Summer Stage 2014

Think Young. Think Europe.

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THINK VISION5

THINK YOUNG7

THINK EUROPE9

THINK COMMUNICATION11

CONTENTS

THE LITTLE BLUE BOOK4

Cher Monsieur le président de la Commission européenne,

’Think Young. Think Europe’, organised by stagiaires for stagiaires here at the European Commission, took place in Brussels on 3rd July 2014. More than 20 bright young people from 13 Member States came together to explore the question: Does Europe meet the needs and expectations of young people today?

AAsking young people about what they think Europe's future should be has become very popular in the last couple of years. However, how you ask this question is just as important as the question itself. Conferences, panel debates and other traditional forums often don't seem to generate sustainable ideas and, frustratingly, citizens feel disconnected from Europe's decision makers. After all, revealing the true creativity of young minds is precisely why we are tapping into their potential in the rst place, n'est pas?

WWe needed a new way of approaching the question and that's how the rst Blue Book World Café came to life. A World Café is a highly effective, fun and dynamic type of brainstorming workshop, designed for big groups with big ideas. In recent years, this key technique of the Participatory Leadership methodology has been increasingly embraced by several DGs throughout the Commission for both the co-creation of policy and the direct consultation of citizens and stakeholders. It has also been used by many national and regional governments, and by innovative organisations such as TED.

TThe different format elicited the curiosity of the stagiaires, and it turned out to be one of the main reasons why they signed up for the event. Some were attracted by the possibility of drawing attention to issues about which they already felt passionate. Others relished the rare opportunity to exchange ideas about the European project with peers from so many diverse backgrounds. Everyone was motivated by the prospect of being able, in some shape or form, to make their mark on the future of Europe by contributing to the pool of ideas that would be submitted directly to you, Monsieur Juncker, as the new president of the Commission.

AAs stagiaires we were all selected from a shortlist of applicants referred to traditionally as the 'Virtual Blue Book'. We are now very pleased to present you with our very own 'Little Blue Book'. It contains the opinions, reections and proposed actions of the Commission's 2014 Summer Stage. It presents the broad spectrum of themes which emerged during the event and aims to communicate what young people really think about Europe as it is today, as well as their hopes for its future.

WWhile one of the dominant themes was, understandably, youth unemployment, it is quite striking that so many of the interests shared by young Europeans today are cross-generational issues: the rise of Euroscepticism, the social impact of inter-EU migration, persistent inequality and the establishment of a 'greener' Europe. Most signicantly, we identied that the EU needs to be more visionary in its conception of the European project and that better communication is the key to the construction of a shared European identity. In essence, we stagiaires are not simply advocating that the EU thinks of the young but that sometimes it needs to think more like the young.

Nous Nous vous souhaitons bonne lecture!

Veuillez agréer, Monsieur le président de la Commission Européenne, l’expression de nos sentiments les plus innovateurs et les plus européens.

Naomi McAteer, Ian McCafferty, Amélie Trippolt, Yana Pargova and Gui Xi Young - on behalf of all the participants of 'Think Young. Think Europe.'

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THE LITTLE BLUE BOOK Introduction

Our morning of rich discussion and debate was divided into three brainstorming sessions, each of which was centred on a question to be discussed in groups of four. At the end of every round, three members of each group were encouraged to move on to other groups to ensure the widest possible spread of ideas. The successive questions were designed to elicit a clear, logical progression of thought – from an overview of the paspast, to an understanding of the present and nally towards a vision for the future.

• What are your needs now that are not being fullled? • Which obstacles stand in the way of what you want? • What do you expect the EU to do for you?

These questions were deliberately formulated in as open-ended a manner as possible. This allowed the free ow of ideas as participants could put forward the issues of most signicance to them without any external inuence.

FFinally, after the end of the third round, each group was asked to identify their top three priorities for the next commission. One-by-one, the participants briey presented their group's key concerns. Those with the same or a similar argument then addressed the group as a whole, explaining the comparisons and differences between both issues. We then clustered all our priorities into broader thematic groups and were immediately struckstruck by how all our ideas seemed to organically come full circle.

In clustering the many ideas presented at the ‘Think Young, Think Europe’ World Café, a natural, cyclical ow emerged from the themes and sub-themes presented. At the very top of the circle was the common understanding that in order to withstand these challenging times the EU needs to be visionary: in terms of how the future of the pan-European project is conceived, and also with respect to the mentality of its leaders and the iits leaders and the internal functioning of the institutions.

