Y-IMPACT is much more than a European project: it is a seed of young democracy.
Its main goal is to create the first Youth Council for 13–18-year-olds in Cyprus, in the municipality of Parekklisia —a space where young voices are not only heard, but also lead and shape the future of their community.

The Parekklisia Youth Council will be a stable, open and representative space where young people can think collectively, share concerns, and propose real actions to improve their surroundings. It will be a participation laboratory —a place to learn to listen, deliberate and build together, grounded in respect, diversity and commitment.

Driven by the Community Council of Parekklisia and developed together with estel (Catalonia) and Kvam Municipality (Norway), Y-IMPACT connects three different realities to explore a shared question:

How can young people become protagonists of local decision-making?

The project promotes a new democratic culture based on meaningful participation, co-responsibility and inclusion. Participants will receive guidance, training and resources to define the topics that matter to them and to develop their own initiatives.
Over two years, Y-IMPACT will implement diagnostic and co-creation workshops, digital exchanges among young people from Cyprus, Catalonia and Norway, training sessions for educators and municipal staff, and a pilot participatory budgeting project led by the Youth Council itself.

This process will lead to two open-source tools:

• a Youth Participation Toolbox, with methodologies and practical examples;
• and a Transferability Guidebook, to support other rural European municipalities in creating their own youth councils.

For *estel, Y-IMPACT is an opportunity to rethink participation from the first experiences of active citizenship —an invitation to understand that local democracy is not only taught, but practised, through trust, listening and cooperation.
The project aims to inspire a new generation of active, engaged young people, showing that democracy can also grow at the pace of their energy and creativity.

 Project status

This project is currently in progress within the Erasmus+ (KA210-YOU) framework.
This page will be updated with its results and materials as they are developed:

• Youth Participation Toolbox
• Transferability Guidebook
• Relevant news and process updates