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highlighted the importance of small-scale initiatives and organisations which were
frequently more suited to building “bridges of integration” through their flexible approach,
individual supervision and the personal contact with young people.
She strongly urged that the social environment should in the future receive more
prominence as a common focal point in national and European strategies within the field
of youth politics.
Karel Bartak also subscribed to this view and stressed the importance of targeting and
involving young persons to an even greater degree in the future through the European
programme ‘Youth in Action’. “It is not enough merely to create a dialogue between the
EU and young persons, but this dialogue must be intensified and take place on a local level
between these young persons and their local authorities.”
The conference was concluded with final speeches by Ulrich Bohner (Congress for
Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe) and Brith Fäldt (Town
Councillor in Pitea, Sweden) in favour of the strengthening of local and municipal levels.
This was “the social and political level on which the entire range of social problem complexes found concrete
expression”. Ulrich Bohner also made reference to the initiatives on the part of the European
Council for the support of necessary integration processes for immigrants on a local level,
illustrated by the example of the network for local authorities and regions “Cities for Local
Integration Policy” (CLIP) with the joint participation of 25 large cities since 2003.
Brith Fäldt pointed out that the European Youth Charta contained an essential point
which illustrated the change in the position of politics for young people: “The idea of the
rights of young people to be heard. And the idea to look at young people as citizens – not
as a societal problem or a target group”. According to Brith Fäldt, should this idea be put
into practice on all levels from European to local levels, we would have made substantial
progress in the field of youth politics.
Dr. Christian Lüders (German Youth Institute, Munich) undertook an initial summary
of the subject matter of the conference. He views the following aspects to be essential to
combat of social problems encountered by children and young persons in disadvantaged
areas:
1. Integrated action strategies for the improvement of children and young persons’
living conditions in disadvantaged urban areas prove to be successful when these
are embedded in national and above all transversal strategies.
2. A national, transversal strategy is a general condition which although necessary, is
not sufficient on its own. The strategic and involvement of NGOs and the business
sector on a comprehensive level is imperative in order to achieve local effects.
3. The presentations show that it is absolutely vital not only to work for the target
groups, but also primarily with them. Children and young persons must be
provided with opportunities to work actively on the creation of the programmes.
Long-term change is only possible if participation opportunities for children and
young persons are not merely empty formulations on paper, but are taken seriously.
4. From a European perspective, it becomes clear that the topic is not confined to
disadvantaged urban areas, but also concerns the development of children and
young persons in structurally underdeveloped areas.
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