Δελτίο Ευρωπαϊκών Ευκαιριών Ιανουάριος 2015

1 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015

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Deadlines up to 15 April 2015 Documentation Opportunities Highlights Upcoming Events

2 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015

Deadlines up to 15 April 2015 Deadline Reminder: http://www.eurodesk.eu/edesk/SearchDb.do?go=1 Reference number

Deadline

Programme Title

EU0010000600

1 Jan 2015

EU0010000443

4 Jan 2015

EU0010000084

5 Jan 2015

EU0010000387

6 Jan 2015

EU0010000510

11 Jan 2015

Google Europe Scholarship for Students with Disabilities Traineeship at the European Railway Agency Support for information measures relating to the Common Agricultural Policy Traineeships at the European Maritime Safety Agency Model European Union

EU0010000441

12 Jan 2015

Your Europe, Your Say

EU0010000050

13 Jan 2015

Horizon2020: Marie Sklodowska-Curie actions

EU0010000413

15 Jan 2015

Bogliasco Fellowships Programme

EU0010000064

20 Jan 2015

Vulcanus in Japan

EU0010000608

22 Jan 2015

Erasmus+Sport: Collaborative Partnerships

EU0010000609

22 Jan 2015

Erasmus+Sport: Not-for-profit European sport events

EU0010000545

23 Jan 2015

EU0010000138

25 Jan 2015

EU0010000530

30 Jan 2015

International Schools Essay Competition and Debate Partnership Programme on European Youth Worker Training Young Researcher of the Year Award 2015

EU0010000225

31 Jan 2015

European University for Postgraduate Research

EU0010000263

31 Jan 2015

EU0010000389

31 Jan 2015

EU0010000599

31 Jan 2015

EU0010000629

31 Jan 2015

Internships at the World Bank Traineeship at the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) College of Europe Scholarships for university graduates from ENP countries Shining Stars of Europe Video Contest

EU0010000631

1 Feb 2015

Training placements at the European Parliament

EU0010000386

2 Feb 2015

EU0010000408

3 Feb 2015

EU0010000604

4 Feb 2015

EU0010000606

4 Feb2015

European Charlemagne Youth Prize Horizon2020: European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grants Erasmus+Key Action1-Mobility project for young people-European Voluntary Service Erasmus+Key Action1-Mobility project for young people-Youth Exchanges

3 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015

EU0010000607

4 Feb 2015

EU0010000615

4 Feb 2015

EU0010000619

4 Feb 2015

EU0010000178

15 Feb 2015

EU0010000560

15 Feb 2015

EU0010000512

20 Feb 2015

EU0010000633

24 Feb 2015

EU0010000616

26 Feb 2015

Erasmus+Key Action1-Mobility project for Youth workers Erasmus+Key Action2-Strategic Partnerships Erasmus+Key Action3-Structured Dialogue: meetings between young people and decision-makers in the field of youth Translation Traineeships at the European Parliament for university graduates Translation training placements at the European Parliament EESC video challenge 2015 Erasmus+ KA3: Support for policy reform Prospective initiatives Erasmus+Key Action2-Knowledge Alliances

EU0010000617

26 Feb 2015

Erasmus+Key Action2-Sector Skills Alliances

EU0010000620

26 Feb 2015

Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Modules

EU0010000621

26 Feb 2015

Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Chairs

EU0010000622

26 Feb 2015

EU0010000623

26 Feb 2015

EU0010000624

26 Feb 2015

Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Support to institutions and associations Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Support to associations

EU0010000625

26 Feb 2015

Erasmus+Jean Monnet Networks

EU0010000626

26 Feb 2015

EU0010000649

27 Feb 2015

EU0010000192

28 Feb 2015

EU0010000210

1 Mar 2015

EU0010000468

1 Mar 2015

EU0010000601

4 Mar 2015

EU0010000602

4 Mar 2015

EU0010000603

4 Mar 2015

EU0010000605

4 Mar 2015

EU0010000613

4 Mar 2015

Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Projects Writing Competition: So similar, so different, so European Traineeships and Fellowships at the European Centre for Modern Languages (ECML) Young European of the Year Award - Travel Fellowships & InterRail-Global-Passes Heinrich Boll Foundation Scholarships Erasmus+Key Action1-Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree Erasmus+Key Action1-Mobility project for higher education staff Erasmus+Key Action1-Mobility project for higher education students Erasmus+Key Action1-Mobility project for Vocational Education and Training for Learners Erasmus+Key Action1-Mobility Project for School Education Staff

