A Contribution to Youth Work and Youth Policy in Europe

2010 was an important year for the development of youth policy in Europe. Many matters demanded our attention and on-going processes created new opportunities. The following developments inspired in particular the Belgian EU Presidency Youth: - the ‘Renewed EU framework for cooperation in the youth field’ - the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon - the Communication ‘Europe2020’ and the ‘Youth on the Move’ flagship initiative - the European Year of Combatting Poverty and Social Exclusion (2010) and the upcoming European year of Volunteering (2011) The Belgian Presidency Youth took the initiative to play a role in further implementation of these European developments and seized the moment by putting forward 3 priority themes: - youth work - youth and employment - European and international policy agendas on children, youth and children’s rights The results of the different discussions, activities and conferences are brought together in this report. It shows you how the Belgian EU Presidency Youth addressed the different priorities, without forgetting the other Presidency activities on the calendar. All Presidency Youth activities were consciously linked to the EU Council Youth. Therefore, the chapter detailing the preparation and achievements of the EU Council Youth is the corner stone of this report and of the Belgian Presidency Youth.