Your voice, our 2030: Collecting messages from young people directly

From November 2025 to January 2026, the EYCA Youth Panel ran a quick, targeted campaign called 'Your voice, our 2030' calling on young people to share their stories on the challenges that most affects them.

In total, 2360 young people from 56 countries sent in their messages, most of which are deeply personal and paint a good picture of what young people are facing. Why now? The European Union is currently shaping policies that will define the next decade: the future EU budget, the next EU Youth Strategy, initiatives on housing and broader socioeconomic priorities. At a moment when vitally important, long-term decisions are being made, it is imperative that they consider the lived realities of young people today.

The focus on raw, personal messages was deliberate and aimed to complement other (more academic) studies covering the needs of young people. Messages were collected via an online form, shared widely with schools, networks, youth groups and others youth communities. This outreach took place alongside several in-person actions organised by the EYCA Youth Panel members with small groups of non-organised youth.

Beyond the policy recommendation, this campaign showed the value of engaging with young people and listening to their personal messages. Through storytelling, this campaign highlighted the wide variety of issues that young people face, but also the common intensity these challenges have on their daily lives. From this come three key

takeaways to inspire future action and research:

1. Using storytelling to listen to young people. The depth and passion with which young people spoke of their challenges shows the all-encompassing and overwhelming nature of them. Facts and figures can only say so much, but really listening to citizens paints a deeper picture of what is of concern.

2. Using storytelling to shape policies. For the most part, the issues raised by this campaign are not new. Yet with many young citizens around Europe still highlighting them as the most pressing challenges in their daily lives, it is clear that no lasting solution has yet been found. Such campaigns highlight this.

3. Using storytelling to empower other young people. The feeling of loneliness and powerlessness is very prominent in the messages received through this report. By sharing personal yet common experiences, young people can overcome that feeling, thus inspiring each other to stand up for change.

Above all, the hope is that these stories will encourage decision-makers on the European and national level to better take young people’s needs in mind when establishing their structural policies.