Local EYEs Grant Programme for Non-Profit Organisations

Deadline: 5-Sep-23

Are you part of a youth organisation, or know an organisation that might be interested? Apply now to organise the next gathering of young Europeans, right in your hometown!

The European Parliament is providing financial support through grants to two non-profit organisations to organise two local editions of the EYE in spring 2024. The events will take place over a weekend in two different EU Member States, right before the European elections in June next year.

This programme should, if possible, include:

• non-formal education activities by young people for young people, including political debates, interactive workshops, intercultural trainings, networking, and the like;
• concerts, theatre, dance and acrobatic performances as well as art and photography exhibitions by young artists;
• leisure activities to balance the overall programme with fun, creativity and entertainment, including possible special events (concert, party) for the evenings

Objectives

• Local EYEs aim at bringing the European Parliament closer to young people in peripheral regions of Europe, promoting European democracy and creating a two-way communication channel. They should aim at raising awareness about the relevance of the European Parliament to young people while collecting ideas and expectations of young people from the local and national levels on the future of Europe.
• The main objective of this call for proposals is the organisation of two local EYEs in an inperson format aimed at:
  • offering young people opportunities to learn about European democracy as the foundation of the EU and raise awareness about the key role of civil society organisations in the democratic process;
  • inspiring and engaging young people as European citizens through meetings with European decision-makers and Members of the European Parliament (MEPs);
  • encouraging them to become active citizens by joining the together.eu community and voting in the 2024 European elections.

Principles

• Main principles of local EYEs Local EYEs should be organised according to the following principles:
  • Co-design of the event with the target audience (young people)
    • The event must be designed taking into account the young target audience (topics they want to discuss, which speakers they would like to see invited, what other ideas they have for the event, e.g. tagline, formats, location, preferred communication channels, etc.). Letting young people co-design the event empowers them and shows that grant beneficiaries are taking them seriously. Consultation of the target audience can be done in person or online.
  • Co-creation of the event’s programme with young participants and youth organisations
    • As it is the case for the central EYE, local EYEs should be co-created with young participants and youth organisations in order to offer a diverse and rich programme that reflects young people’s concerns, and creates engagement. This could be done through running a call for activities ahead of the event (as for the central EYE), where grant beneficiaries invite young participants and youth organisations to run their own activities during the event.
    • Local youth organisations or (groups of) young people could also be invited to join a youth programming group to coordinate the programme of the event (define topics based on the feedback from the young target audience, and evaluate and select the proposals for activities).
  • Event for and by youth: audience and speakers between 16 and 30 years old
    • The event should be targeted at participants between 16-30 years old, and, where possible, with speakers not older than 35 years old (with exception of high-level speakers/VIPs and decision-makers). Having at least 50% of speakers in the age of the audience is at the same time inspiring and empowering.
    • In terms of audience, the involvement of existing Parliament’s networks is recommended (e.g. European Parliament Ambassadors School and Euroscola programmes, in cooperation with the European Parliament Liaison Offices (EPLOs)).
  • Interactive formats to boost engagement
    • Activities should be interactive in order to help young people to engage in the conversation. In panels with several speakers, enough time should be foreseen for interaction with the audience.
  • European dimension
    • Topics discussed at the event must have a European dimension, which should be highlighted both in the description of the activities as well as in the communication of the event and its programme.
    • Including a European dimension in the activities can take many forms, e.g. by inviting European decision makers such as MEPs, featuring activities organised by the European Parliament or its Liaison Offices, inviting participants/activity organisers from different Member States, or by discussing the European dimension of a local project.
    • Materials provided by the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) could help both the organisers and the participants of the local EYEs get an understanding of what is currently being done at the European level regarding concrete issues. Cross-border projects are encouraged as they enhance the European dimension of the event.
  • Political pluralism
    • The event should respect political balance in its planning and implementation. Politicians and decision makers should come from various levels (local, regional, national and European), preferably from the youth branches of political parties, and represent the full political spectrum.
  • Connection with the central EYE in Strasbourg
    • The central EYE in Strasbourg is organised biennially in odd years. Local EYEs should have a link with the central EYE and notably the Youth Ideas Report published after the central EYE, which could for example incorporate young people’s ideas collected at the local EYE.
  • Activities organised by the European Parliament
    • A main objective of local EYEs is to bring the European Parliament closer to its young citizens that cannot attend the central EYE in Strasbourg, and to give them a voice in discussing their ideas on the future of Europe.
    • To strengthen this feedback loop and deepen the European dimension of a local EYE, the European Parliament and its Liaison Offices offer grant beneficiaries the possibility to work together closely in order to co-design activities on the European Parliament youth offer and the workings of the European Parliament.
  • Communication about the local EYE in close collaboration with the central EYE team and the relevant European Parliament Liaison Offices (EPLO(s))
    • To make sure that the local EYE benefits from the renown of the EYE brand and gets support from the European Parliament’s communication outreach and strategy, grant beneficiaries have the possibility to work in close collaboration with the central EYE team and the relevant EPLO(s) on the communication plan for their event.
  • Collection of ideas of young people
    • The central EYE is designed to share and shape ideas of young people – speakers and participants – for the future of Europe to inspire and stimulate policy- and decision makers.
    • The local EYE offers an opportunity to bring ideas from the central level to the local dimension and vice-versa, for a reality check and further development.
    • The ideas can be collected before and during the local EYE on youthideas.eu and can be compiled after the event in a report.
  • Presence of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs)
    • No local EYE without MEPs! Members of the European Parliament can come from the country/region where the event is organised, or even from another, for example neighbouring, country. The MEPs can be featured in the event’s programme as speakers in activities on topics related to their expertise, in opening or closing ceremony, but also in more informal formats (e.g. Meet your MEP).
  • Sustainability and inclusiveness
    • The event should be designed to ensure a high standard of sustainability measures, including environmental, social and economic aspects.
    • Environmental measures can include waste management, carbon offsetting, recyclable signposting, no or few giveaways, no or few printouts.
    • Social measures concern accessibility, inclusion of people from disadvantaged backgrounds, ensuring gender balance in panels, security and safety, etc. Local EYEs should also strive to promote inclusiveness, equality, respect and accessibility for everyone.

