Resolution of the Council and of the representatives of the Governments of the Member States meeting within the Council

of 28 June 2001

on promoting young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity: from exclusion to empowerment

(2001/C 196/02)

I

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE MEMBER STATES OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, MEETING WITHIN THE COUNCIL,

Bearing in mind that:

1. The Treaty establishing the European Community provides for Community action to be aimed at encouraging the development of youth exchanges and of exchanges of socio-educational instructors.

2. The Community has been assigned the task among others of promoting harmonious, balanced and sustainable development of economic activities, a high level of employment and social protection, and a rise in living standards and in the quality of life.

3. The promotion of employment, improvement of living and working conditions, and combating exclusion are mentioned among the specific objections of the social provisions of the Treaty.

4. The European Parliament and the Council have by Decision No 1031/2000/EC of 13 April 2000(1) established the "Youth" Community action programme. One objective of this programme is to encourage young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity so that they can play an active role in society.

5. On 9 November 2000 the Council and the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council, adopted a Resolution on the social inclusion of young people(2).

6. On 8 February 1999, the Council and the Ministers of Youth, meeting within the Council, adopted a Resolution on youth participation(3) which puts the inclusion of youth in institutions of social, political, cultural and economic life in the foreground.

7. In a Resolution on a youth policy for Europe(4), adopted by the European Parliament on 9 March 1999, the Member States and the Commission were encouraged to act promptly to approve knowledge acquired through non-formal learning, and to ensure that it is recognised in the labour market.

8. In the Presidency conclusions of the European Council meeting in Lisbon on 23 and 24 March 2000 one of the targets set was for the Member States, in accordance with their constitutional provisions, and also the Council and the Commission to take certain necessary steps within their areas of competence to fulfil inter alia the target of developing a common European format for curriculum vitae to be used on a voluntary basis in order to facilitate mobility by helping the assessment by both educational and training institutions and employers of knowledge acquired. The achievement of the priority objective of mobility will be based in particular on the action plan for mobility, approved by the Heads of State or Government at the European Council in Nice, and on a draft recommendation on mobility within the Community for students, persons undergoing training, volunteers, teachers and trainers which, according to the conclusions of the European Council in Stockholm, it is intended to adopt by June 2001.

9. The memorandum on lifelong learning presented by the Commission to the Council (Education/Youth) of 9 November 2000, proposed consulting all the relevant public and private actors on six main topics including non-formal learning and the need to invest more in human resources.

10. Under its Decision 2000/819/EC of 20 December 2000(5), the Council established a multiannual programme for enterprise and entrepreneurship, and in particular for small and medium-sized enterprises (2001 to 2005).

11. In the conclusions of the European Council meeting in Lisbon on 23 and 24 March 2000 entrepreneurship is mentioned as one of the five basic skills which should be provided through lifelong learning.

12. In Council Decision 2001/63/EC of 19 January 2001 on guidelines for Member States' employment policies for the year 2001(6), the development of entrepreneurship and job creation is identified as one of the four pillars,

THEREFORE.

II

13. ARE OF THE VIEW that young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity are a key resource that should be better promoted in various spheres of society for the development of their own personal and social skills as well as being an important precondition for attaining the Union's strategic goal of becoming the world's most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, capable of sustainable economic growth, more and better job opportunities and greater social cohesion.

14. WELCOME in this context the emphasis placed by the Lisbon Conclusions on lifelong learning as a basic component of the European social model.

15. EMPHASISE the importance of young people's own initiative and creativity in combating racism, xenophobia and intolerance.

16. EMPHASISE the importance of young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity when it comes to their ability to prevent social, political and cultural exclusion and the importance of strengthening young people's power and influence over their life situation.

17. CONSIDER the results of the questionnaire survey on non-formal education on which the French Presidency, in the light of the discussions initiated by the Portuguese Presidency during the year 2000, took the initiative on 8 December 2000.

18. CONSIDER that the promotion of young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity is one of the objectives of cooperation in youth issues,

III

INVITE the Commission to emphasis the importance of young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity in European cooperation in youth issues and in particular:

(i) in the preparation of Community cooperation policy in the youth field, to associate young people themselves and to consider their initiative, enterprise and creativity as a resource in society;

(ii) to ensure that the youth dimension is taken into account in Community activities concerning initiative, enterprise and creativity;

(iii) in the forthcoming evaluation of the Youth programme, to report to what extent young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity are promoted within the framework of the programme;

(iv) to involve young people in the development of European cooperation in the youth field and non-formal learning initiatives;

(v) to take particular note of young people's own initiative, enterprise and creativity in drawing up new strategies for lifelong learning,

IV

INVITE the Member States:

(i) to encourage and make more visible in all fields the spirit of initiative, enterprise and creativity of the young people;

(ii) to improve young people's information of available opportunities and support in starting and developing activities, including cultural and business activities;

(iii) to promote pupil participation and their initiative and creativity as a valuable resource in teaching and other school activities, and to contribute so that the education system stimulates active citizenship;

(iv) to promote student participation in higher education, and vocational training where young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity are a resource not only in education but also in research and other knowledge-developing activities;

(v) to take particular note of young people's own initiative, enterprise and creativity in drawing up new strategies for both lifelong learning and innovative methods of teaching and learning;

(vi) to integrate young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity in practical national level labour-market policy measures in the youth sector;

(vii) to develop and promote the sharing of experience and dissemination of best practice with respect to both boys' and girls' initiative, enterprise and creativity in clubs and associations, including Youth organisations,

V

INVITE the Commission and Member States, within their respective spheres of competence:

(i) to integrate and promote young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity in combating exclusion;

(ii) to encourage young people's initiative and creativity in combating racism, xenophobia and intolerance;

(iii) to promote sharing of experience and dissemination of best practice with respect to activities and projects developed on the basis of young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity;

(iv) to encourage young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity as a key driving force in the context of the strategy for creating more and better jobs in Europe;

(v) to take into account the views of pupils and students in the further implementation of Community education programmes notably Socrates and Leonardo da Vinci, in order to put young people's initiative and creativity to use;

(vi) to promote research and sharing of experience in order to increase knowledge of young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity;

(vii) to emphasise the importance of non-formal learning as a means of expressing and developing young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity and encourage those engaged in non-formal learning to share their experience;

(viii) to promote existing cooperation between the Member States, the Commission and international organisations, especially the Council of Europe, with respect to research, methodology and assessment models concerning non-formal learning;

(ix) to clarify to what extent and how young people's initiative, enterprise and creativity are put to use as a resource in projects conducted with the support of the EU Structural Funds;

(x) to educate young people as critical consumers, and take particular note in this context of their important role as consumers as well as practitioners in sectors such as music, film and other creative industries and to promote their enterprise, initiative and creativity in these sectors.

(1) OJ L 117, 18.5.2000, p. 1.

(2) OJ C 374, 28.12.2000, p. 5.

(3) OJ C 42, 17.2.1999, p. 1.

(4) OJ C 175, 21.6.1999, p. 48.

(5) OJ L 333, 29.12.2000, p. 84.

(6) OJ L 22, 24.1.2001, p. 18.