4 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015

EU0010000614

4 Mar 2015

EU0010000650

20 Mar 2015

EU0010000329

22 Mar 2015

Erasmus+Key Action1-Mobility Project for Vocational Education and Training for Staff Erasmus+ Key action3: Support for policy reformInitiatives for policy innovation BEST courses for students of technology

EU0010000020

31 Mar 2015

Traineeships at the Committee of the Regions

EU0010000152

31 Mar 2015

EU0010000234

31 Mar 2015

EU0010000324

31 Mar 2015

EU0010000085

1 Apr 2015

EU0010000229

1 Apr 2015

EU0010000610

3 Apr 2015

EU0010000618

3 Apr 2015

Traineeships at the Economic and Social Committee Traineeships at the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade marks and Designs) Marco Biagi Awards for young scholars European Youth Foundation - Grants for international youth activities International youth activities held in co-operation with the European Youth Centres Erasmus+Key Action1-Large-scale European Volunteering Service Events Erasmus+Key Action2-Capacity Building in the field of youth

5 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015

Documentation Erasmus Mundus Graduate Impact Survey The survey finds that over 90% of the participants were satisfied with the Erasmus Mundus programme whereas more than 65% of the graduates were "very satisfied". Overall, 80% of graduates were satisfied with the quality of the courses offered through Erasmus Mundus. Some fields were rated as particularly satisfactory, such as Health studies. However, graduates felt that contacts with potential employers, as well as practical experiences on the course, were lacking: 67% of participants found the links to employment to be too weak. The survey reveals that Erasmus Mundus graduates are very well regarded on the job market. http://www.em-a.eu/en/erasmus-mundus/graduate-impact-survey.html European Inventory on Validation of Non-formal and Informal Learning 2014 According to the Report, despite some good progress since 2010, Member States still have a long way to go to ensure that knowledge, skills and competences that people have acquired outside school or university are recognised, valued and accepted. The Report, which covers 33 European countries (EU Member States, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and Turkey), shows that a better design and implementation of effective tools to recognise those skills is needed so they can better contribute to tackling current bottlenecks within the EU labour market. People gain knowledge and skills throughout their lives, often outside the formal education and training system. They should be able to demonstrate what they have learned. Yet information about how to identify, document, assess and certify such learning is, in most countries, not easily accessible. http://bit.ly/1w22fWi Activating jobseekers through entrepreneurship: Start-up incentives in Europe - EEPO Review The Review provides a snapshot of how the countries making up the EU28, and Iceland, have been using start-up incentives to encourage unemployed people to set up their own businesses.

It explores whether start-ups represent a long-term solution to keeping people employed and analyses the profiles of some participants to establish possible similarities between successful individuals. To support policy makers, the Review also puts forward recommendations on how measures can be designed and on areas which should be researched further. http://ec.europa.eu/social/BlobServlet?docId=13206&langId=en

6 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015 Everything You Always Wanted to Know About National Youth Councils (But Were Afraid to Ask) Published by the European Youth Forum, the Report gives an overview about National Youth Councils: how they work to protect young people's rights, what youth work they do, who's involved, where the money comes from. http://bit.ly/1GohV5Y Welcome Video of the Latvian Presidency of the Council of the EU Introductory video made to honor the important role Latvia will take over on 1st January 2015 for six months: the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The humorous video aims to introduce the country and to give “the right impression about Latvians”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtnIUr8Q4E4 Epale – ePlatform for Adult Learning in Europe The Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe (EPALE) offers a space for adult education professionals to become a community and share ideas together. It is a multilingual open membership community funded by the European Commission to improve quality of adult learning in Europe. http://ec.europa.eu/epale/en/home-page Cluj-Napoca: European Youth Capital 2015 Cluj-Napoca, the second largest city in Romania, takes over from Thessaloniki, Greece, the title of European Youth Capital for 2015. ClujNapoca is “the Heart of Transylvania”: due to its eleven universities, the city is considered one of the best places to study in this part of Europe.

