Gearing up for YO!Fest 2015

The date is set and work is well underway preparing for YO!Fest 2015, which will take place on 6th May on the esplanade of the European Parliament in Brussels.

The YO!Fest is an annual youth festival organised by the European Youth Forum in symbolic venues of the EU institutions. Its name comes from the YO!Mag (Youth Opinion), which is the magazine of the platform of youth organisations in Europe since 1980. The festival is the biggest and key event organised by the Youth Forum in order to introduce its member organisations and partners and their activities to the broad public and to further the Youth Forum’s advocacy work towards the key EU institutions.
YO!Fest 2015, which will take place on Esplanade of European Parliament on 6 May, is the 6th edition of the political festival with debates, workshops and music, which mobilises youth organisations and other civil society partners, as well as thousands of people from Belgium and beyond for a cause concerning young people in Europe.

This year’s edition is organised in the context of the European Youth Week and the European Year for Development. The theme for this year’s YO!Fest is “Grow together!" and the focus will be on sustainable growth and development at different levels. The festival will also explore topics around social inclusion and the role of civil society. This theme encapsulates the idea that development is about all of us, it’s about youth organisations, it’s about people, communities and societies, from the local to the national to the European level! Development is not something that should focus only on countries in faraway continents, but is happening every day, close to home. It is about building bridges and connecting people and it is what the Youth Forum’s members, youth organisations, are doing every day. It is about building an inclusive and caring society, for its young people and ultimately for all.

The Youth Forum calls on its member organisations and partner organisations to submit ideas for activities for this year's YO!Fest via yofest@youthforum.org by filling up the yofest!form by the 4th of March!