The understanding of solidarity of young people in the European Solidarity Corps

This paper examines questions such as: What do young people associate with the concept of solidarity; where do they see a need for action; and in which areas do they want to become active? Furthermore, the paper looks at the role of the 4 cornerstones of solidarity (Human Rights, Active Citizenship, Inclusion and Empathy) and how it impacts young people’s realisation of their projects.

To address these questions a number of interviews from selected projects from Germany are analysed. Quantitative as well as qualitative data from the participation research is presented. The results of the collected data conclude that the European Solidarity Corps offers young people an interesting option for getting engaged in terms of active citizenship and for creating solidarity among young people across Europe.