LIVE: The closing event of the 2024 UfM Med Youth Lab, the Final Pitch:

The UfM Med Youth Lab 2024 is a five-day skill-building event that aims to equip young individuals with project development and soft skills . The initiative will be held in Fes, Morocco from 25 to 29 of November 2024. The programme includes four days of teamworking on project proposals related to the thematic clusters as well as a final pitch event. Participants will exploring three thematic clusters: Green Skills, Youth Mobility for Educational and Professional Exchange, and Youth Engagement in Multistakeholder Dialogue (details are below).

The UfM Med Youth Lab 2024 is organized by the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), with the support of the German Development Cooperation, in collaboration with the Euro-Mediterranean University of Fes (UEMF) and in partnership with Anna Lindh Foundation (ALF) and the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed).

• Engage 60 young individuals (aged 18-29) in skill-building sessions aligned with UfM Youth Agenda: Call for Action.
• Foster the development of project proposals through teamwork and practical exercises.
• Enhance participants’ soft skills to upscale their project ideas.
• Promote dialogue between youth, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), international and regional organisations, and policy actors.

The UfM Med Youth Lab aligns with the UfM Youth Agenda: Call for Action, a guiding document that call Euro-Mediterranean stakeholders to recognize the transformative power of youth and empower them, focusing on three thematic priorities: Environment and Climate Action, Education and Employment, and Social inclusion and Participation. The initiative aims to operationalize the UfM Youth Strategy 2030 and aligns with the other activities of the UfM Youth Dossier, focused on fostering youth engagement in capacity-building activities and multistakeholder dialogue.

Emerging from feedback during the third edition of the Mediterranean Youth Academy (MYA), the UfM Med Youth Lab addresses the identified need for skill-building initiatives to empower Euro-Mediterranean youth in transforming their ideas into concrete projects. Furthermore, the thematic clusters of the UfM Med Youth Lab were developed from the UfM Youth Engagement initiative, a series of online meetings designed to foster youth participation in policy planning, implementation, and follow-up related to the UfM Youth Agenda’s thematic priorities. These meetings brought together representatives from UfM Member States, national youth councils, young professionals and advocates, CSOs, and other Euro-Mediterranean actors to discuss challenges and share best practices that will convene in a policy document to be presented at the final event of the UfM Med Youth Lab.