Your heart beats for progressive values, your mind thinks European, and you are engaged in politics in your town, city or region? Then you are in the right place!
More than one million local and regional politicians are shaping Europe every day on the ground, many of whom belong to progressive political parties. From Paris to Lisbon, Budapest to Uppsala, progressive politicians are leading the fight for a more social, inclusive and sustainable Europe where no one is left behind.
The PES Group network wants to bring together the young generation of mayors, local councillors and regional politicians to make their voice heard in the European debate, to connect them with the local and regional politicians who are members of the PES Group and other progressive leaders from all over Europe, and to build together new ideas for a more social and sustainable future.
More than 600 young progressive leaders are already part of it, and you can join too! Discover how to below.
School for young progressive local and regional leaders
Once a year, the PES Group organises a “School for young progressive local and regional leaders”. The first edition of this project, organised in cooperation with the Young European Socialists and the Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament, took place in November 2019 and saw the participation of more than forty young progressive local and regional politicians from all over Europe.
The second edition of the School took place in November 2021 in Seville and focused on the topic of the European Green Deal.
The third edition was in July 2022 in Reggio Emilia, Italy and tackled the issue of childhood education and childcare policies.
The last edition took place in March 2023 in Valencia during the launch of the #SafePlace4Women campaign and focused on ending gender inequality and violence against women.
Stay tuned for the next edition in 2024!
Events, twinnings and more
The PES Group is also organising events to bring together its members and other progressive local and regional leaders from across the EU. In particular, we invite young leaders as speakers and participants to contribute with their ideas and share their experiences. You can find all the past events via this link and new ones will be published in the coming months. As above, keep an eye on our channels and subscribe via the links below.
Would you like to host a debate in your town, city or region about a European topic or the functioning of the European Committee of the Regions and involve our Group and network?
Don't hesitate to get in touch with us, you will find all the details below.
Would you like to organise a twinning exchange with young progressive leaders from another city or region of Europe?
We are at your disposal to help you find contacts in other countries and facilitate the exchange.
Young Elected Politicians programme by the European Committee of the Regions
The YEP programme was established by the European Committee of the Regions in 2019, and since then more than hundreds of young politicians have joined it, many of whom belong to our political family.
Every year, more than 150 young local and regional leaders, including many progressive politicians, are selected by the political groups to become part of a wider network of young local politicians and be involved in several activities. The experience has always been very inspiring for those who attended:
#EURegionsWeek just ended! Such an amazing experience! Thanks to the president of #CoR @karlHeinzLambertz #youngelectedpoliticians #Eulocal #youngLocalLeaders #eu2021_2027 pic.twitter.com/1Qg5BTGlAm
— Valentina Fietta (@vfietta) October 14, 2019
Most of the events are in-person although some events take place online.
If selected, participants are also invited to participate in the meetings of the PES Group during the plenaries of the European Committee of the Regions. There is also the great opportunity to meet fellow local and regional leaders who are members of the Committee of the Regions and exchange with them.
And we also have the chance to visit our comrades in the European Parliament and get to know the European progressive family better:
Our progressive #YoungLocalLeaders met with @TheProgressives MEPs today
Cities and regions are at the heart of the European Union. With these great young local and regional leaders we can surely build a more sustainable and progressive Europe from the ground up pic.twitter.com/IFzQGOjPot— PES Group Committee of the Regions (@PES_CoR) October 9, 2019
In previous editions, they contributed with videos, interviews, podcasts, and other interesting experiences. You can find an example here:
Pronto?
It's high time to learn some regional slang in this summer break
Our #YoungLocalLeaders teach you some of their local expressions. Discover the diversity our regions and cities bring to Europe!
Click to watch the full special edition on Italy pic.twitter.com/5kG0Y3pJVG— European Committee of the Regions (@EU_CoR) August 15, 2020
In the past, a group of Young electeds politicians prepared a declaration on climate that was then submitted to the Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans.
The European Committee of the Regions has also launched an online community which is accessible via this link: https://yepcommunity.eu/home.
Social media and newsletter
The PES Group launched various channels to ensure closer contact with, and among, young progressive local and regional leaders. If you are a local councillor, mayor or regional politician, do not hesitate to become part of these networks to meet other young politicians, discuss the challenges you face and share your ideas with them, and to keep up to date about the many activities and events.
We also have a monthly newsletter and communications specifically for young local leaders. If you are interested in receiving this type of communication, you can let us know by email at pes-group@cor.europa.eu.
Share with us your #ProgressiveLocalStories!
There are many inspiring stories on how progressive cities and regions work every day to build a sustainable Europe so that ending poverty, taking climate action and building sustainable communities become a reality. Two years ago, the PES Group launched a platform to share these #ProgressiveLocalStories, to foster the exchange of best practices and create dialogue. You can discover them via this link.
Do you have a great story to tell and want to share it? We are looking forward to learning more about it!
We are happy to publish your very own Progressive Local Story on our website and on our social media channels. This is your chance to put your town, city or region in the spotlight. Get in touch with us at pes-group@cor.europa.eu.
