EURYO Conference 2026 Programme

Final programme for the open morning session and the parallel presentation sessions.

Time zone notice: all programme times are shown in AZOST (Azores Summer Time). The corresponding Central European time is displayed in parentheses as CET.

Morning programme · Open session

11 September 2026 · Angra do Heroísmo, Azores
09:30–10:30 AZOST (11:30–12:30 CET)
Keynote speaker · Open session
Strengthening local communities to respond to rural youth needs
Elena Marta – Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Italy – EURYO General Assembly President
10:45–11:00 AZOST (12:45–13:00 CET)
Coffee break
11:00–12:00 AZOST (13:00–14:00 CET)
Panel
Rural Youth in Perspective: Conclusions from the Rural Youth report from the Youth Partnership between the Council of Europe and the European Commission
Antonella Rocca – Parthenope University of Naples, Italy
Anja Fortuna – Rural Pact Support Office / AEIDL – online
Babbis Charalampos – EACEA, European Commission – online
Lana Pasic – Council of Europe – online
12:00–12:30 AZOST (14:00–14:30 CET)
Presentation of the EURYO policy-brief series
Tatiana Ferreira – Instituto Politécnico de Santarém, Portugal; Vice-Chair of the European Rural Youth Observatory
Mariano Soler – University of Málaga, Spain; Vice-Chair of the European Rural Youth Observatory

Parallel presentation sessions

Online Parallel Session

2026-09-11 · 15:00–17:22 AZOST (17:00–19:22 CET) · Zoom room
15:00–15:10 AZOST (17:00–17:10 CET)
Geographical analysis of the development of public transport and its potential impact on the lives of young people in rural areas: a case study from Croatia
Domagoj Sikac, Slaven Gasparovic, Ivan Sisak
Presenter: Slaven Gasparovic · Online
Rural youth mobilities
15:12–15:22 AZOST (17:12–17:22 CET)
Youth dynamics in Oltenia de Sub Munte: counter-urbanization drivers and retention factors in rural Romania
Claudia Petrescu, Adriana Negut, Flavius Mihalache
Presenter: Claudia Petrescu · Online
Rural youth mobilities
15:24–15:34 AZOST (17:24–17:34 CET)
Youth transitions, mobilities and uncertainties in rural peripheries
Gonzalo Reguera-Zaratiegui
Presenter: Gonzalo Reguera-Zaratiegui · Online
Rural youth mobilities
15:36–15:46 AZOST (17:36–17:46 CET)
Intersecting Constraints and Agency in Rural Mediterranean Youth: Participatory Research Practices to Address Socio-Cultural Dimensions of the “Young Farmer Problem”
Chiara Ceseracciu, Romina Deriu, Giampiero Branca, Federico Mura, Pier Paolo Roggero
Presenter: Chiara Ceseracciu · Online
Youth work in rural areas
15:48–15:58 AZOST (17:48–17:58 CET)
When social trust is ruptured: exclusion and extremist narratives among Romanian rural youth
Claudia Petrescu, Emanuela Ignățoiu-Sora, Flavius Mihalache, Adriana Negut, Mihaela Lambru
Presenter: Claudia Petrescu · Online
Youth civic, social and political participation
16:00–16:10 AZOST (18:00–18:10 CET)
Staying Green, Staying Put? Young People, Sustainable Agriculture Training, and Precarious Youthspaces in Rural Insular Greece
Maria Papadimitriou, Athina Avagianou, Anna Saroukou, Stelios Gialis
Presenter: Maria Papadimitriou · Online
Decent jobs and rural labour markets
16:12–16:22 AZOST (18:12–18:22 CET)
Widening Participation for Rural Learners Through Local Entry Pathways, Tertiary Degrees.
Maria Doherty, Claire Fiddaman
Presenter: Maria Doherty · Online
Formal education, including vocational education and training
16:24–16:34 AZOST (18:24–18:34 CET)
Restanza, Resonance, and Agency: The Right to Stay in Italy’s Inner Areas Between General Orientations and Life Projects
Andrea Orio
Presenter: Andrea Orio · Online
Rural youth mobilities
16:36–16:46 AZOST (18:36–18:46 CET)
Rural Living Through the Eyes of Young People: The Lithuanian Case
Milita Vienažindienė, Jurgita Zaleckienė
Presenter: Milita Vienažindienė · Online
Rural youth mobilities
16:48–16:58 AZOST (18:48–18:58 CET)
Mapping the Margins: Youth Labour Market Exclusion in EU Rural Regions
Athina Avagianou, Vasiliki Krommyda, Kostas Gourzis
Presenter: Athina Avagianou · Online
Youth work in rural areas
17:00–17:10 AZOST (19:00–19:10 CET)
Regional Inequalities and Youth Social Resilience in Lithuania
Tautvydas Vencius
Presenter: Tautvydas Vencius · Online
Social Inclusion
17:12–17:22 AZOST (19:12–19:22 CET)
Digital Competence Development as a Pathway to Rural Youth Inclusion and Democratic Participation
Egle Celiesiene
Presenter: Egle Celiesiene · Online
Youth civic, social and political participation

