Vice Mayor Christoph Wiederkehr and LAbg. and GRin Nina Abrahamczik discussed topics such as future opportunities, work and health with young people.
Vienna (OTS) – The Vienna adult education centers invited around 50 teenagers and young adults to a very special discussion and participation event on May 3rd. The participants from five VHS school leaving and preparation courses as part of “Level Up – Adult Education” had the opportunity to work out their concerns and thoughts in moderated workshops. The group discussions took place in the morning and were supervised by students from the social work course at the fh campus wien.
“It is not uncommon for young people to be accused of being dissatisfied with politics. On the other hand, we see that young people think a lot about society. I would like to thank our panel guests for giving these young people the chance to engage directly with politics,” emphasizes VHS managing director, Herbert Schweiger.
In the afternoon, the top-class plenary session offered the opportunity to discuss questions directly with political decision-makers. The guests were Christoph Wiederkehr, Vice Mayor of the City of Vienna as well as City Councilor for Education, Youth, Integration and Transparency and LAbg. and GRin Nina Abrahamczik, Chairwoman of the City Council Committee for Climate, Environment, Democracy and Human Resources and Member of the City Council Committee for Education, Youth, Integration and Transparency.
“Participation and participation: Each of us can change something if we only want to. The young participants in the Youth Parliament are not only the future, but also the present of our society. The issues discussed here are real: They’re about waiting times for doctors, discrimination in jobs and housing, and the challenges of combining training and childcare. If you want to change something, you have to stand up, express your opinion and work for it. This is a given in the youth parliament!” says Deputy Mayor Christoph Wiederkehr.
Topics that move
The participants of the VHS Youth Parliament attend VHS courses in the areas of basic education, compulsory school leaving certificates and bridging courses, which are carried out as part of “Level Up – Adult Education”. Preparations for the event took place over several weeks. The courses discussed topics that are important in the lives of the participants and distilled complexes of questions. Students of the social work course at the fh campus wien prepared for moderation and supervision of the workshops as part of a seminar and accompanied the discussion process on site.
The following four topic areas emerged as particularly important for the reality of young people’s lives: work and education, health, money and social issues and social cohesion.
“The topics that the participants of the VHS Youth Parliament presented reflect the topics that concern us as a whole society. Inflation is a particularly big challenge for young people. Whether it’s health care, job prospects or the question of opportunities for participation, especially if you don’t have the right to vote – naming your own problems and demanding possible solutions is important. I am pleased that the VHS Youth Parliament offers an opportunity to exchange ideas with each other and to strengthen young people and young adults,” says LAbg. and GRin Nina Abrahamczik.
Level Up – Adult Education
The Vienna adult education centers offer various free basic education courses at different locations as part of the Level Up – Adult Education project, funded by the European Social Fund as well as funds from the State of Vienna and the Federal Ministry of Education. There is also the option of completing compulsory schooling free of charge.
Further information and the entire VHS offering can be found at www.vhs.at.
Press photos will soon be available at www.vhs.at/presse.
Questions & Contact:
Nadja Pospisil, M.Sc
Media spokesperson
Vienna adult education centers
Tel.: 01/89 174-100 105
Mobil: 0699 189 177 58
E-Mail: nadja.pospisil@vhs.at
www.vhs.at
#VHS #Youth #Parliament #Experience #political #participation #close