RAY TRIANGULAR SUMMIT

LIVE STREAM SESSIONS

Be part of the RAY Triangular Summit!

During the RAY Triangular Summit, we will livestream the following four sessions on on 22 October:

11:00 CEST: What is working well? Key findings from RAY on European youth programmes (input)

Andreas Karsten (RAY transnational research coordinator) presents key findings from the latest RAY Monitoring surveys conducted with beneficiaries and participants of the European youth programmes on what is working well in the programmes.

12:20 CEST: Youth Panel – comments and reflections on the findings

The main aim of this panel discussion with five young panelists representing various roles in national decision-making and youth participation is to explore and reflect on recent findings from the RAY monitoring surveys, conducted with beneficiaries and participants of the European youth programmes. Especially in the light of the next generation of the programme (from 2028 onwards) as well as related policy frameworks, the following key directions will be addressed. What is working well in the programmes? What should be kept? What needs to be changed? The programmes have a great impact on young people, but how can more young people not only benefit from them but be an active voice in shaping programmes and policies?

15:30 CEST: Challenges and shortcomings – Key findings from RAY on European youth programmes (input)

17:30 CEST: Policy Panel – comments and reflections on the findings

The main aim of this commentary panel discussion with five European policy and decision makers representing different institutions in the youth field is to explore recent findings from the RAY monitoring surveys, conducted with beneficiaries and participants of the European youth programmes. Key focus is to reflect how these evidence-based insights can support the development of the next generation of the Erasmus+ programme (from 2028 onwards) as well as related policy frameworks, such as the European Youth Strategy.

Details on how to follow the live-stream will be shared here and RAY social media channels closer to the event.

PANELISTS, YOUTH PANEL:

Makbule Temel is a trainer and facilitator in non-formal education specializing in inclusion, interculturality, and conflict transformation. She started as an ESC volunteer herself, and turned her passion for non-formal learning into a career. After years of coordinating ESC projects, she launched her own ESC Solidarity Project in 2025. In recognition of her multi-faceted, long-term commitment across various roles in the ESC and Erasmus+ world, she was appointed official ESC Ambassador 2025 by the Austrian National Agency. In this role, she works closely with the agency to represent Austria’s delegation on a national and international level, to promote European youth programs, and to empower future changemakers.

Wendla Schaper started with being engaged in projects and political events of the Youth Council in northern German city Bremen, and later became a Youth Representative in the EU-Youth Dialogue. They have experience in ESC volunteering as Youth Programme Co-creater at Ljubljana Pride Association in Slovenia, gaining experience in political activism on human and LGBTIQ+ rights and youth work. They are also part of the Youth Advisory Board of the German National Agency. Being a co-researcher sparked Wendla’s interest in research on EU youth politics and led to an internship at the Center for applied policy research, CAP in Munich. Wendla studies Political and Environmental Sciences at Leuphana University Lüneburg.

Emma van Straten is one of the seven board members of the Dutch Youth Council (NJR), where she focuses on youth participation at the international level. The Dutch Youth Council is the largest youth network in the Netherlands, seeking to empower and strengthen the position of young people within and beyond the Netherlands. The Dutch Youth Council works together with the National Agency on the co-creation of local youth participation projects and the sharing of information and knowledge. Together they are also part of the national working group on the European Union Youth Dialogue (EUYD).

Ángel Pérez Contreras is a translator and interpreter pursuing a Master’s Degree in High International and European Studies at the University of Granada and has worked as Project Manager at the Arqus European University Alliance. He is experienced in youth work, student mobility, policy & advocacy, non-formal education and EU-funded projects. He is President of the Erasmus Student Network in Spain and Head of International Affairs in the Spanish Youth Council, which he also represents at the European Youth Forum. He has been involved with the National Agency in Spain in the development of long-term Sustainability and Digitalization Strategies, the coordination of youth organizations in events, the co-management of programmes such as the EU Youth Dialogue the impact assessment of European mobility programmes for young people.

Raphael Olympio is Cork based artist that enjoys dabbling into various genres to explore his versatility. He is a rapper and spoken word artist but depending on the message uses other genres to express himself. He is also a Creative Practitioner and Occupational Therapist specialising in mental health, and facilitates workshops with young people and adults. He has worked with Léargas through a number of creative and youth-focused projects over the years. He has been involved in the European Solidarity Corps and facilitated a Music & Social Justice workshop through SALTO/Erasmus+, working with young people from across Europe and using creativity as a tool for youth voice, participation and social change. Recently, he contributed to Eurodesk Ireland’s 30th anniversary celebrations as a guest speaker and performer.

PANELISTS, POLICY PANEL:

Aisling Maloney is a Board Member of the European Youth Forum, where she leads on advocating for stronger investment in youth organisations and more inclusive, accessible European youth programmes. Over the last ten years, she has represented young people in Ireland at local, national and international levels on meaningful participation, human rights and sustainable development. She holds a law degree from University College Dublin and has continued her postgraduate studies at the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Tobias Flessenkemper is Head of the Youth Department of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg since 2023. In his role he oversees the work of the European Youth Centre with venues in Strasbourg and Budapest, with its education, training and cooperation programme, the European Youth Foundation, the youth policy development and the EU-Council of Europe youth partnership and the support to the co-management bodies of those key instruments in the field of Youth of the Council of Europe.

Marcos Ros Sempere is a Member of the European Parliament for the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) since February 2020 and a member of the Committee on Culture and Education (CULT). He has been closely involved in European education policy, including as S&D shadow rapporteur for the INI report on a new vision for the European Universities Alliances. He is also currently working as shadow rapporteur on an opinion on workers’ right to training, with a focus on the recognition and portability of skills. Before becoming an MEP, he worked for eleven years as a professor of Urban Planning at the School of Architecture of Cartagena. He holds a doctorate in architecture and has extensive experience in higher education and teaching

Jadranka Vukovic Johnsson is a Senior Expert for youth policy at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture (DG EAC), in the Youth and Intergenerational Fairness unit. She works on EU youth policy, links between youth policy and programmes, and supports the implementation of the EU Youth Strategy. Having joined the Commission in 1996, she has experience from several Directorates-General. Since moving to DG EAC in 2016, she has worked on Erasmus+ Youth, the European Solidarity Corps and EU youth policy, and since 2022 has coordinated preparations for the future EU Youth Strategy. She holds a degree in business administration and economics from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

Aidan Farrelly is a member of the Irish parliament since 2024, and is the Social Democrats spokesperson for youth. Aidan has been a youth worker since 2006, graduating from Maynooth University in Ireland with a MSocSc in Community Work and Youth Work in 2018 and just this year graduated with a Doctorate for his research titled “A mixed-methods study of Irish youth workers’ perceptions of their occupation and implications for youth work as a profession”.

CONTEXT

The RAY Triangular Summit 2026 brings together policy, practice and research to explore and discuss most recent RAY research findings and essential insights from other European studies related to youth.

We will foster an informed discourse between stakeholders from different fields to determine how evidence-based research can contribute to the further development of the current and upcoming generation of the European youth programmes, as well as European youth policy strategies and frameworks. Read more HERE.