CONTEXT Level Up! built upon a youth exchange organised by the YES Forum in July 2015 on European Citizenship. Based on the young people’s follow-up ideas it was decided that the topic of the following project would be active citizenship. This is an area which seems very distant and inaccessible to young people with fewer opportunities, with an increasing risk that citizenship becomes yet another area of exclusion as active citizens appear to be generally more highly educated than their peers. Hence, there is a clear need to address the issue of young people with fewer opportunities being grossly underrepresented in institutional and alternative modes of political participation. Through the project activities we aimed to enhance the young people’s knowledge and understanding of active citizenship and provide them with the necessary skills for active political participation at both EU as well as local, regional, and national levels. Furthermore the goal of the project was to enable the young participants to see both the value of engaging with the political process, as well as becoming confident to pursue opportunities for meaningful political participation. OBJECTIVES The objectives of the project were to:•Enhance the knowledge and understanding of active citizenship among young people with fewer opportunities•Provide young people with fewer opportunities with the skills necessary for active political participation •Increase self-empowerment and self-esteem of young people with fewer opportunities•Enhance intercultural awareness of young people with fewer opportunities •Improve foreign language competences of young people with fewer opportunitiesNUMBER AND PROFILE OF PARTICIPANTSThere were 36 participants, out of which 24 were young people facing educational difficulties, economic obstacles, cultural differences (immigrant background, minorities), and/or social obstacles. Most of the participants experienced their first transnational project experience. The 12 other participants were the group leaders, accompanying pedagogues and/or language assistants. The young participants were aged between 16 and 27 years old. The group of participants remained to a large extent the same for both activities.DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIESA preparatory meeting took place in Stuttgart, Germany, within YES Forum’s premises on 15-16 February 2016. The project’s schedule, activities, methods, evaluation process, and risks were reviewed. To further prepare the first exchange in Strasbourg in May, where the young people took part to the European Youth Event 2016 organised by the European Parliament, the young people’s contribution to the EYE was also discussed.The first exchange in Strasbourg (Full report: goo.gl/q4WEuG) was hosted by La Ligue de l’Enseignement on 16-21 May 2016. The themes were empowerment and access to rights and the importance of political participation by young people, with a focus on EU level participation. There were workshops on active citizenship, preparation for and participation to the EYE 2016, an event aimed at including them in the EU-level decision-making process. There, within the YO!Fest village, the young participants even organised their very own workshop for other people focused on how to fight against prejudices.The second exchange in Bernburg, Germany (Full report: goo.gl/8QQ6QD), was hosted by the Stiftung Evangelische Jugendhilfe St. Johannis on 22-26 August 2016. This exchange was an opportunity to reflect on the experience at the EYE 2016 and build upon it, as most of young people participated in both activities. But the focus was on the skills and knowledge necessary for participation of young people at local, regional, and national levels.METHODOLOGY The key concept of the project was based on non-formal learning approaches encouraging the active involvement of participants, giving them space to take an active role, express themselves and share their own experience. The following methods were used in the project: icebreaking games, team building exercises, situational games, individual and group work, interactive presentations, open discussions, field visits, practical work, outdoor activities, and common project development.IMPACT AND LONGER TERM BENEFITSHaving the opportunity to debate, explore first-hand and reflect on active citizenship helped the participants realise their full potential and encouraged them to play an active role in their society, while their participation in a transnational youth exchange improved their intercultural skills and broadened their horizons. Furthermore, becoming more self-confident and able to communicate more easily will help them in the long term to access educational and professional opportunities they did not even dare considering before the youth exchange. Encouraging young people, especially those with fewer opportunities, to become active citizens has positive impact on the societies they live in.