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© beteiligung.st, 2013

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ABOUT US

The participation unit ‘beteiligung.st’ is a specialist contact partner for the

involvement and participation of children, young people and adult citizens in

socio-political life. As a service provider for the province of Styria, ‘beteiligung.st’

sees itself as lobbyist, companion and advisor in the field of participation.

The range of services provided by ‘beteiligung.st’ is aimed at children, young

people and adult citizens. This specialist unit cooperates with the following target

groups:

• Local Councils

• Regions (such as Regionext)

• Institutions in the fields of training and further education

• Schools

• Organizations

• Youth Groups

‘beteiligung.st’ develops and conceives participation projects, implements them

and organizes cooperation partnerships. In so doing, ‘beteiligung.st’ networks

with specialist departments and institutions for youth work in Styria, Austria and on

a European level. The conceptual work of ‘beteiligung.st’ is based on continual

professional exchange with national and international specialist departments

and experts.

‘beteiligung.st’ sees itself as a partner for participation processes in local

authorities, schools, open youth work and in the non-formal educational sector.

‘beteiligung.st’ supports the initiation of participation processes which involve

children, young people and citizens through:

• Consultation meetings

• Moderation/Facilitation

• Workshops

• Conferences

• Further education/training (with certification)

• Training of multipliers

• Public relations

• Lobbying work

‘beteiligung.st’ is in close contact with the Department for Youth Affairs of the

Province, in particular with the staff responsible for participation and with the

political office of the responsible member of the provincial government.

The legal base of ‘beteiligung.st’ is that of an unincorporated association. Its

operative business is led by the general manager, Daniela Köck, and key

fundamental decisions are jointly agreed upon with the governors of the

association. The association ‘beteiligung.st’ was founded on 4 July 2007 and

developed from a merging of two associations - yougend.st and Kommunale

Beratungsstelle.

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TEAM

Mag.a Daniela Köck,

general manager

Mag.a Birgit Lacheiner,

project manager

Nadja Maier, MA,

project manager

Mag.a Katrin Uray,

project manager

Mag.a Christina Trattner,

project manager

Sandra Gruber,

Administration

Mag.a Eva Rosenkranz,

project manager

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METHODS

‘beteiligung.st’ promotes and supports the development of participation models

for children, young people and adult citizens.

Consultation, back-up guidance, promotion and implementation of democratic

co-determination, involvement and representative participation models for and

with all members of the community, especially for children and young people,

should contribute to improving the quality of life and promoting democratic life

together in the community. The improvement of child-friendly, youth-friendly and

thus family-friendly living conditions is the central concern of these participation

processes, with great value being laid on the knowledge and ability of all the

participating groups to find working solutions. By promoting a democratic and

cross-generational culture of dialogue, involvement and co-determination, the

concerns of all participants can be taken into consideration in communal

politics. By encouraging early involvement in shaping their living environment, we

wish to acquaint children and young people with democratic processes and

underline the importance of participating in political elections.

The ‘beteiligung.st’ team has set itself the following methodic principles and

strives continually to develop these further:

• Promoting independence and personal responsibility

• Involvement of all stakeholders (target group diversity)

• Activation and coaching

• Appreciative and respectful support for the process

• Low-threshold and target group-oriented

• Clarity in consultations and agreements

• Target group-oriented transfer of specialist and political knowledge

• Communicative exchange, further development and networking

• Quality management and documentation incl. reflexion and evaluation

• Sustainability

The work of ‘beteiligung.st’ focuses on the following areas:

• Participation workshops with children and young people

• The Local Children’s Council and the Local Youth Council

• Youth forums

• The development of mission statements for youth policy for local councils

• Regional demand surveys

• Development of concepts and simulation games for promoting the

understanding of democracy

• Political participation

• Development of democracy in schools

• Cross-generational dialogue events and facilitating local citizen meetings

• Information events and further training events on a regional, national and

international level (series of seminars, awareness-raising workshops for

decision-makers, administrative staff, multipliers and interested groups or

persons)

• Empirical monitoring of participation processes

• Publications on the theme of participation

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Target groups

• Children

• Young people

• Local citizens

• Mayors

• Decision-makers in local councils, associations, organisations and in

administration

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SERVICES

Advising local councils.

