Suchergebnisse

This deliverable is the work-product of a cross-field working group effort to bring environmental policy makers in line with the best practices to reach young people where they already are: in social media and communicate with them in familiar settings. To understand how social media and new technologies are able to provide the potential to drive the societal and political participation of young people in the decision-making process on environmental issues, we first studied the demographics of social network users and in particular our target segment ageing from 18 to 29 as well as their current attitudes regarding environmental issues (Section 2), and then compiled a list of existing online environmental platforms and hubs (Section 3). We also collected information on 23 e-Participation case studies in Europe and worldwide (Section 4) in order to glean insights with respect to the most effective practices that are typically followed in such campaigns, as well as insights into what makes an e-Participation initiative successful, what are the problems and how they can be addressed. We also performed structured user studies involving 231 individuals across Europe that were reached through an online questionnaire with the help of the STEP pilot partners (Section 5). Findings from our research indicate that the ideal e-participation platform should integrate social media and gamification features, interesting and shareable content that can be consumed quickly on any device like for example multimedia content (images, videos, animations etc.), useful links and engaging calls to action; content that is tailored to young people and made appropriate for their particular context. Evidence also suggests a more active media campaign that would leverage social media (Facebook in particular), online media and frequently updated and engaging content to bring about increased awareness on governmental initiatives.

Decisions on environmental topics taken today are going to have long-term consequences that will affect future generations. Young people will have to live with the consequences of these decisions and undertake special responsibilities. Moreover, as tomorrow's decision-makers, they themselves should learn how to negotiate and debate issues before final decisions are made. Therefore, any participation they can have in environmental decision-making processes will prove essential in developing a sustainable future for the community. However, recent data indicate that the young distance themselves from community affairs, mainly because the procedures involved are 'wooden', politicians' discourse alienates the young and the whole experience is too formalized to them. Authorities are aware of this fact and try to establish communication channels to ensure transparency and use a language that speaks to new generations of citizens. This is where STEP project comes in. STEP (www.step4youth.eu) is a digital Platform (web/mobile) enabling youth Societal and Political e-Participation in decision-making procedures concerning environmental issues. STEP is enhanced with web/social media mining, gamification, machine translation, and visualisation features. Six pilots in real contexts are being organised for the deployment of the STEP solution in 4 European Countries: Italy, Spain, Greece, and Turkey. Pilots are implemented with the direct participation of one regional authority, four municipalities, and one association of municipalities, and include decision-making procedures on significant environmental questions.