 young people, professionals, and local policymakers to celebrate the project’s achievements.
Eurochild presented the importance of the project’s activities as part of our wider work in Europe to fight for children’s rights to participate in decision-making. The conference was moderated by children and young people, and featured councillors from the Comune di Napoli and representatives of each Municipality in the project.
- Looking Forward
The results of this project has been nothing short of inspirational. Children and young people involved in the project felt empowered and emboldened to push for improvements in their communities. Following their success in Naples and Brussels, the youth delegates were invited to present to the Italian Parliament’s Chamber of Deputies to advocate for the project’s scale up across Italy.
“The DAY project has not only empowered young people in Naples, but also set a precedent for meaningful child participation at local level across Europe. Its model is a great example of how children’s voices can be integrated into decision-making processes, ensuring they play an active role in shaping the future of their communities.” - Sabine Saliba, Secretary General of Eurochild
These young people are the future of Naples, and Eurochild hopes that they will continue to advocate for the rights of all children and young people in Naples to shape their communities for the better.
Eurochild is filming a new documentary to capture the legacy and journey of these young advocates as part of our wider work to ensure that all children can meaningfully participate in decisions that affect them. Stay tuned!
Want to know more? Contact Laure Pailleau and Ciaran O’Donnell from Eurochild.
- Photos
Look at the photos from their Brussels meetings and the final conference in Naples