In creating a vision of Europe based on shared goals and common values, the EU needs to be fully committed to levelling out the socio-economic differences between Member States while simultaneously celebrating their cultural diversity. The ‘freedom of movement of peoples’ is the human soul of European integration. This must be defended and upheld without exception. However, the social realities of inter-EU mimigration can no longer be ignored and left to be twisted into hateful discourse by Eurosceptics. The EU must take the lead in promoting cross-cultural understanding amongst its fellow

citizens. It is only through fostering increased connectivity and breaking down popular misconceptions that a true sense of European identity may emerge.

TTo win new generations over to the European project, today’s leaders need to demonstrate their appreciation for the specic needs and expectations of young people. Chronic youth unemployment and nancial insecurity mean that an entire generation of promising young Europeans live, work or study in a climate of constant doubt and instability. It must apply all its creative powers and collective experience into nding new waways to protect young people from exploitation and to support us in bridging that pivotal gap between education and the labour market.

The World Café participants unanimously identied communication as the key to the success of the European project. Under the theme of communication, three main strands for improvement were identied: what does the EU do, how and why? Not only does the EU need to be able to effectively communicate its vision to its citizens in order to achieve it, it also needs to listen to its citizens.

AAs the 12 stars in a circle on the European ag symbolise the ideals of unity, solidarity and harmony among the peoples of Europe, coming full circle with the clustering of our ideas brings us back to the rst point: the need for the EU to be visionary. In the truest spirit of equality and partnership – that between states and between citizens – Europe’s leaders must directly consult the European peoples in order to co-create a vision of EuEurope that resonates with us all.

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THINK VISION"World peace cannot be safeguarded without the making of creative efforts proportionate to the dangers which threaten it."

The Schuman Declaration, 9th May 1950

Sixty-four years after the Schuman Declaration laid the rst stone of the European House, the pivotal role played by a united Europe ‘in the service of peace’ is no less relevant today than it was in the aftermath of the Second World War. The events currently escalating in Ukraine during this centenary year of the war of 1914-1918 provides an ominous reminder of this. That the founding vision of the European project is so ofoften overlooked by its critics is in many ways a testimony to the decades of peace that close economic and political cooperation has brought to the peoples of, rst the Common Market, and then the European Union. That said, even for those of us who are wholly committed to European integration, it is easy during these troubled economic times to lose sight of what Europe truly stands for. It often seems to be lost in the mimire of statistics, red tape and institutional stagnation. As a result, so much of the good that Europe does for its citizens is drowned out by the fear-mongering chants of the increasingly inuential far-right populist parties.

The results of the recent European Parliament elections conrm that Euroscepticism cannot be dismissed as a minority phenomenon lurking far off on the fringes. No longer a mere tendency, this is an immediate political reality that threatens everything that the Member States have built together, and the peaceful and prosperous future that we, as young Europeans, have the right to expect. In the face of the current crisis of

condence in the EU, we believe – to paraphrase Robert Schuman - that the European Union cannot be safeguarded without the making of creative efforts proportionate to the Euroscepticism that threatens it.

MMost signicantly we strongly feel that here the emphasis needs to be placed on the word ‘creative’. The EU needs to channel all its creative resources into being visionary once more - not only in terms of its leadership and how the institutions function but also with respect to how it conceives the greater goals of the pan-European project and defends the collective values of its citizens.

Thinking Outside the BoxThinking Outside the Box

FFrom our experience as stagiaires at the Commission, we think that the EU needs to resist the current trend towards the institutionalisation of mentalities which leads to the stagnation of ideas. The European institutions could well reconsider their current recruitment processes at a time processes at a time when the survival of the European project requires visionaries who can think ‘outside the box’. Though there is no shortage of applicaapplicants who want to work for Europe, the institutions need to take the so-called Google approach to human capital and actively sell themselves as dynamic workplaces in order to attract highly innovative people. Most imporantly, we believe that regular dialogues with citizens and the co-creation of policy from the bottom up is the best way to ensure that the vision of Europe articulated by its leaders also speaks to its peoplepeoples.

