Rdzeniem metodycznym pracy jest analiza literatury przedmiotu, dobrych praktyk oraz cząstkowych wyników badań związanych z tematyką artykułu przeprowadzonych wśród radnych młodzieżowych rad gmin w Wielkiej Wsi.

Youth Municipal Council as a tool of civic participation of youth in the Wielka Wieś Commune

Over time, they are more and more tools emerging to increase civic participation of young people at the local level. A form of manifestation of a given phenomenon are the Youth Municipal Council. As a result of their activities, young people stand a chance to gain valuable experience and consider the shape of local government policy. In Poland, there are already over 400 Youth Municipal Councils in which there are active members who want to make a real contribution and influence the local environment. There is a noticeable great potential for youth involvement, which, if properly used, can significantly increase the participation of young people in decision-making processes and, in the longer term, contribute to increased participation in political life.

This article will present the example of the Youth Municipal Councils as a form of youth participation on the example of the Wielka Wieś Commune. The article focuses on several issues. Do young people share the idea of civic participation and want to take part in promoting it, and in what areas does the youth, through Youth Councils, influence changes in their local environment and what are the consequences of this? At the same time, it tries to verify the research hypothesis that the functioning of the Youth Municipal Councils – including the Wielka Wieś Commune, contributes to the strengthening and dissemination of the idea of civic participation among young people. Young people, gain- ing even marginal influence on the shape of the regulation at an early stage of its creation, will be more likely to become involved in its implementation later. The methodological core of the work is the analysis of the literature on the subject, good practices and partial research results related to the subject of the article among councilors from the Youth Municipal Councils in Wielka Wieś.

Keywords: commune, participation, local self-government, Youth Municipal Councils, active citizenship

Over time, they are more and more tools emerging to increase civic participation of young people at the local level. A form of manifestation of a given phenomenon are the Youth Municipal Council. As a result of their activities, young people stand a chance to gain valuable experience and consider the shape of local government policy. In Poland, there are already over 400 Youth Municipal Councils in which there are active members who want to make a real contribution and influence the local environment. There is a noticeable great potential for youth involvement, which, if properly used, can significantly increase the participation of young people in decision-making processes and, in the longer term, contribute to increased participation in political life.

This article will present the example of the Youth Municipal Councils as a form of youth participation on the example of the Wielka Wieś Commune. The article focuses on several issues. Do young people share the idea of civic participation and want to take part in promoting it, and in what areas does the youth, through Youth Councils, influence changes in their local environment and what are the consequences of this? At the same time, it tries to verify the research hypothesis that the functioning of the Youth Municipal Councils – including the Wielka Wieś Commune, contributes to the strengthening and dissemination of the idea of civic participation among young people. Young people, gain- ing even marginal influence on the shape of the regulation at an early stage of its creation, will be more likely to become involved in its implementation later. The methodological core of the work is the analysis of the literature on the subject, good practices and partial research results related to the subject of the article among councilors from the Youth Municipal Councils in Wielka Wieś.