🚀Young, Informed, and Involved: INEDNET’s Journey of Democratic Literacy in Strasbourg

From 22nd to 28th March 2026, Varduhi Mazmanyan from INEDNET NGO joined 39 young people from 22 countries at the European Youth Centre in Strasbourg for the study session “Young, Informed and Involved: Strengthening Democratic Literacy and Media Participation". Organised by European Youth Press in cooperation with DYPALL Network and the Council of Europe, the event focused on strengthening media literacy, democratic participation, and responsible AI use.

Throughout the week, participants took part in interactive workshops, group discussions, simulation exercises, and peer-learning activities focused on democracy, ethical storytelling, civic journalism, misinformation, disinformation, and algorithmic bias. The study session created a space for them to reflect on the role of media in democratic inclusion and to develop practical tools for action. The first session built shared understanding around media literacy, journalistic ethics, and the challenges posed by AI in information spaces. These helped the participants dive deeper into discussions about how young people consume, create, and share information online.

During the week, all participants created smaller working groups to develop concrete outputs. One group worked on the design of a toolkit and, in collaboration, produced the Youth Media Democracy Toolkit. Another group, through the Civic Story Seeds workshop, analysed local challenges and drafted project ideas addressing issues such as participatory budgeting and election engagement. A third group, in the Media Lab, explored the ethical use of AI in social media content creation.

A highlight of the programme was the session led by Branislava Lovre, where participants explored artificial intelligence in both theory and practice, from its development to hands-on prompt writing and identifying AI-generated content. The session offered practical tools to better understand the ethical implications of AI in today’s media landscape.

The learning process combined theoretical input with hands-on experience through simulations, storytelling, and role play. This approach strengthened critical thinking around disinformation, media responsibility, and the role of both content creators and consumers.

The study session reinforced the importance of young people as active contributors to democratic life, equipping participants with practical tools to support media literacy, civic engagement, and responsible use of AI within their communities.