As a generation accustomed to the fast-paced digital age, we are often frustrated by how slowly things seem to progress within the institutions. Nevertheless, we are also convinced that the EU must adopt a much more long-term perspective than it has in recent years. We feel that many of the current obstacles with which we are faced – particularly those related to youth unemployment and getting on the career ladder - are eithereither rooted in, or tied to, the chronic short-termism of the current system. The EU needs to seriously reconsider how it decides upon timeframes for the implementation of policy. For policies to have a truly lasting impact their life-span needs to extend beyond the limited timeframes set by each commission’s ve year mandate. Signicantly, a great many of the key issues that were recommended by the participants of thisthis World Café to be priorities for the next commission – from

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education and training to environmental awareness and the promotion of equality – are multigenerational investments.

European Spirit

UnderstandablUnderstandably, many of the next Commission’s priorities will be orientated towards post-crisis economic recovery and reform - the stabilisation of the Eurozone, balancing public accounts in each Member State and, of course, continued banking reform. However, it is equally important to consider how we can best foster a sense of ‘European spirit’ amongst our citizens and (re)build a real European identity strong enough to withstandwithstand such testing times. Many citizens feel alienated by what they, rightly or wrongly, perceive Europe to be: a scal project dominated by soulless number-crunchers and faceless bureaucrats. Negative press that depicts the EU as something that takes away and does not give back combined with genuinely tough economic times feed this disenchantment. Pessimism over the future is certainly rife amongst young peoplepeople today – we need more optimism and for that the EU must better articulate a greater sense of purpose. We need to know what we have to be optimistic about!

Beyond National Boundaries

The EU has to rmly establish its vision for the future. In doing so it should take inspiration from the common values shared by its citizens. One participant commented that he was surprised, and pleased, to discover that he shared so many viewpoints with fellow stagiaires despite their diverse cultural backgrounds. Indeed for the most part, the main needs and

eexpectations of young Europeans today transcend national boundaries. The wide array of topics discussed during our World Café clearly illustrates that there is no shortage of fundamental issues behind which young Europeans are already united. Notably, we agree on the immediate need to address climate change and put an end to persistent inequality across Europe. We also agree that it simply does not make sense to atattempt to deal with these pan-European issues unilaterally.

The participants of 'Think Young. Think Europe' look to the EU to take the lead on guaranteeing a greener Europe. Currently, the EU's role in promoting environmental awareness and enforcing existing EU laws barely addresses the tip of a rapidly

melting iceberg. When it comes to tackling climate change, we do not have the luxury of time, nor can we present anything other than a united front. The disparate energy politics of the individual Member States is getting us nowhere. Answers to the looming questions of over-pollution, rising energy costs and growing dependence on Russian gas need to be found collectively.

SimilaSimilarly, we feel that more needs to be done at an EU level to ensure the equality of Europe's citizens regardless of their age, gender, race or cultural background. EU-wide gender inequality is fed by the continued acceptance of ‘everyday sexism’. This ranges from persistent patriarchal norms and casual chauvinism to offensive gender stereotyping3 and outright sexual discrimination. The so-called ‘glass ceiling’ is evever-present and ever-restrictive; the female citizens of Europe face an uphill struggle to have equal pay and the same opportunities for career progression as their male counterparts. The EU should lead by example by ensuring that women have parity with men in high-level jobs, starting at the very top by electing at least ten women to the 2014 college of commissioners. Similarly, the current level of sexual harassment onon the streets of many of Europe’s cities is unacceptable. European security policy needs to start at home with the EU taking a zero-tolerance approach to both physical and psychological violence against any of its citizens.

Despite the fact that there is so much that unites us, European citizens are clearly struggling to feel personally connected to an abstract concept of ‘Europe’. To this we say – when facing the challenges on the road ahead the next commission must rekindle the spirit of Europe’s founding fathers and always Think Vision.

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THINK YOUNG

With Euroscepticism sweeping across Europe, now is the time for EU leaders to reach out to those who one day, not so far from now, will themselves be the architects of the European House. However, lofty rhetoric about the eventual ‘changing of the guard’ or the ‘passing of the torch’ does little to galvanise young people to embrace the Europe of today in order to prepare itself to lead the Europe of tomorrow. Europe’s decision makersmakers need to make Europe relevant to young people right now. It needs to do so in real and tangible ways by engaging with the specic needs and expectations of young people and including them right in the heart of the debate. In essence, Europe’s leaders need to think not simply of the young, but more like the young.

