In this new edition of “Brussels, do I love you?”Our guests are Sebastián Rodríguez, a responsible campaign of the international European movement; Beatriz Santos, director of communication at the EU & U; And Javier Carbonell, political analyst at the European political center.
36.000 -is the number of free train tickets that the European Commission will make available to young people of 18 years throughout Europe. The goal, to offer young people the opportunity to live an experience that can encourage their European identity. We analyze because a truly European identity is still something so abstract and we wonder if with the current approach to competitiveness and defense, funds for the Erasmus program, art and culture, could be influenced.
“What is the good that we Europeans have? I think we are very mature in identity issues. Much more than Americans. Because we managed Rodríguez underlines.
According to Carbonell, any other initiative to promote the European identity will have a result “When citizens see that they really benefit them in the European Union (EU), for example by protecting them from Russia or, now, from Trump rates”.
The role of Erasmus in the construction of a European identity
The Erasmus mobility program, renamed Erasmus+, benefited from its creation, in 1987, over 15 million people in Europe.
Beatriz Santos is one of them. “I went from Erasmus to Istanbul, outside the European Union. But I could build my European identity more leaving Istanbul that, for example, leaving Germany”He says. “I was able to see another perspective, as they see us from the outside”adds.
Do young people share that European identity or not?
Well, according to a recent Eurobarometer survey, very few young people feel identified with the flag, anthem and other European symbols … only 15% feel connected to Europe and European identity.
Is there a distance from young people with politics?
New data show that trust in the European Union, as well as in the euro, are at its highest point in 17 years, in particular among the youngest. However, in the elections to the European Parliament last year, only 3 out of 10 young people went to the polls. And many of those who voted have opted for extremist parties, both on the left and on the right of the political spectrum. Let’s analyze because politicians find it so difficult to connect with the new generations.
“This new generation asks that there are new things. (….) They want something different”Rodríguez says, underlining that if those don’t give them the European professional, “They will look for them in another place.”
“Many young people are not who do not believe in democracy, they do not believe they live in a real democracy. Because if democracy does not respond to their economic requests, then they say: ‘Democracy should listen to me and do not listen to me. They are not answering me.CARONELL says.
The cost of world life and peace, the main concerns
According to a recent Eurobarometer survey: for young people, the main points of the EU are freedom to live, study and work in another EU country, 32%; Solidarity between Member States, 28%; And the EU commitment for democracy and fundamental values, 25%.
Its main concerns: the cost of living occupies first place (41%) and world peace and stability in second place (30%). Almost a third of young Europeans believes that safety and defense should be the uthal EU priority.
The mental health of young people, an growing challenge
The mental health of our young people is a growing challenge, since almost 50% of young people have reported emotional or psychosocial difficulties in the last year.
Those who urge the countries to launch the mechanisms necessary to prevent, diagnose and correctly treat mental diseases. What are the urgent actions that each Member State must perform? And what is the role of Brussels?
The European commissioner of young people, Glenn Micallef, spoke of the situation in Euronews, in the English version of “Brussels, do I love you?”
ADVERTISING“First of all, let’s start talking about mental health as a fundamental right. Statistics are alarming. In the European Union, 50% of our young people say they have faced or dealing with mental health problems, from solitude to anxiety and stress. So I think what we have to do is work in many awareness campaigns that encourage people who encourage people who encourage people who are not helpful to ask.
Climate change is also a reason for concern. How to reassure our young people regarding that future that paints so black, at the climatic level, but also geopolitical and cheap?
“The question of climate change is real, the geopolitical question is real, the economic question is real. We solve these problems while accompanying with more psychiatrists and with more support”CARONELL says.
You can see the complete debate in the video.
ADVERTISING
