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From 15 to 18 of March, the AER Youth Regional Network (YRN) held its General Assembly and Spring Plenary Meetings in Bodø, Nordland (NO), where YRN members attending this event were engaged in a three-day discussion and experience exchange on crucial issues for youth.

Some of the main topics discussed during the meetings were youth mental health –through the idea of how arts and culture could contribute to preventing mental disorders–; Artificial Intelligence, science and technology; youth and democratic participation; youth involvement in Cultural Heritage safeguarding; and education and digital competences.

The YRN 2018 General Assembly and Spring Plenary meeting was opened by county mayor Ms. Sonja Alice Steen, followed by an interactive workshop hosted by Hevrøy and Mette Jordahl-Broback about the linkage between youth mental health and arts and culture, as a means for young people to speak up and for prevention purposes. The second workshop about Artificial Intelligence was hosted by the communications advisor at NAROM (Norwegian Centre for Space-related Education) Ørjan H. H. Vøllestad who held a presentation on “How we stimulate the interest of science and technology using space”.

The President of the YRN, Gloria Vitaly, took also the opportunity within the YRN meetings to present the Norwegian Youth Festivals of Art (UKM); a cultural initiative aimed to stimulate children and young people from the age of 10 to 20 to be creative and active, and to develop and make their cultural activity or talent visible.

Additionally, the President of YRN, in her role as Regional Focal Point on the SDG-4 for the ECOSOC Youth Forum, made a presentation underscoring the importance of digital competences in education which was followed by a workshop where YRN participants had the opportunity to brainstorm on the multiple challenging aspects for ensuring quality and inclusive education for all.

The AER Secretariat introduced the European Year of Cultural Heritage to YRN members by organising a discussion dedicated to heighten awareness about the central role young people play in preserving heritage values, favouring intercultural understanding and respect for cultural diversity, and thus reinforcing a sense of common identity that guarantees the sustainability of heritage sites.

Click here to get the minutes of the 2018 AER Youth Regional Network’s General Assembly and Spring Plenary meetings.

You can also check the presentations and other key documents on the AER event page.