Contributions to the 6th Session of the Forum on Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law: Education for civic participation.

This contribution is submitted in response to the Call for inputs for the sixth session of the Forum on Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law1, which will take place in Geneva on 16 and 17 November 2026 and will focus on “Education for civic participation: empowering future generations, fostering knowledge and critical thinking.”

Coppieters Foundation together with the European Free Alliance Youth hosted “Youth Dialogue on Self-Determination, Minority Rights & Democratic Peace » on 13 May 2026.

This was an event to discuss institutional and democratic development with young people involved in social organisations, youth movements and politics to generate new ideas to reinforce diversity, participation and democracy.

Based on the outcome of the above mentioned event the contribution proposes that the agenda of the sixth session of the Forum on Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law give particular attention to :

• The experiences of young people, to reinforce the critical connection between civic participation, democratic inclusion, cultural recognition, and peaceful political engagement. This requires creating political, cultural and institutional conditions in which young people can see themselves as legitimate democratic actors, including when they come from communities whose aspirations or identities remain insufficiently recognised.
• The right to self-determination as an element to support peace, recognition for minorities and promotion of linguistic and cultural diversity. This is because civic participation is conditional to a set of practical and structural conditions, including whether peaceful political aspirations are treated as legitimate democratic expressions, whether young people can participate meaningfully in public life, whether their language and culture are recognised and whether cross-border solidarity and exchange are supported.

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Background photo by Joel Filipe 

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This paper is financially supported by the European Parliament. The European Parliament is not liable for its content or the opinions of the authors.

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