On 9 April 2025, TEPSA and the Institute for European Studies of the Université Libre de Bruxelles (IEE-ULB) co-organised the ActEU Belgian Youth Democracy Lab. The event was embedded in the university course Questions de science politique interne, part of the second-year Bachelor’s programme in Political Science at the ULB.

The workshop, held in French, brought together 18 students and was moderated by Alvaro Oleart (FNRS postdoctoral researcher, IEE-ULB). It aimed to engage young people in the ActEU project and, more specifically, in its recommendation-building process. Participants were invited to produce concrete proposals in response to two guiding questions:

1. What should politicians do to strengthen European democracy?
2. Which topics should schools and other educational institutions prioritise to prepare young people for life in a democracy?

Deficits in democracy: Identifying the key issues

In the first part of the workshop, students shared their views on the main shortcomings of contemporary democracies. Participants highlighted a range of issues related to representation, participation, and trust. Specifically, they pointed to:

1. A significant crisis of trust in elected officials;
2. A gap between rapid technological developments in society and the slower pace of democratic adaptation;
3. The difficulty of accessing unbiased, trustworthy information in the media;
4. The increasing repression of social movements;
5. The deterioration of public services;
6. The lack of citizens’ involvement at higher levels of governance – especially when compared to local governance structures.

Group discussions: Developing policy recommendations

In group discussions, students were invited to formulate concrete policy recommendations targeted at policy-makers, civil society, and educators, responding to the previously identified issues. Recommendations included the need to strengthen democratic engagement and increase citizens’ consultations that meaningfully influence policy-makers’ decisions, as well as creating a unified digital portal to guarantee universal access to public services, paired with a simplification of administrative procedures. Students also proposed greater transparency measures to clarify how public funds are used, accompanied by independent anti-corruption bodies in each country.

To respond to the challenges posed by media and social media, students proposed several recommendations, including ending online anonymity by requiring ID verification for social media registration, along with charters between platforms and states to ensure judicial cooperation. They also thought traditional media should provide more accurate coverage of activism, and citizens should be better informed about their rights in protest.

Finally, to make EU governance more democratic, participants suggested directly electing the President of the European Commission and introducing transnational lists for the European Parliament elections. Finally, they stressed the need for continuous civic education to foster active and informed citizenship.