Youth Culture in Action Network (CAN)

Raising Quality and Impact in Youth Intercultural Dialogue

Twenty organizations working with and for youth from fourteen countries of Europe came together to establish the Youth Culture in Action Network - Youth CAN


By WAVE Team


Youth CAN is established as an international network that concentrates on the awareness and understanding of cultural diversity as a wealth linking generations, within and beyond borders. Its perception of cultural diversity is based on the concept of plural, dynamic and multiple identities, the involvement of stakeholders in self reflection, influencing their world vision and attitude to others. Youth CAN aims at the participation of young people as agents of change shaping policies in the formal and non formal educational processes as well as in decision making on communitarian and political levels. This will be the working and exchanging space of organizations across Europe who would like to take their intercultural projects with young people one step further by marking turning points in young people's lives. In this way, Youth CAN strives to reach a world where cultural diversity becomes a wealth achieved through active participation of young people.

This network started as a project initiated by GSM - Youth Services Centre and British Council which aimed to discuss about intercultural dialogue and create common strategies on international level. The organizations coming together for this project in November 2007, decided to create a legally based sustainable network at European level. The following meetings of Youth CAN helped organizations to work on the values, unique aspects, structure, activities and criteria of the network.

On 17th January 2009, the organizations adopted and signed the Constitution of the network which outlines the formal basis of Youth CAN. The founders of the network are: UNAREC (France), IKU (Sweden), Mjaft! (Albania), Oricum (Romania), Blue Sky Youth Network (Republic of Macedonia), Cypriot Youth Platform (Cyprus), the Yellow House (UK), REDS (Spain), Citizens in Action (Greece), Lunaria (Italy), YRS-VSS (Serbia), South East European Youth Network, ADP-ZID (Montenegro) and GSM, TOG, GENÇEV, TGBDER, Turkey Youth Federation, AEGEE-Ankara and Romankara from Turkey. The newly elected president of Youth CAN Ms. Jelena Ristic from YRS-VSS, observers from British Council and European Youth Forum marked the moment of establishment with their speeches.

Youth CAN will be officially registered in Ankara, Turkey and so will be the first INGYO legally established and registered in Turkey. This presents an opportunity to contribute to the intercultural dialogue movement across Europe.


(Published: 10.04.2009.)