9-11 May 2025 | Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
How do young people turn ideas into action? How do they move from identifying problems in their communities to influencing public policies?
These were some of the questions explored during the ASPYRE EUROPE Active Youth Forum in Sarajevo, organised by our Bosnian partner Youth for Peace, in collaboration with NIT and the ASPYRE EUROPE consortium. Over three inspiring days, 88 young people, educators, youth workers, and decision-makers came together to strengthen their advocacy skills, exchange ideas, and begin developing youth-led initiatives that address real challenges in their communities.
Polylogos was proud to participate in the Forum together with two youth representatives from Romania, who shared experiences with their peers and contributed to the international exchange of ideas that lies at the heart of ASPYRE EUROPE.
Learning how to advocate for change
The Forum introduced participants to one of the project’s central themes: youth advocacy. Through interactive workshops led by experienced trainers, participants explored what advocacy is, why it matters, and how young people can use it to influence decisions affecting their communities.
Sessions focused on practical skills such as:
- building successful advocacy campaigns;
- identifying allies and target audiences;
- communicating effectively with decision-makers and the public.
Rather than focusing on theory alone, the workshops encouraged participants to think about real issues they wanted to address and begin developing concrete plans for action.
Dialogue with decision-makers
One of the highlights of the Forum was the opportunity for participants to engage directly with decision-makers.
Young people met with a Member of the Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who shared insights from his experience in both local and national politics. Participants asked questions about political participation, public institutions, and the challenges of creating change from within the system.
Later in the programme, participants also met with Amila Čengić, youth worker and former Project Coordinator of the Youth Council of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Through an open and interactive discussion, participants explored how young people can organise themselves, build partnerships, and become effective advocates for their communities.
For many participants, these conversations represented a rare opportunity to speak directly with people involved in public decision-making, helping demystify political institutions and demonstrating that dialogue between young people and decision-makers is both possible and valuable.
From ideas to advocacy groups
One of the Forum’s most exciting outcomes was the formation of Youth Advocacy Groups, each centred around an issue identified by the participants themselves.
The groups selected a diverse range of topics, including:
- improving access to menstrual products in schools;
- creating fairer scholarship opportunities for university students;
- and other issues affecting young people’s wellbeing, education, and equal opportunities.
These groups will continue working together after the Forum, developing their ideas into concrete advocacy initiatives that will later be presented to decision-makers through the ASPYRE EUROPE Civic Café process.
Building a generation of active citizens
Beyond the workshops and discussions, the Active Youth Forum created something equally important: a community.
Young people from different regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina had the opportunity to meet peers facing similar challenges, exchange experiences, and discover that many of the issues affecting them are shared across communities.
Participants left the Forum motivated to continue working together, with many expressing their determination to launch initiatives that improve the lives of young people in their local communities.
ASPYRE EUROPE continues
The Sarajevo Active Youth Forum demonstrated once again that when young people are provided with the right knowledge, skills, and opportunities, they are ready to become active contributors to democratic life.
We are grateful to our partners Youth for Peace and NIT for organising such an inspiring event, and proud that our Romanian youth representatives could contribute to this growing international community of young changemakers.
The future of democracy depends on young people believing that their voices matter, and on creating the spaces where those voices can truly be heard and taken into account.