The embracing of fundamental European ideals such as free movement, multiculturalism, peace and prosperity should come quite naturally to the young. Not only are we a generation that has been brought up on such values, we should also be motivated by a healthy streak of youthful optimism. However, the harsh realities of the economic downturn have hit us hard. For many, unemployment and uncertainty has quenchedquenched out optimism towards Europe and has even fuelled Euroscepticism. In order to reignite much needed enthusiasm for the European project, the EU needs to engage young people not through words, but through positive lived experience. At the top of the list of issues which are particularly galvanising for us are: the lack of professional training during third-level education; youth unemployment and the despedesperation to get on the career ladder; and the current deciencies of skill set development with regard to alternative career choices such as entrepreneurship.

Training for Success

One of the key issues raised by the participants of ‘Think Young. Think Europe’ was the topic of ‘training and employment’. As Europe's young people today, we nd ourselves entering the job market at a time of signicant nancial turbulence, which in turn heightens competition and fuels demotivation. Ours is a generation fortunate to have in large part been afforded great opportunities in terms of tertiary education, language acacquisition and travel; however, the over-riding feeling today is that we are unable to fully exploit the skills we have gained and realise our potential. One of the principal reasons for this is that the professional world currently demands the impossible; it requires potential young employees to have signicant work

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experience in a professional environment before they have even started their careers. As the only way to gain this is through professional employment, graduates nd themselves stuck between a rock and a hard place. Employers are unwilling to offer the professional experience required for admittance into the working world, and so this vicious circle is one which is extremely difficult to break. With this in mind, we feel that muchmuch greater attention should be paid to bridging the divide between 'graduate' and 'employee'.

As Erasmus and other successful study programmes serve to open young minds to the potential that Europe holds for them, the establishment of similar work programmes for professional training regulated by the EU would deliver the much needed assurance that Europe is also accessible on professional level. EURES is one example but a lot more could be done. For instance, provision of much more intensive and substantial trtraining (sometimes even on a compulsory basis) for students during the course of their studies, towards the end of their university careers or in the interim between graduation and employment, may be the key to breaking young people out of career limbo and setting them on the path to success.

Internship or Bust "It's through jobs that we can reinforce the European vision", participant

In the face of this ‘impossible’ situation, many capable young graduates struggling to secure professional employment post-university resort to working for free. While a wealth of

valuable opportunities is afforded by internships and traineeships on national and international levels, many of these positions are entirely unpaid or fall well below minimum wage. Remuneration is something that many feel forced to sacrice, simply out of their sheer desperation to get onto the job ladder: in short, Europe's youth is caught in a 'Catch-22' situation. Although many of these schemes provide applicable and relerelevant training, many prove to be unrewarding experiences because the daily tasks are monotonous and unchallenging. Moreover, even if an internship is the ideal stepping stone to a ‘real job’, how can young people possibly afford to support themselves for six months without earning fair wages for their work and more importantly, why should they be expected to? After all, ‘growing pains’ shouldn't continue until you are 30.

In an ideal world unpaid internships would be recognised as exploitation and abolished since they are fundamentally unethicalunethical and they only serve to prolong the limbo between university and working life. Undoubtedly, they should be replaced by valid schemes, accredited as ‘traineeships’ which offer necessary training as well as nancial recompense. As trainees of the European Commission, we are performing high quality work, contributing actively and constructively to the workplace and managing workloads equal to that of an enentry-level fully remunerated position: we merit payment for our labour in just the same way. However, while acknowledging that reality is not quite so simple and thus abolition may be unfeasible in the short-term, we believe that the EU must immediately take a leading role with regards to the welfare of interns by means of increased regulation and cooperation on a local level in the different Member States.

We recognise that there is a wide discrepancy in the different Member States with regard to this, and while it may not be within the EU's remit to apply a Europe-wide policy on internships, it is certainly within its remit to protect its young citizens from exploitation. We call on the next Commission to take a leading role in advocating fairness and implementing strict quality controls. The European Parliament's 2013–14 PrProhibition of Unpaid Internships Bill is certainly an important step in the right direction, however much more must still be done. An official ‘Eurobarometer’ of what may be legitimately deemed a valid ‘internship’ or ‘traineeship’ would make an important statement of the EU’s commitment to this issue. The Commission might also usefully look at what is currently being done in individual member states and consider recommending

that interns be entitled to claim social welfare benets when participating in an EU accredited traineeship scheme.

Entrepreneurship

AAnother possible career path which is hugely undervalued in our education systems is that of the entrepreneur. Although the economic crisis naturally increased the number of start-ups across Europe and it generated public interest into alternative professions, little has been done on an EU level to ensure a transparent and regulated environment for these developments. Likewise, our education systems are behind the timestimes in terms of presenting entrepreneurship as a viable option after graduation.