The Youth Capital title was launched by the European Youth Forum (YFJ) to encourage the development of new ideas and innovative projects with regards to the active participation of young people in society and to foster the co-operation on youth policies at local and European level. During 2015, Cluj-Napoca will offer a hectic programme with events and activities giving more participation and more opportunities to young people for taking active roles in making real contributions to their communities. http://www.cluj2015.eu EU budget explained: expenditure and contribution by Member State How much does the EU spend in each EU country and on what? How does it compare to other countries? And where does the money come from?

The answers are given by the European Parliament multimedia application, which has been updated with the latest figures from the European Commission's annual financial report for 2013. The whole tool is embeddable as a whole or by section. http://bit.ly/1wiNCMK

7 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015

Opportunities Traineeships at the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) Offered by the European Maritime Safety Agency, the traineeship programme aims to provide trainees with work experience in the field of maritime safety legislation, response to pollution at sea and cooperation among member states in safety at sea matters. It will also enable trainees to acquire practical experience by means of their work and put into practice the knowledge they have acquired during their academic studies or professional careers. The traineeships will start on 1st March 2014 and finish on 31st July 2015. Trainees will be awarded a monthly grant of € 910.86 and a travel allowance.

Deadline: 6th January 2015, 16:00 (Lisbon time).

Find out more: http://bit.ly/12QQO6i Model European Union 2015 Model European Union is a unique simulation of EU decision-making and politics, taking place annually in Strasbourg and bringing together highly skilled and motivated young Europeans. Participants will have the opportunity to have a first-hand experience of the functioning of European institutions right on the premises of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, from 11th to 18th April 2015 (the location and date need to be confirmed). Young people from 18 to 26 years old, from the EU, EEA Countries (Norway, Liechtenstein, Iceland and Switzerland), Eastern Partnership Countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine), Southern Mediterranean Countries (Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Syria, Tynisia), Western Balkan Countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia), Republic of Macedonia, Republic of Turkey and Russian Federation, who are curious about the functioning of the European Institutions and who want to actively take part in a life-like simulation, are invited to apply.

The proposals up for debate in MEU 2015 are the following: - European Banking Union, - Data Protection Regulation.

Deadline: 11th January 2015.

Find out more: http://meu-strasbourg.org Your Europe, Your Say 2015 Secondary school children from the 28 EU Member States are invited to join the simulated youth plenary session and see how the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) decision-making process works in

8 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015 relation to a specific subject. Under the campaign slogan "Active European citizenship", schools wishing to take part must register online through the EESC's Internet site before 12th January 2015 (midnight Brussels time).

After registration has closed, one school from each of the 28 EU Member States will be picked at random to take part in the simulation exercise.

The selected schools will then choose three students in their pre-final year of secondary education (aged 16 years) to represent them, as well as a teacher who will accompany them. These people will have to be able to express themselves in English or French.

The event will take place in Brussels at the headquarters of the European Economic and Social Committee from 23rd to 25th April 2015. The EESC will pay the travel and accommodation expenses of the students and accompanying teacher.

Find out more: http://bit.ly/1wHURQg Erasmus+Sport: Collaborative Partnerships This action supports organisations or public bodies active in the field of sport or physical activity interested in working with European partners to share innovative ideas, promote sport or address sport-related challenges.

Collaborative Partnerships support projects which: - tackle cross-border threats to the integrity of sport, such as doping, match fixing and violence, as well as all kinds of intolerance and discrimination.

- promote and supporting good governance in sport and dual careers of sportspeople.

