What is European Youth Centre?

Within the Council of Europe, the European Youth Centre is a part of the Youth Department and is, together with the European Youth Foundation (EYF), an important instrument of the Council’s youth policy.

It is an international training and meeting centre with residential facilities in two locations - Budapest and Strasbourg, hosting most of the youth sector’s activities. It provides a flexible and modern working environment for international activities, with meeting rooms equipped for simultaneous interpretation, information centres, audio-visual and computer facilities.

The European Youth Centre runs an annual programme of 40 to 50 activities in close co-operation with non-governmental youth organisations (NGYOs). These organisations, some 40 of which co-operate regularly with the EYC, represent a wide diversity of interests: party political, socio-educational and religious youth groups, rural youth movements, trade union and young workers' organisations, children's organisations and environmental networks.

Brief history

The European Youth Centre Strasbourg was founded in 1972 with a generous support of the Norwegian government. It also hosts the European Youth Foundation.

The European Youth Centre Budapest was set up and inaugurated in 1995 as the first permanent service of the Council of Europe in a country of Central and Eastern Europe. Its premises are kindly offered by the Republic of Hungary.

 

Aims of European Youth Centre

  • to ensure participation by European youth and international non-governmental youth organisations in the building of Europe;
  • to supplement the training of youth leaders in a European context;
  • to further international understanding, in a spirit of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, as well as the study of European problems;
  • to seek means of ensuring participation by young people in solving the problems which concern them;
  • to contribute to the implementation of the Council of Europe’s programme in the field of youth activities.