We believe that entrepreneurship should be encouraged, even promoted among all European citizens, but especially targeting young people and tapping into their innovative spirit. By becoming young entrepreneurs they could not only make a job for themselves but could potentially create even more jobs for others. The rst step should be done on a local level by the various stakeholders (governments, municipalities, NGOs, uniuniversities) ensuring the simplication of the procedures since they are still quite unclear and stagnant. The EU could play a signicant role in funding approved training courses for starting a business, and organising public awareness campaigns. Furthermore, the EU can nurture the entrepreneurial environment by many other means besides regulation and funding. It could coordinate the creation of a nenetwork of stakeholders across Europe, who can share know-how and best practices with regards the provision of funding opportunities or the quality of entrepreneurship programmes currently available.

Getting on the career ladder should not be a Mission Impossible: young people are often accused of being naïve and demanding, but for those of us trying to enter the job market for the rst time it seems like we’re not the ones with the unrealistic expectations. We call on Europe to Think Young and help us say ‘mission accomplished’!

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THINK EUROPE

Since the signing of the Treaty of Rome in 1957 the free movement of people, goods, services and capital have been the cornerstones of what we think of as 'Europe'. With this in mind, it is really quite striking that of all the possible topics that could have come up at ‘Think Young. Think Europe,’ the issue of 'mobility' was something that truly stirred the passions of all participants. A deep concern was expressed over the many fafactors which either impede European citizens from exercising their fundamental right to move to another Member State or undermine their quality of life once they have moved. In order to engage meaningfully with citizens, we believe that the EU needs to focus on the most human aspect of the historic ‘Four Freedoms.’ If the EU wants to win hearts as well as minds, it needs to prioritise people. In theory the free movement of peoplepeople gives all European citizens the right to live, work, study or retire in any other EU country. In practice, persistent inequality between Member States and the lack of mutual cultural understanding amongst Europe's citizens means that the actual lived experience of this fundamental right does not always live up to the spirit in which this right was founded.

The ‘European Dream’

As stagiaires of the European Commission's traineeship programme, we have all beneted from this incredible opportunity to live and work in another country along with colleagues from all corners of the EU. Many of us have also thoroughly enjoyed the experience of studying abroad while on Erasmus and found it similarly enriching. Indeed, we stagiaires could be said to be living the ‘European Dream.’ HoHowever, we also recognise how lucky we have been to have experienced life in another country within the framework of long-established and well-respected EU schemes and with all the social benets and support therein. Without the support systems in place, the move abroad could have been far more daunting than exciting, so daunting it may even have been prohibitive.

Moreover, for most Europeans, the reality of inter-EU mobility is not the somewhat privileged pursuit of the ‘European Dream’ but a question of need. Many Europeans feel forced to move abroad simply because they cannot see a future at home. The experience of moving abroad under such conditions can be riddled with uncertainties with regards to the cost of living, individual rights and responsibilities and social integration. It is a a sad truth that those who go abroad in search of better

employment opportunities and a higher standard of living are often wrongly treated like second class citizens, as if they were interlopers looking to steal jobs from locals and scrounge off benets in wealthier Member States. The myth of the modern inter-EU migrant that currently fuels the res of Euroscepticism needs to be recognised for what it is: a hate crime. However, it is also important to recognise that discontent amongst Member StStates and many of the social-integration problems arising from inter-EU migration stem from the current two-tier system of haves and have-nots. As such, the power of the scaremongers’ tale may be curbed by concerted efforts at an EU level to not only dispel popular misconceptions and facilitate social integration but also by levelling out the socio-economic differences between the Member States. As such, we stagiaires ffeel that there are three key areas where the EU could do more to bring down the invisible barriers to the free movement of peoples: rstly, by promoting awareness of different education systems across the Member States in order to ensure that employers respect quality regardless of nationality; secondly, by facilitating even more cross-cultural exchanges, particularly through the promotion of multilingualism; and thirdly, by ensuensuring easier access to vital information about living abroad.