Parallel Session A - Rural Futures: Youth Transitions, Work and Inclusion

2026-09-11 · 15:00–17:00 AZOST (17:00–19:00 CET) · Room A
15:00–15:10 AZOST (17:00–17:10 CET)
Classifying Rural Futures: How Territorial Typologies Shape Youth Mobility, Opportunity, and Recognition in Rural Europe
Marh Echtai, Rodrigo Cardoso, Caroline Newton
Presenter: Marh Echtai · In-person
Rural youth mobilities
15:12–15:22 AZOST (17:12–17:22 CET)
Going, staying or coming back? Spatial (in)justice among rural youth
Stefania Ferrua
Presenter: Stefania Ferrua · In-person
Rural youth mobilities
15:24–15:34 AZOST (17:24–17:34 CET)
Rendering Identity Visible: A Qualitative GIS Approach to Place Attachment among Rural Youth in Depopulating Regions
Reina Nishiwaki
Presenter: Reina Nishiwaki · In-person
Rural youth mobilities
15:48–15:58 AZOST (17:48–17:58 CET)
Disability Inclusion in the Reinforced Youth Guarantee: Challenges and Opportunities for Rural Young People in Europe
Tatiana Ferreira, Antonella Rocca, Mariano Soler Porta, Francisco Simões
Presenter: Tatiana Ferreira · In-person
Social Inclusion
16:00–16:10 AZOST (18:00–18:10 CET)
Employment Quality and Working Conditions of Young People in Rural Areas: Evidence from the European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS)
Ruta Braziene, Antonella Rocca
Presenter: Antonella Rocca · In-person
Youth work in rural areas
16:12–16:22 AZOST (18:12–18:22 CET)
The social construction of youth offending: youth rights, employment services and decent jobs in rural labour markets
Vladislava Lendzhova, Sonya Georgieva
Presenter: Vladislava Lendzhova · In-person
Decent jobs and rural labour markets
16:24–16:34 AZOST (18:24–18:34 CET)
NYNA NEETs and Digitalisation: How Many Challenges on the Horizon?
Leonor Bettencourt, Nadine Correia, Paolo Mazzocchi, Antonella Rocca
Presenter: Antonella Rocca · In-person
Dual transition and impacts in rural labour markets

Parallel Session B - Shaping Rural Futures: Participation, Agency and Belonging

2026-09-11 · 15:00–17:00 AZOST (17:00–19:00 CET) · Room B
15:00–15:10 AZOST (17:00–17:10 CET)
Youth firefighting teams as organizations mobilizing rural youth in Poland
Marcin Bajur
Presenter: Marcin Bajur · In-person
Best practice example
15:12–15:22 AZOST (17:12–17:22 CET)
Participatory Futures Workshops for Rural Youth: The “My Future, Our Future” Method in European Public Spaces
Pasi Hario
Presenter: Pasi Hario · In-person
Best practice example
15:24–15:34 AZOST (17:24–17:34 CET)
Cultural capability as a source of the urban–rural divide: The case of Slovenian youth
Tomaz Dezelan
Presenter: Tomaz Dezelan · In-person
Youth civic, social and political participation
15:36–15:46 AZOST (17:36–17:46 CET)
Youth Spaces as Relational Infrastructures: Participation, Self-Organisation and Community Belonging in Peripheral Territories
Federica Demicheli
Presenter: Federica Demicheli · In-person
Youth civic, social and political participation
15:48–15:58 AZOST (17:48–17:58 CET)
The Right to Prosper through Food Democracy: Addressing the Information Deficit and Political Exclusion of Greek Young Farmers in the NGT Era
Chrysoula Kapartziani
Presenter: Chrysoula Kapartziani · In-person
Youth civic, social and political participation
16:00–16:10 AZOST (18:00–18:10 CET)
Co-constructing Dignified Futures in Rural Territories: Youth School-to-Work Transitions in the Cremona Area
Adriano Mauro Ellena, Elena Marta, Guendalina Graffigna, Michele Paleologo, Paride Spinelli
Presenter: Adriano Mauro Ellena · In-person
Youth civic, social and political participation
16:12–16:22 AZOST (18:12–18:22 CET)
Towards a Stakeholder-Informed VET Excellence Model for European Island Regions: Insights from the OVER-SEES Project
M. Leonor Rodrigues, Francisco Simões, Leonor Bettencourt
Presenter: Leonor Bettencourt Rodrigues · In-person
Formal education, including vocational education and training
16:24–16:34 AZOST (18:24–18:34 CET)
Narratives of Opportunity and Rural Futures: Preliminary Findings from the Root Rural Project
João Almeida, Andrea Barbosa, Alícia Diaz
Presenter: Andrea Barbosa · In-person
Youth entrepreneurship and jobs

Closing session

11 September 2026 · Angra do Heroísmo, Azores
17:00–17:15 AZOST (19:00–19:15 CET)
Final remarks and closing