Deadline: September 1, 2023 | Call for Expressions of Interest: Young Researchers’ Network Initiative 2023 (up to €10,000)
The European Partnership for Democracy (EPD), which is financed by the European Union through its Women and Youth in Democracy (WYDE) program, is open to suggestions for the Young Researchers’ Network project within the context of the European Democracy Hub.
Making young people’s voices heard is necessary to make democratic systems sustainable and representative of all generations. To further comprehend youth issues with nuance and complexity, it is vital to position young people as the best suited for political research participation as it most affects themselves and their peers.
To do so, the Young Researchers’ Network initiative will bring together a broad collection of international young scholars and democracy support practitioners to develop cross-regional and cross-disciplinary discussions on the topic of youth involvement in democracies across the world.
Selected researchers will follow a three-year plan, financed by the Youth Democracy Cohort. They will have the chance to converse with experts in the fields of youth participation, civic engagement, and democracy and learn from them. The curriculum foresees tutor support and regular meetings to verify with participants how their research and data analysis is proceeding and if they need support from their peers. Additionally, there will be regular webinars on engaging subjects for the young group of researchers as well as online training sessions on research methodologies, data collection, and paper drafting.
12 Case Studies on Youth Political Participation
- The initiative will result in the publication of 12 case studies (3000 words) written by young researchers, to be collated into a flagship report on global youth political participation.
- The paper will highlight the consequences for policy and offer suggestions for national and international development donors and decision-makers in youth policy on how to increase youth involvement.
Benefits
- In order to support their part-time research on a country-specific case study and ad-hoc research assistance for the Young Researchers’ Network initiative over the initiative’s three-year duration, successful candidates will receive EUR 10,000.
- Members of the Young Researchers’ Network will be based remotely and will be invited to Brussels to present their research in 2024 and 2025.
Eligibility
- Open to PhD students, early-career academics and young professionals studying or working in an area related to youth in the field of development studies or democracy studies;
- Candidates should be currently undertaking or have been awarded a PhD or master’s degree from an internationally recognised university within the last three years;
- EPD will aim to have representation from all major world regions in the network and will take this into account when considering applications.
Application
Expressions of interest are to be submitted by email to info@youthdemocracycohort.com and must include:
- A filled-in application form (Word | PDF);
- An academic curriculum vitae, including the candidate’s publication record;
- A recommendation letter from their current or most recent university;
- An academic transcript from their current university or degree certificate from their most recent university.
For more information, visit Young Researchers’ Network.