A Respect for Quality

A major problem faced by the EU is how to ensure that academic and professional qualications from all Member

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States receive the recognition they deserve. All too often, a degree or a diploma that has been recognised to have met a certain standard in one country is vastly underrated in another country due to either overt or passive discrimination. Despite efforts to standardise the recognition of third level qualications with the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS), university degrees from certain Member States are still peperceived to be more prestigious than those from others. It follows that career opportunities and earning capacity amongst European graduates also uctuate greatly - not only from country to country but also depending upon a person’s place of origin. Similarly, many professionals further along their career path nd that the valuable experience that they have gained in their home country is not respected in another EU membermember state. As such, taking the decision to move abroad in search of greater job security in the long run may require job-seekers to go back to square one professionally. We stagiaires believe that much needs to be done by Europe’s leaders to level the playing eld of the European job market. We call on the EU to do more to ensure a genuine respect for quality and experience and spread awareness of the different educeducation and training systems throughout the Member States; it’s simply a case of credit where credit is due.

Cross-cultural Understanding

We strongly consider mutual understanding to be an essential factor in alleviating the negative social ramications of inter-EU migration. Programmes that facilitate cross-cultural exchange can do wonders to break down popular misconceptions through increased connectivity. As stagiaires working in an international institution, we have a rst-hand appreciation of both the practical and hidden value of learning languages otherother than our own mother tongue. Language acquisition, particularly at a young age is an invaluable professional asset and it provides many young citizens of Europe with the option of searching for high level jobs abroad as well as at home. It is also important not to underestimate how culturally enriching the experience of language learning is. Embracing the linguistic heritage of another country – whether it’s through uency or justjust a few phrases to ‘get by with’ – is a life-long learning that opens a gateway onto other cultural worlds and other perspectives. There is undoubtedly a direct corollary between levels of Euroscepticism and hostility towards immigrants from partner European nations in Member States where language learning is undervalued. In order to create a stronger, more united Europe for future generations, far more must be done to ppromote, encourage and ensure acquisition of foreign

languages across all Member States, and for citizens from a very young age.

OOf course, cross-cultural understanding is a two-way street. It is just as important that European citizens preparing to move to another Member State are aware of road that lies ahead. A great many participants of ‘Think Young. Think Europe’ felt that infor-mation currently available about residency rights and responsi-bilities in other Member States – from tax systems to health and welfare – did not meet either their needs or their expectations. This is quite alarming considering the fact that a wealth of such information is already provided by the European institutions online. Quite clearly, the availability of information is only half the battle; it also needs to be comprehensible and easily acces-sible. It seems that the biggest problem is that there is an infor-mation overload and those moving abroad nd there is too much to digest.

To paraphrase George Orwell, all EU citizens are equal, but some citizens are more equal than others. As young Europeans who have greatly beneted from the best aspects of the ‘First Freedom’ of Europe, we call on the EU to do more to ensure that the lived experience of all citizens who choose to move abroad to another Member State is in keeping with the European values of equality, mutual respect and human dignity. The EU couldcould better guarantee the safety, security and happiness of its citizens by doing more to promote not only tolerance but also mutual appreciation through cross-cultural learning schemes and clearer communication of information for those thinking of moving abroad. Words, however, must be backed up with ac-tions and therefore we want specic anti-discrimination meas-ures, especially in the sphere of employment, to be a core focus of the next commission. In essence, we call on Europe to ‘think people’ whenever they Think Europ.

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THINK COMMUNICATION

Communications and information policy has been at the heart of the European Project since the very earliest years of its construction. From its inception within the Press & Information Service of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), to the current role of the Commission’s DG COMM, effective communication has been vital in the past 60+ years of European evolution. At the rst Blue Book World Café, the latest instalmeinstalment of would-be European civil servants met to discuss their hopes and aspirations for the future of Europe, examining not only where they believed it should go but how they felt it should get there. Without exception, the importance of good communication permeated all topics of discussion.

As the world becomes more interconnected we have so many more opportunities to learn about our global neighbours. However, the rise of the far-right in the recent European Parliament elections point to a narrowing of minds and a hardening of attitudes - results which are fundamentally anathema to the EU’s very founding principles of 'unity, solidarity and harmony.' Europe is not only facing a nancial crcrisis: it is facing a crisis of condence. Recession, corruption and scepticism are terms that are being thrown at Europe's youth, challenging future prospects. Immigration is being twisted into a dirty word. Peoples' faith in the EU is under threat.

The draw towards populist rhetoric suggests that people are

desperately searching for alterative narratives. What narrative can the EU offer? What is the role of communications in the continued evolution of the European Project? We, the stagiaires of the European Commission, feel that Europe needs to effectively and cooperatively communicate with its people in order to both realise and achieve a shared vision for the future. Under the theme of 'Communication,' three main strands were ideidentied by 'Think Young Think Europe' participants: what does the EU do, how and why?