- promote voluntary activities in sport, together with social inclusion, equal opportunities and awareness of the importance of health enhancing physical activity, through increased participation in and equal access to sport for all. In addition, they should also support the implementation of the European Week of Sport, an initiative launched by the European Commission to promote sport and physical activities in the European Union, in the light of declining participation levels. In 2015, the European Week of Sport will take place from 7th to 13th September 2015. National events will take place between 7th and 30th September 2015.

Deadlines: 22nd January 2015, 12:00 midday Brussels time, for projects related to the 2015 European Week of Sport, (projects starting between 1st of April and 1st of September of the same year).

- 14th May 2015, 12:00 midday Brussels time, for projects not related to the 2015 European Week of Sport (projects starting on 1st of January of the following year).

Find out more: http://bit.ly/1DBtQBh

9 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015

Erasmus+Sport: Not-For-Profit European Sport Events This action supports not-for-profit organisations or public bodies to organise major Europe-wide sports events, involving partners or sportspeople from participating countries, promoting the European Union activities in the field of sport. In addition, this action may finance: - national events organised during the 2015 European Week of Sport, - national events organised simultaneously in several European countries in the context of European events.

The European Week of Sport is an initiative launched by the European Commission to promote sport and physical activities in the European Union, in the light of declining participation levels. In 2015, the European Week of Sport will take place from 7th to 13th September 2015. National events will take place between 7th and 30th September 2015.

Deadlines: 22nd January 2015, 12:00 midday Brussels time, for not-forprofit European sport events organised during the 2015 European Week of Sport (projects starting on 1st of May of the same year), - 14th May 2015, 12:00 midday Brussels time, for not-for-profit European sport events organised outside the 2015 European Week of Sport (projects starting on 1st of November of the same year).

Find out more: http://bit.ly/1nbKMpB European Charlemagne Youth Prize 2015 Young people from 16 to 30 years old, from all the EU Member States, are invited to participate in a competition on EU development, integration and European identity issues. The "European Charlemagne Youth Prize" is awarded to projects providing models for young people living in Europe and offering practical examples of Europeans living together as one community. Participants can apply individually or in groups.

Representatives of the 28 national projects selected will be invited to the award ceremony in Aachen, Germany on 12th May 2015. As part of the prize, the laureates will be invited to visit the European Parliament (in Brussels or in Strasbourg).

Deadline: 2nd February 2015.

Find out more: http://www.charlemagneyouthprize.eu EESC 2015 Video Challenge Organised by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), in partnership with the Latvian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the 2015 edition is a combined music and video competition.

10 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015 The challenge "Europe in Harmony" is open to amateur video-makers, choirs and singing groups from all 28 EU Member States. Entrants will have to perform an interpretation of "Ode to Joy" accompanied by a video clip. The video can be dedicated to any European topic the participants wish.

The submission period runs until 20th February 2015 and will be followed by a public vote and the final selection of the winners by a jury.

The three winning teams will be awarded 3 000, 5 000 and 8 000 Euros at a ceremony to be held in Brussels on 27th May 2015.

Find out more: http://www.eesc.europa.eu/video-challenge/2015 Writing Competition: "So similar, so different, so European" Organised by the European Commission Enlargement Unit, the competition is open to young people from 18 to 25 years old, from the EU Member States. Participants will have to write an article, maximum 1,000 words (including title, headings and sub-headings), sharing their views on one or both questions: - What is your experience in an enlarged European Union?

- How can the enlarged European Union meet the challenges of the future?

Each participant can submit only one entry, in any official EU language.

National juries will select one entry each as the winner. The winners will be awarded with a three-day visit to Brussels, Belgium, at the end of May 2015. The winning articles will also be published on the European Commission’s website and will be offered to leading national media for publication.

Deadline: 27th February 2015 at midday (CET).

Find out more: http://event.iservice-europa.eu/writing-competition

Please also look at the Opportunities folder within the Eurodesk intranet for news on European and international (funding) opportunities.

11 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015

Highlights Emily O’Reilly re-elected as European ombudsman On 16th December 2014, MEPs reelected Emily O’Reilly as the European ombudsman for the EP's 2014-2019 term. O’Reilly, who is from Ireland, was first elected European ombudsman on 3 July 2013, after her predecessor retired. She was the only candidate in today's ballot.