Through personal conversations with council representatives ‘beteilung.st’

clarifies what the wishes and needs are concerning children and youth

participation and which solutions are aimed for. By means of expert-based

consultation, ‘beteiligung.st’ supports councils in successfully involving young

people in the community.

Workshops with young people...

Whether via Future Workshops or Open Space, children and young people work

out their thoughts on the current situation through appropriate methods. They are

allowed to have visions and develop concrete ideas and options for

implementing them in real life situations.

Local Children’s Council and Youth Forum...

Within a well-structured, age-appropriate framework, opportunities are provided

for representative participation in the community. Young people live and

experience democracy and are involved in dialogue with the decision-makers

and experience at first-hand so that their wishes and needs are taken seriously in

the community.

Sustainable participation structures...

Community requires not only committed people but also structures to support

them in their work. Participation can and should happen everywhere.

‘beteiligung.st’ supports local councils, schools and open youth work in

structurally anchoring co-determination and real collaboration in their work, so

that participation opportunities and long-term cooperation are guaranteed for

all.

Development of Mission Statements for Youth Policy

Councils and Regions are supported in the development of mission statements

and models for youth policy, and the young people are involved in this process.

Using methods appropriate for young people, their needs, wishes and ideas are

gathered and formulated into thematic areas and concrete project ideas.

Political Participation…

Socio-political involvement in as many areas of society as possible can create

continuity and reliability in cooperative action. Events, training courses and

workshops are used to communicate how the goals of a society are determined

communally.

A prerequisite for awareness of the fact that political decisions can be influenced

on all levels is to know about the respective political system. ‘beteiligung.st’

supports young people in grappling in diverse ways with the topic of democracy

and political institutions.

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Further training and education.

For people active in youth work and for those who wish to integrate the concerns

of young people in their work, ‘beteiligung.st’ provides further training and

education. Well-founded theoretical knowledge and method tools are the core

competences which ‘beteiligung.st’ conveys in seminars, workshops, symposiums

and networking meetings.

Costs:

A suitable quote will be provided for our specialist services.

Grants may be available from the public authorities.

PARTICIPATION

What is participation?

Child and youth participation means…

… that children and young people have a right to be consulted on all decision-

making processes which directly affect them.

… that young people are actively involved in dialogue, decision-making and

action-taking i.e. work with kids and young people instead of work for them. After

all, kids and young people are the experts when it comes to questions of quality

of life in communities!

Participation structures are of use to…

… children and young people themselves of course. They are taken seriously as

equal partners in the dialogue, and they have the opportunity to contribute their

creativity and commitment to the community and implement ideas.

… adults. They profit from the creative potential of young people and are able to

build up cross-generational communication structures. A community worth living

in for adults is only possible if it is also a child- and youth-friendly environment.

… all stakeholders because democracy becomes tangible and liveable.

‘beteiligung.st’ supports…

… Councils and regions in the course of very diverse participation processes.

… via information, support, consultation und facilitation. External support has a

high value and priority in child and youth involvement, as a neutral external

person is able to view the process from another perspective and thereby

guarantee a balance of interests.

‘beteiligung.st’ pledges to follow …

… the ”Beutelsbach Consensus“ in its work with children and young people

(guidelines for modern political education in the German speaking world): ban

on outvoting, the precept of controversiality or fair balance, pupil orientation.

… The Austrian Competence Model for Political Education, which enlarges on

the basic decree of 1978 “The Educational Principle of Political Education“.

Through its work ‘beteiligung.st’ supports all the varied capacities and

competences of young people including critical, factual, methodic and action

skills. The Participation-Check serves in planning and monitoring a participation

project.

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LEGAL BASE

The following legal framework was set up for and partly

with children and young people and is an important

working basis for ‘beteiligung.st’.

Styrian People’s Rights Law

The participation of children and young people is

defined in the Styrian People’s Rights Law.

EU–White Paper

The White Paper entitled "A new impetus for European youth" was drawn up by

young people from all over Europe and represents a starting point for youth

policy in the individual EU Member States.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is an international

agreement. In 54 articles the fundamental human rights are defined which

should apply to every child under 18 years of age in the whole world.

National Action Plan

In 2004 the Austrian Federal Government passed a National Action Plan for the

Rights of Children and Young People.

Styrian Law for the Protection of Youth

The Styrian Law for the Protection of Youth not only lists the rights and duties of

young people, it also determines the responsibility of parents and legal

guardians, employers and event organizers.

