The 11 European Youth Goals are important pillars for supporting, developing, and improving the skills of youngsters.
All of them are very important, as they cover the largest spectrum of society and economy. The concepts of networking, learning, employment, well-being, equality, and sustainability are a priority for our young people based on the challenges of the modern age.
From the point of view of the Social Cooperatives in Greece, the challenges for Youth Support are numerous. The pandemic and the energy crisis are issues that affect the operation of Cooperatives and the lives of young people. Uncertainty continues to exist in Greece, as the period of the long financial crisis was followed by the events from 2020 until today.
Young people have shouldered all this burden and the difficulties that this situation creates. The European Union, with its 11 Youth Goals, seeks to identify cross-cutting issues that affect young people’s lives and emphasize the challenges. For Greece and from the point of view of the Social Cooperatives, all the objectives have their own particular importance, but emphasis is given to the following:
- Inclusive societies and space and participation for all. Our society should be open to all and everyone should have opportunities for learning, employment, and socio-economic inclusion. Also, the term of participation is a key pillar of Social Cooperatives. Participating in daily activities, in governing bodies and in decision-making matters, offers the person self-confidence and development of communication skills and leadership.
- Mental health and well-being. The Social Cooperatives in Greece have as their main purpose the inclusion of vulnerable groups and especially people with psychosocial problems. The mental health of the population has been greatly affected by the difficulties and problems of recent years and especially the mental health of young people with a life ahead of them, should be a priority.
- Moving forward for Rural Youth and Sustainable Green Europe. Young people in rural areas need to have the same access and opportunities as young people in urban centers. Supporting rural areas and employment opportunities for young people in this sector is an important condition for the sustainability of agricultural production, a way combining the brain drain created, caused by the financial situation.
The Social Cooperatives in Greece are fighting for the creation of jobs and the support of vulnerable groups, despite the difficulties that exist at a socio-economic level. Key priorities remain Supporting Employment, Social Entrepreneurship and Self-representation and Advocacy of vulnerable populations.