The task of the ombudsman is to investigate complaints about maladministration by EU institutions and bodies.

Complaints can be submitted by anyone who lives in the EU or is an official citizen, as well as companies and associations with an office in the EU. http://bit.ly/1uNqfFZ Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council Conclusions At their meeting on 12th December 2014, EU ministers adopted Conclusions on entrepreneurship in education and training. The Conclusions highlight the importance of developing entrepreneurial skills from an early age and of reinforcing links between the education system and the business world, in line with the June European Council's call "to promote a climate of entrepreneurship and job creation". Entrepreneurship and education are also priorities of the Europe 2020 strategy.

The Conclusions invite Member States and the Commission to

fully exploit the potential that Erasmus+ and the Youth Guarantee offer in supporting entrepreneurship education and to make the best use of other European resources, such as the European Social Fund.

The Council also held a debate on the key role of education and training for economic growth.

This debate constitutes the contribution from the education sector to the mid-term review of the Europe 2020 strategy. In addition, Ministers discussed a cross sectorial approach to youth policies, as a tool for better tackling socio-economic challenges. In this context, the Council also adopted Conclusions on promoting young people's access to rights in order to foster their autonomy and participation in civil society. The Conclusions address the challenges for this generation of young people, who must suffer the fall-out of the financial crisis, and in particular their difficulties in becoming autonomous adults who participate in a critical and active way in the social, political and economic life of their own communities. During an informal lunch, Ministers held a debate on how to increase the added value of mobility programmes in higher education. http://bit.ly/1qZOt4q Re-establishment of the European Parliament Intergroup on Youth Strong support was received for

12 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015 the re-establishment of the European Parliament Intergroup on Youth, helping to give young people a voice within the EU Parliament.

Though not official Parliament committees, Intergroups are formed by MEPs with a view to debating issues of significant importance and, therefore, can develop strong influence in the Parliament.

For the last five years, the Youth Intergroup of the European Parliament has provided a unique space for MEPs from different political groups and committees to exchange views and work together on comprehensive and effective policies affecting young people, in conjunction with youth civil society and young people themselves. http://bit.ly/1GjjALG Lithuania becomes the 19th Member State to adopt the Euro Lithuania will adopt the Euro on the 1st of January 2015: from the first minute of the New Year, Lithuanians will start withdrawing Euro cash and paying for their purchases in Euro.

Following the Euro adoption in Lithuania, 19 EU Member States and 337 million Europeans will share the same currency. http://euras.lt/en

discussion was structured around three issues: - easing the transition of youth from school to work; - challenges related to the rollout of the youth guarantee that aims to get young people back to work or study within four months of losing a job or leaving education; - ways of improving the match between labour market and vocational education and training systems.

Ministers also agreed on the reform of the European network of employment services, or EURES, to provide better job search and recruitment services across Europe. The aim of the reform is to boost intra-EU labour mobility. The reformed network would increase the number of job vacancies and job seekers' CVs available through EURES. It would also introduce automated matching of job seekers' skills to vacancies. The matching would be based on the European classification of skills and competences that the European Commission is currently developing.

Ministers also discussed the draft Directive that seeks to ensure that women occupy 40% of nonexecutive board seats on public companies by 2020. http://bit.ly/1ApyJHt

Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council Conclusions Meeting in Brussels on 11th December, employment Ministers discussed ways of fighting against youth unemployment.

