Partner meeting: 15-16 September 2008 in Rotterdam

MY GENERATION is a network of cooperating cities in Europe. The key idea of MY GENERATION is to promote the positive potential of the young generation in the cities – with the young and for the young.

 The future dialogue workshop method shifts time three year toward the future. The MY GENERATION project has come to an end and was a great success. Four voices represent the young people, neighborhoods, education and employment and the business community in Rotterdam. These groups are the stakeholders for young issues in Rotterdam. The voices were asked to look back at three years that passed after the start of the project in 2008. They told what they were particularly happy about concerning the project. They remembered what they personally did to achieve these results and what their worries were at the start of the project in 2008 and what helped to overcome them. In the audience were representatives of the European partners of MY GENERATION to contribute their experiences to the discussions.

The overall conclusion of the workshop was that youth is not a problem but it has been made into a problem. To solve the puzzle, start in the neighbourhood, create an environment where people can meet each other and avoid mono-cultures. Improve the coordination between young people and social services. Involve politicians as soon as possible and collaborate with each other. Cherish the skills and ambitions of young people. Young people should be treated as diamonds!  These issues will be put in the centre of the future discussions during the next three years of MY GENERATION in Rotterdam.