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HOW CAN YOUNG PEOPLE CHANGE DEMOCRACY? INTERNATIONAL DISCUSSION BRINGS BALKAN EXPERTS TO SOFIA

Created on Monday, 02 March 2026 17:43

On March 12, 2026, an international discussion titled “Skills for Democratic Civic Participation” will take place at SofiaLab. The event will bring together experts, representatives of civil society organizations, and institutions from the Balkans and across Europe. The event starts at 9:00 a.m. and will be held at 1 Serdika St., 3rd floor, with English as the working language.

The forum is part of the international project CIVICAct, which brings together organizations and experts from Albania, Bulgaria, Montenegro, and Serbia to promote civic participation and the exchange of knowledge and innovations in support of democratic processes. The project explores civic participation from a historical perspective and traces the development of civil society before and after the political changes of 1989 in the Balkans and Europe.

Participants will discuss how local authorities can better support citizens in shaping their communities, as well as what tools and knowledge citizens—especially young people—need in order to participate more actively in public life. The discussion will also draw on research examining the attitudes of young people in Bulgaria toward civic education and their involvement in the development of public policies.

After the discussion, participants will visit the National Assembly of Bulgaria and meet with the Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Youth and Sports.

Those wishing to join the visit should send their full name to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by 10:00 a.m. on March 9, 2026.

The CIVICAct project works in four main areas: developing civic education and intergenerational dialogue, mobilizing civil society through local civic activism forums, establishing Balkan Civic Engagement Awards, and promoting EU values of active citizenship, inclusion, and solidarity. The project is implemented by the Sofia Development Association and funded by the European Education and Culture Executive Agency under the EU programme Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme.

The event is open to everyone interested in the development of democracy, civic participation, and the role of young people in public life.

The project is funded by the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA), CERV Programme.    

 

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