The

2015 European Year for Development The European Year for Development 2015 is set to be a special year, as the deadline for meeting the Millennium

13 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015 Development Goals (which the international community agreed in the year 2000) and for the next set of goals, the Sustainable Development Goals, to be put in place. Under the motto “Our world, our dignity, our future”, the year will be an opportunity to inform EU citizens on how every Euro of support helps to make a difference and to showcase EU strong commitment to eradicating poverty worldwide, improving the situation of refugees and those in dire need of aid, tackling climate change and helping to protect the world’s natural resources. One of the main objectives of the European Year is to show EU citizens that development aid is also about them and to foster a sense of joint responsibility, solidarity and opportunity as a result. The launch event of the year will take place in Riga, Latvia, on 9th January 2015, in the margins of the opening of the Presidency of the European Council. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica are expected to attend. http://bit.ly/131QYZz ERC Starting Grants: 328 early-career top researchers funded The European Research Council

(ERC) has selected 328 first class scientists to receive its prestigious Starting Grants, worth up to € 2 million each. This year, grants are awarded to researchers of 38 nationalities, hosted in 180 different institutions throughout Europe and around 40 researchers with non-European nationality.

The awarded € 485 million contribute to supporting a new generation of top scientists in Europe developing so-called "blue sky research": ambitious highrisk, high-gain research projects in any field. The projects selected cover a wide array of topics, including wearable electronic textiles powered by body heat, detection of bacteria by smell, 'toxic expertise' in the petrochemical industry, the origins of human rationality, combatting cancer related inflammation, as well as optimising user interface design. http://bit.ly/1zfrggg Eurostat quarterly data on employment The number of persons employed increased by 0.2% in the Euro area (EA18) and by 0.3% in the EU28 in the third quarter of 2014 compared with the previous quarter, according to national accounts estimates published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. In the

14 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – January 2015 second quarter of 2014, employment increased by 0.3% in both zones. Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, employment increased by 0.6% in the Euro area and by 0.9% in the EU28 in the third quarter of 2014 (after +0.4% and +0.8% respectively in the second quarter of 2014). In the third quarter of 2014, 226.9 million men and women were employed in the EU28, of which 148.2 million were in the Euro area.

These figures are seasonally adjusted. http://bit.ly/1zewf0K Council of Europe Culture Committee adopts report on student mobility Member States should increase the availability of student funding with a view to increasing student mobility, the Council of Europe PACE Culture Committee th concluded on 5 December.

Unanimously adopting a report by Christian Barilaro (Monaco, ALDE), the Committee also called for the improved recognition of learning outcomes, including through the reduction of the current bureaucratic burden for the recognition of qualifications.

Member States should also

develop and implement measures to encourage graduates who took part in student mobility programmes to return to their home countries in order to prevent brain drain.

Furthermore, higher education institutions are called upon to promote student mobility through the provision of information about academic mobility programmes and the inclusion of these programmes as part of university courses, joint degrees and foreign language courses as well as sponsorship programmes between incoming and outgoing students. http://bit.ly/1zmIV5f Donald Tusk, new President of the European Council On 1st December, Donald Tusk, the former Prime Minister of Poland, replaced Herman Van Rompuy as the President of the European institution. Donald Tusk was elected by the 28 EU heads of state or government on 30th August 2014, for an initial term of 2.5 years.

His predecessor, Herman Van Rompuy, was the first President of the European Council, in office from 2009 to 2014. http://bit.ly/1A7KFy8

Please also look at the News folder within the Eurodesk intranet for other European news from the network.

15 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – December 2014

Upcoming Events 1st January-30th June 2015: EU Latvian Council Presidency Starting January 1st Latvia will hold the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union. Latvia is the second Presidency in the Trio with Italy (second half 2014) and Luxembourg (second half 2015). The Latvian Presidency will work on the implementation of the EU Work Plan for Youth and on the contribution of youth policies to Europe 2020. The Presidency will also work on the mid-term review of the 'ET2020' framework and preparation of the 2015 joint report, strengthening the links between the Europe 2020 Strategy and ET2020 and it will also work on the preparation of the Bologna ministerial conference in May in Yerevan, Armenia.

Information on the new Presidency, its work programme, the main priorities, position papers, events and latest news can be found on the presidency website http://www.es2015.lv Mons and Pilsen European Capitals of Culture 2015 Mons in Belgium along with Pilsen in Czech Republic are the two European Capitals of Culture for 2015. From January 2015 they will officially start a year of music, theatre, dance, film and literature events showing their culture to the world.