What?

Quite simply put, too many of Europe’s citizens do not understand the positive impact that the EU has on their day-to-day lives. Many people do not realise that the majority of the laws, policies and legal frameworks that safeguard their rights and ensure quality of life have a direct link to the European Institutions. This was one of the strongest messages to emerge during the 'Think Young, Think Europe’ World Café discussiondiscussions. Participants felt that it should be made much easier for people to appreciate why Europe is signicant for them. Above all else, practical examples are needed to highlight the tangible effects of the decisions made in Brussels and Strasbourg. "We don't want to see numbers" stated one participant, "we want to see realities". In essence, it's not about making Europe relevant; it's about showing how it already is. TThe issue at hand is that many people can feel cut off from the EU and its decision-making process. Wrapped in layers of bureaucracy, there exists a frustration around not only the length of time it takes to come to a decision but the lack of transparency surrounding the entire process. We look to the EU to improve its lines of communication to the public, informing them of this process and encouraging contribution.

How?

TThe EU is a complex machine. There are many different actors, institutions, departments, sectors, units and agencies and each of them have something to say. What is necessary, however, is the collaboration of efforts to communicate with the public in a direct, understandable and accessible way. We need to simplify the message. In so far as is possible, the EU should strive to speak with one voice. Information coming from various, dispadisparate sources can lead to confusion and create a barrier to effective public engagement. It must be noted that in-roads are

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being made to resolve this and recently a number of positive steps to simply the image presented to the public have been taken: Visual Identity initiatives whereby institutions' logos and general images are managed under visual identity guidelines both online and off; and the rationalisation of EU web content under the Digital Transformation Programme. We stagiaires hope to see this type of progress continue under the next college of college of Commissioners.

Member State Representations also have a strong role to play in public engagement. They allow for the decentralisation of communication strategy and the prioritisation of information based upon contextual understanding: the very denition of subsidiarity. As the REPS have the ability to highlight the relevance of EU actions based upon national priorities, we feel that more needs to be done to channel targeted communiccommunication campaigns in individual Members States, which not only inform people about what the EU is doing but to motivate them to reconnect with Europe. How the EU communicates with the public is just as important as what is says. As Marshall McLuhan succinctly stated, "the medium is the message." If the main issue is that Europe appears faceless, give it a face; if it is distant, bring it closer. The Citizens' DialoguesDialogues offer a unique opportunity for citizens to meet with European leaders in their own country. We nd it encouraging that the EU has embraced this method of two-way communication. We call for the Citizens' Dialogue programme to not only be continued under the next Commission but for it to truly inspire the next college to expand and evolve all forums – big and small - that allow citizens to directly participate in EEuropean affairs. We hope that it will allow for substantial and authentic debate which will sincerely contribute to policy creation and implementation.

Why?

IIn 1972 the rst permanent survey of public opinion was introduced. This marked a change in EU communications strategy: the Institutions saw the need to keep a nger on the pulse of Europe. 42 years and 22 Member States later can these same Institutions be cited for having taken their nger off it? The recent elections signify a worrying element of discontent amongst the people of Europe. The aforementioned rise of the fafar-right and the draw towards populist dialogue have shown us that people feel the EU is neither meeting their needs nor living up to their expectations. Effective two-way communication is vital in order for the EU to identify and address these needs and expectations and thereby reconnect with its people. The EU was forged from the ashes of conict, division and mistrust to represent a set of core values. The LisbonLisbon Treaty lays out these values as: human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights. The EU exists to represent and defend these values through its policies, its actions and its future planning; yet we feel that perceived issues such as corruption and a lack of transparency serve to derail this process.

The distance people feel between them and the EU – they don't understand what it does; they don't see how it is necessary; they don't feel part of the process – needs to be bridged by effective communication including on-the-ground, bottom-up initiatives. The 'communications' element of the EU – from the Press & Information Service to DG COMM – has always reacted to exogenous factors. Now we are calling on the EU to be prproactive; we are calling on you to Think Communication.

'This Time It's Different'? Please, tell us how...

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Think Young. Think Europe.