Funding Information

• The available budget for this call is EUR 220,000 for both projects.
• The maximum budget per project is expected to be EUR 110,000, but this does not preclude the submission/selection of proposals requesting other amounts.

Duration

• Events should take place between the starting date of the actions and the end of May 2024, while follow up actions should take place until the European elections (6-9 June 2024).

Expected Outcomes

• The expected outcomes of the action are therefore to:
  • leave a lasting impression among the participants of the relevance of EU decisions on their lives and feeling European;
  • encourage the participants, especially those with fewer opportunities, or belonging to vulnerable groups, to become more active citizens, by offering them opportunity to join the together.eu community and stay in touch with the European Parliament;
  • promote the youth vote at the next European Elections in spring 2024.

Eligible Member

• States Entities from all EU Member States are eligible.

Eligibility Criteria

• The actions supported under this call are mono-beneficiary actions. This means that there is one legal entity applying for a grant. Applications presented by consortia are not eligible.
• To be eligible for a grant, applicants must be able to demonstrate that they are:
  • A non-profit making organisation;
  • A private legal person constituted and registered as legal entity for at least three years at the time of application; – A legal person based in one of the Member States of the European Union;
  • A legal person with no political affiliation.
• Beneficiaries and affiliated entities, if any, must register in the Participant Register and will have to be validated by the Central Validation Service (REA Validation). For the validation, they will be requested to upload documents showing legal status and origin.
• Other entities may participate in the action, such as subcontractors and recipients of financial support.

Ineligibility Criteria

• The following entities are not eligible:
  • natural persons;
  • international organisations and EU bodies;
  • pan-European or transnational organisation;
  • public authorities and governmental organisation and bodies, and
  • profit making entities.

For more information, visit European Parliament.