Further information on their celebrations and events can be found at: Mons 2015: http://www.mons2015.eu Pilsen 2015: http://www.plzen.eu/obcan EURES Job Fairs Thinking about finding a job in another EU country?

EURES, the European Job Mobility Portal, organises job fairs all over Europe.

Find out more: http://bit.ly/EUREScalendar 27th-28th January 2015: iLearning Forum 2015, Paris, France The Forum will be the place for all the demonstrations and presentations of the latest international innovations in e-learning (simulations, interactive video, serious games, skills and management applications, the development of contents tools, social networks of learning).

The access to the forum is free.

Find out more: http://www.ilearningforum.org

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10th February 2015: Safer Internet Day On this date a wide array of activities will take place across Europe and the world, focusing on the theme “Discover the digital world together...”.

Find out more: http://www.saferinternetday.org 18th-20th February 2015: Europan Youth Foundation (Re)generation Seminar, Strasbourg, France Organised by the Europan Youth Foundation of the Council of Europe, the seminar is addressed to representatives of local/national youth NGOs experienced in running youth projects.

Eligible participants should be between 18 and 30 years old; be able to work in English; run youth projects (writing applications, implementing, reporting) for a national or local NGO registered with the EYF; working as multipliers in their organisation and have had experience with grant applications to the EYF (successful or not) including first experiences working with the new online system of the EYF. Organisations wishing to nominate a person to attend this meeting should fill in the application form. Representative of the NGO nominated should make a short video (maximum 1.5 minutes) introducing themselves to the EYF. Application forms and videos should be submitted to eyf@coe.int by 5th January 2015 (midnight CET) at the latest.

Find out more: http://bit.ly/13GHfIp 19th-26th April 2015: Study session “Mind your Language”, Budapest, Hungary The study session aims at promoting recognition and respect towards the minority/regional languages in the communities of the participants. During the study session, participants will have the space for discussing the issues of the preservation of minority/regional languages and diversity in Europe. Participants should be actively involved in their organisation and development of their networks; have practical experience in various ways of youth work and activism; be ready to implement common actions on a local and international level; be able to work in English and to attend the whole period of the study session.

The Council of Europe will cover all participants’ travel and lodging expenses. There is a participation fee of 50 EUR (to be deducted from travel expenses).

Deadline: 12th January 2015 Find out more: http://bit.ly/16pyGTu

17 ⎪ Eurodesk Brussels Link Bulletin – December 2014

16th-19th April 2015: International Youth to Youth (Y2Y) Summit, Vilnius, Lithuania Under the theme “The Role of Youth in Solving Global Challenges and Bridging Gaps Among Nations’’, the event will bring together students, youth activists, leaders in the society, entrepreneurs, professors and businessmen to start a dialogue on the global challenges of today and tomorrow and to create specific solutions to address them. The event will focus on the following topics: - Social entrepreneurship as a tool to decrease youth unemployment; - Youth as ambassadors of peace education; - Youth role in decision making process; - Development education/education for all; - Empowerment of female youth and Youth in diplomacy.

Young people from 18 to 35 years old, from all over the world, are invited to apply by 15th January 2015.

There are participation fees.

Find out more: http://y2ysummit.org European Citizenship Training Courses 2015 The courses are meant to support youth workers and youth leaders developing their critical understanding of European Citizenship and encourage them to integrate the topic in their practical work.

Training Course: ECTC-UK in United Kingdom (8th-14th March 2015).

Deadline: 25th January 2015.

All details are available here: https://www.salto-youth.net/rc/training-and-cooperation/tc-rcnanetworktcs/europeancitizenship Salto-Youth: Training Calendar The European Training Calendar contains current training offers of different institutions and organisations, such as SALTO, the National Agencies for the YOUTH IN ACTION Programme, non-governmental youth organisations, the European Youth Centres of the Council of Europe and the Partnership Programme on European Youth Worker Training. They are addressed to young people, group leaders, mentors, trainers and other specialists.

Find out more: http://www.salto-youth.net/tools/european-trainingcalendar

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