Your Europe, Your Say! 2022 - opening speech

Dear students, Dear teachers, Dear colleagues,

My name is Christa Schweng and I am President of the European Economic and Social Committee. I am really pleased to be here with you today at the 13th edition of Your Europe, Your Say!, which we also call YEYS! You have already met some of the members of our Committee. We all represent civil society organisations in your countries. Our job is to make sure that EU legislation takes into account the views of businesses, workers, all civil society organisations from around Europe.

The YEYS event is very important to us and we want you to know that your views matter. This event – starting today – will be a forum for you to meet, debate and exchange views on issues that are important for young people. Your input is essential to shaping the future of the European Union - YOUR future! 

I am excited to see almost 100 students and 33 teachers from all the EU Member States and candidate countries here today. I would also like to thank your teachers for initiating and supporting your participation in the YEYS event. We are genuinely grateful for your efforts in getting your students directly involved in the work of the European Union.

With the war in Ukraine, it is now more important than ever to get actively involved in politics, to defend EU values, democracy and our fundamental rights, and to show solidarity. I strongly believe that only together can we make Europe a better place to live and work – for all of us!

We all face many different challenges every day. There are events happening in front of our very eyes, in our lives, on our screens – calling for action, demanding our participation. Today, YOU are here as the players of the present and the future. I am certain that you all have great and valuable ideas on how to change the world for the better, and we look forward to hearing them.

This year, we decided to propose the extremely important topic of disinformation for you to discuss. The subject could not be more important or timely! We are all being confronted with disinformation on a daily basis. Fake news is constantly being spread in an attempt to undermine European values and democracy – the very foundations of our society.

We have all been struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns. It has proved to be a fertile ground for fake news spreaders, trolls and bots, as well as large-scale disinformation campaigns – in particular on the COVID-19 vaccination. In fact, a report from the Centre for Countering Digital Hate concluded that the vast majority of anti-vax and conspiracy theories originated from 12 people only. Reliable news will also be crucial to the outcome of the war in Ukraine.

We all have a key role to play in tackling disinformation. Information and communication are central to our lives and our society. Truth is the property of being in line with facts and reality. With an overwhelming flow of information landing on our phones every minute, you, we – everybody – can be easy targets for lies. Critical thinking and analysis, together with careful examination of what pops up on our screens, of the source of such information and of what information we choose to share and spread on social media … it's easy to forget that by approaching information this way, every one of us can be at the forefront of change and combat hatred and radicalisation.

I strongly believe that the ability to respond critically to fake news is an important democratic competence, a safeguard and a tool for all of us to take part in public life. You are the ones that will vote at elections and decide what Europe should stand for in the coming decades. Whatever decisions those will be, we all want them to be based on reliable information!

Today, you can learn from each other and we can learn from you! Use this opportunity to further develop your critical thinking, your skills and awareness to counter propaganda, as well as to learn about the tools available to fight disinformation.

For our part, as an EU body where people can openly and freely express their views without any political label, we will do our level best to promote the outcome of your work in the coming months.

Those proposals – the ones you will be presenting to Commissioner Jourova tomorrow – will be your expectations, your hopes and your outlook for the future: the views of young Europeans at a critical moment for the credibility of Europe as a place for peace, democracy and prosperity.

So go ahead: raise your voices, be creative and be spontaneous!

And – above all – enjoy!