Catching up on the European Youth Energy Day 2023

While age is not something European Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) participants would be ever asked to fill in when registering, the community has been growing to accommodate the voices of all generations. In an effort to make the event more inclusive, since 2020, a new space was introduced to the programme - the European Youth Energy Day, offering original and innovative formats that put tomorrow’s energy leaders at the forefront.  

This year, the very first cohort of 30 Young Energy Ambassadors joined us in Brussels to speak up for their generation’s vision for a clean energy future. Their participation in the event meant the impact of the Youth Energy Day stretched well beyond one day, underlining that young people must be front and centre of conversations about driving forward change – for reasons beyond representation.  

30 outstanding young professionals to represent Europe 

Engineers, campaigners, lawyers and entrepreneurs were among the 30 Young Energy Ambassadors invited to develop original solutions to supercharge the energy transition. Greek-Italian chemist and climate activist Livia Kalossaka was selected from among this group on the grounds of the impact of her work, to be named Young Energy Champion during the Awards Ceremony. 

MEET THE AMBASSADORS

Action-oriented conversations 

A dedicated brainstorming session in a world café format allowed the Young Energy Ambassadors to collect the most relevant ideas in an expertly facilitated hands-on environment. Another session lead by YES-Europe put energy communities high on the agenda. Together, both sessions helped the group align on the most urgent insights and policy recommendations to be promoted throughout the event week – on stage, from the audiences and within the informal networking spaces alike.  

More than one day 

Having Young Energy Ambassadors at the event throughout the week meant they were shaping conversations throughout the conference. Their presence helped boost the profile of youth engagement in the energy transition. The whole cohort joined the Closing Session, where two representatives of the group, Giorgia Epicoco and Nikita Gorbatko summarised their key policy recommendations to the Director-General of the Directorate-General for Energy, Ditte Juul Jørgensen and Diederik Samsom, Head of Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans. 

REWATCH THE SESSION

Sincerely, EUSEW Young 

Who says digital is everything? If you joined us onsite, you might have noticed some hand-written messages appearing around the venue. These notes were part of a campaign led by the Young Energy Ambassadors, who complemented their interventions within the Policy Conference with a curated selection of quotes, questions and prompts to share their vision for Europe’s energy future. Did you spot any messages?