DDoes Europe meet the needs and expectations of young people today? Well what the rst Blue Book World Café has clearly shown us is that young people have very high expectations indeed. Though we feel that Europe’s lead-ers have much to do in terms of living up to the founding ideals of the European project, it is important to high-light that after ve months working in the heart of the European Commission, we stagiaires are still committed to the EU’s continued role in working towards those ideals. During this era of rising Euroscepticism, we feel that the reaction should not be the questioning of Europe but rather the posing of legitimate questions to Europe. For young people, at the top of this list are questions about inter-EU migration, persistent inequalities amongst Euro-pean citizens, environmental concerns, Euroscepticism and discrimination, and chronic youth unemployment. Though we are of course looking to Europe’s leaders for answers, we want to play our part in nding solutions. We strongly believe that the EU needs to be more visionary in its conception and articulation of the European project and that better communication is undoubtedly the key to constructing a shared European identity that can endure these testing times.

Unanimously, those who participated in 'Think Young. Think Europe' found the event to be a highly fullling ex-perience. At its simplest level, it was a great opportunity for stagiaires to have hands-on experience of a tech-nique that has become increasingly popular within the Commission in recent years. However, it was the act of contributing ideas and what’s more, feeling like those ideas were being heard and valued, that truly galvanised enthusiasm and fostered the sense of ‘European Spirit’ among participants. One participant said ‘it is so hearten-ing to see that young people across Europe have similar concerns to me’ and likewise another stated that ‘this is the rst time that I’ve ever discussed serious EU themes with so many people my own age before.’ Many heads nodded vigorously in agreement when one participant said ‘This was a real opportunity to have my voice heard and I just really appreciate the trust that was put in us today.’

Most signicantly, many participants had felt driven to take part because the results of the European elections made them feel like they ‘had to do something’ because ‘things need to be different’. Afterwards, everyone agreed that the process of identifying the areas where they felt Europe is lacking actually made them more optimistic about the future. However, this sense of optimism was accompanied with the condition that ‘this exercise has to amount to something’. Nobody wanted to have the ideas that we debated to disappear into thin air. Everyone felt really passionate that a detailed account of the day be written up and submitted directly to you Monsieur JuncJuncker as the next president of the European Commission in the hope that not only the needs and expectations of young people be considered but also that the next Commission knows that we want to play an active part in nding solutions.

So, after thinking young and thinking Europe, now the participants of the rst Blue Book World Café are thinking BIG! Considering the variety of the ideas that emerged debated on at a small scale event, all the participants in-volved agree that carrying out a similar event on a mass scale – that is to say with the involvement of all stagi-aires – would be an incredibly rich and worthwhile experience. We think that a similar participatory event, offi-cially endorsed by the traineeship office and organised by a ‘World Café sub-committee,’ should become an inte-gral xture of both the summer and winter traineeships at the Commission. Such an event could also be incorprated into future welcome conferences – what better way to kick off our European adventure?

For stagiaires themselves, it would present perhaps a once in a lifetime experience to actively brainstorm with such a massive, and international, gathering of our peers. Moreover, we also feel that a traineeship World Café would allow us to make a contribution to the European project – the same desire that got us into the Blue Book in the rst place. We stagiaires are perfectly placed to act as a bridge between increasingly disenchanted citizens and the Commission. By making 'Think Young. Think Europe' an integral xture of each traineeship, you can guarantee that every year the Commission will get a double dose of innovation and vision to complement its ownown experience and expertise. When you think about it, how often do you get 650 young, highly motivated and politically aware people from 28 countries together in one room? This is the one energy resource that Europe should be exploiting!

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The Little Blue Book was brought to you by:

EditorsGui Xi Young & Yana Pargova

ContributorsNaomi McAteer, Ian McCafferty, Amélie Trippolt, Yana Pargova & Gui Xi Young

World Café ParticipantsAAgne Mikalauskaite Alexander Pearson Alicia Park AmelieTrippolt Carla Almeida Ferreira Cristina De SemirDaphne Barbotte Gui XiGui Xi Young Ian McCafferty Ignacio Jose Lopez Cortes Irene Pappone James O'Brien Jennifer Johanna Drouin Jiri Polacek MMarion Torregano-Silvani Naomi Mcateer Priit Tinits Viviana Maftei Yana Pargova Yilmaz Akkoyun

Graphic DesignYYana Pargova

PhotosIan Andersen & Leonid Gutesa

FacilitatorsIan Andersen & Obhi Chatterjee

Graphic RecorderCatherine Focant

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Summer Stage 2014