How YEAs celebrate Europe Day in the United Kingdom

British-based YEAs were recently invited by the EU Delegation to the United Kingdom to celebrate Europe Day in London. I kick-started the festivities accordingly, with a typical British breakfast (cream tea and bacon sandwiches) and video-calling my grandparents in Bulgaria. Being able to maintain these connections between my family in the EU and the United Kingdom, served as an excellent prelude to the spirit of Europe Day in Britain – the importance of nurturing ties between communities.

The programme consisted of a presentation of the EU Delegation’s grant awardees, followed by a cultural showcase of European nations and an evening reception. Walking towards Europe House, we passed the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey and finally onto Smith Square, where the flags of the EU and Ukraine were flying side by side.

The first project we learned about was the Youth and Skills Europe, whose aim is “to engage young people aged 16-30 and not in higher education in EU values, policies and opportunities”. What I noted in particular was the attention paid to running these workshops and events all across the UK, not limited to a particular city or region, in order to truly foster greater cooperation and understanding between young people.

The final initiative was the EU Voices – through financial grants especially, it seeks to “help EU communities [in the UK] connect, build confidence, promote European cultures and languages, and encourage their inclusion in civic and democratic life”. A promising prospect of this scheme was the facilitation of dialogue between EU citizens and their local authorities in Britain, bringing cooperation to the level of policy-making.

After the presentation we made our way to the Cultural Showcase in Sinfonia – a former church and a beautiful testimony to English Baroque architecture. The venue was lined with stalls representing a number of the EU27 member states, eager to promote their nation’s traditions.

Our YEAs played German trivia, made plans to visit the French library in London, ate Austrian plum cake whilst discussing the Linz dialect, sampled Maltese cheese, swapped stories about our favourite cities in Poland and learnt how the country’s heritage is nurtured abroad. My personal highlight of the evening was a moving live performance of Debussy’s Claire de lune by talented young Spanish musicians.

This year’s Europe Day comes at a time when the United Kingdom is set to rejoin the Erasmus+ scheme, whereby Britons can once again benefit from study and work opportunities in Europe. The same applies to EU citizens who, under the same conditions, will be able to complete placements in the UK. Erasmus+ encourages curiosity and immersion in a new society with participants returning from abroad as even more well-rounded individuals who have created friendships for life. After all it is our citizens that uphold cooperation, and Europe Day made the future of EU-UK relations look very bright indeed !