From May 27–29, 2025, the European Youth Centre in Strasbourg became a vibrant hub for co-creating the future of youth civic engagement during the E-volunteering Policy Development Conference. This event was the highlight of the “E-volunteering – Building an Online Volunteering Ecosystem” project, bringing together policy makers, youth representatives, and experts from across Europe.
Why we gathered:
Digital volunteering is a practice that has become widespread—but still lacks the policies and support structures needed to thrive. This conference brought together 40+ stakeholders to close that gap and push for recognition, regulation, and resourcing of e-volunteering.
What we focused on:
From Practice to Policy: Sessions explored the current state and future vision of e-volunteering across Europe.
Council of Europe Word Coffee: A multi-perspective roundtable connecting institutional frameworks with digital participation.
Hands-on Policy Labs: Co-creation workshops that tackled key obstacles and produced actionable recommendations for local and European authorities.
What we achieved:
1. Presented the project’s core outputs:
Volunt@@ring curriculum (for youth organizations)
Volunt@@r curriculum (for e-volunteers)
Integration of e-volunteering features into the DYOu platform
2. Identified policy and legal gaps across five countries
3. Co-developed a set of policy priorities and proposals to guide institutional reforms
The E-volunteering Policy Development Conference in Strasbourg marked a significant milestone in advancing structured, inclusive, and transnational digital volunteering. Through collaborative dialogue, policy analysis, and co-creation, participants worked together to identify key challenges and propose actionable policy solutions. These outcomes will directly inform the development of policy briefs and advocacy actions aimed at embedding e-volunteering into national and European frameworks. The momentum generated in Strasbourg lays the foundation for a more recognized and supported e-volunteering ecosystem across Europe.