Styrian Youth Promotion Law

In the Styrian Law for the Promotion of Youth, the Province of Styria has defined

the goals and foundations of youth promotion in accordance with the United

Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the EU White Paper.

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FORMS OF PARTICIPATION

Participation means involvement and co-determination in the democratic

system. Youth participation means that young people are involved in dialogue,

have co-determination and can shape the surroundings they live in. Essentially

one can differentiate between three forms of involvement or participation:

Project-oriented forms Project-oriented participation generally involves activities which have a limited

time and planning horizon. In practice this form of participation is very frequent,

since it can awaken the interest of young people and adults and the activities

are characterised by fun and visible success.

Participation Workshop

The Participation Workshop was developed by ‘beteiligung.st’ specifically for use

in Styrian local councils. Under facilitation by ‘beteiligung.st’, young people aged

between 13-20 years, members of the council, administration employees and

representatives of local associations work out projects for their council together.

At the heart of the Participation Workshop is the shared vision and development

of ideas for living together in the community. The goal is the concrete realisation

of these project ideas. Child- and youth- friendly conditions can be ensured

through this cooperative working style in the local councils. By actively including

children and young people in communal politics, politics `for´ children and

young people are transformed into politics `with´ children and young people.

Questionnaire Survey

A questionnaire survey for children and young people can be the first step

towards successful participation in a local council. The children and young

people questionnaire has the advantage that it can assess wishes, hardships and

needs of children and young people - prior to child and youth participation. The

questionnaire can help to assess the living environment, the political and

communal interests as well as the participation wishes of children and young

people can be scanned. The results of this questionnaire can be utilized as the

basis for further focused action.

Open Forms

Open forms are models which enable children and young people to articulate

their opinions and needs to the mayors and council representatives. The young

people are able to do this either through direct conversations, in discussion

groups or in surveys. The open form models do not allow for any obligation to

regular involvement for the young people and children.

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Open Space

The Open Space Method makes it possible to work with many participants

quickly and effectively and can be implemented in schools, in councils or in

youth centres.

In this case, a key theme is dealt with in the framework of an event. The

participants themselves divide up this key theme into individual topics which are

then elaborated on and hammered out in workshops (break-out groups). The

knowledge and the diverse competences of all the participants are tapped

independently from hierarchies. Ideas, solution proposals and implementation

measures are developed in a very short time. This way, sustainable processes can

be initiated in schools, councils and youth centres.

Parliamentary and similar forms

Here one finds models which are characterised by continuity and formal

structures. Examples of parliamentary or similar forms are: the Local Children’s

Council or Youth Council, Youth Landtag (Youth Parliament of a Province of the

Federation), and Children and Youth Representatives.

Children’s Council

Children’s Councils have already been initiated in many local councils in order to

provide young community members the opportunity to get actively involved in

council politics and to implement child- and youth-friendly ideas together with

those responsible. An election may signal the beginning of a Children’s Council.

Another possibility is an invitation with a strong appeal and challenge

(character), which is sent to all the children in the target age group. The period

of office is usually two years. A Children’s Council is a good prerequisite for

continuing cooperation between children and adults and a good basis for

follow-up projects. In principle, a Children’s Council has the task of advising the

decision-makers in matters concerning children and young people, which of

course only makes sense if the Children’s Council is taken seriously and its ideas

are taken into account in the decision-making process.

For Children’s Councils to become a genuine instrument for co-determination,

they should be embedded in a comprehensive plan for the involvement of

children and young people.

Youth Forum

Youth Forums can be formed in a number of different ways. On the one hand,

they may arise as a loose cooperation for young people and adults. On the other

hand, it is possible to elect representatives of youth forums. The appointment

may also be carried out according to the delegation principle, which means that

youth organisations, associations and free youth initiatives send representatives

to regular meetings. A youth forum may be assigned the task of initiating and

running active participation models and projects. Through working together,

goals are reached more quickly and efficiently.

CONTACT

beteiligung.st specialist contact partner for the involvement and

participation of children, young people and adult

citizens in socio-political life

Karmeliterplatz 2

8010 Graz

Tel.: +43-316/90370-110

Fax: +43-316/90370-113

E-Mail: office@beteiligung.st

Web: www.beteiligung.st

www.facebook.com/fachstelle.beteiligungst