Europe must invest in education and youth
To the Heads of State and Government of the European Union
The economic crisis has hit the youth of Europe very hard. Youth unemployment between 15 and 24 years of age has increased by 50% since the start of the crisis, and currently one in five young people in Europe – more than five million – is out of a job. This cannot continue. We cannot afford a lost generation.
Education and training must be at the heart of Europe's response. Any civilized society wants to invest in the future of its young people, so that they can fully assume their role as active citizens, get a rewarding job and feel fulfilled. It is crucial to ensure a good education that prepares our young people for a world of increasing change, mobility, interdependence and multiculturalism.
Over the past 25 years, the European Union's popular 'Erasmus' program has enabled nearly three million young Europeans to study abroad. More recently, this program also supported internships in companies in another country. An entire generation has learned the meaning of living and working with people from other cultures and the importance of developing the skills and versatility that are essential for today's job market. This is a generation that has managed to find some of the best jobs.
We hope that the 2012/2013 budgets allocated to the Erasmus program will be sufficient to respect the commitments already made previously with the students, otherwise thousands of them could lose an experience with the potential to change their lives.
The European Union has proposed a new funding program – the “Erasmus for All” program – which will open up these opportunities to millions of other young Europeans from 2014 onwards. It will allow them to study, train, work and volunteer in another country, but also benefit from the kind of experience that will help them secure their precious first job.
The "Erasmus for All" program will cost less than 2 % of the total EU budget. In the coming weeks, EU Heads of State and Government will be presented with a unique opportunity to approve the new program and guarantee it the necessary resources.
Our young people deserve this contribution. Our future depends on it.
Signatories
Portugal
Vasco da Graça Moura, president of Centro Cultural de Belém
Fernando Carvalho Rodrigues, scientist and former director at NATO
Teresa de Sousa, journalist
Manuel José Santos Silva, University of Beira Interior
Austria
Serge Falck, actor
Peter Hofbauer, director
Uwe Kroeger, musical star
Vera Russwurm, TV Moderator
René Kremser, Ambassador Erasmus, Institute of Social Services
Belgium
Jonathan and Kévin Borlée, Olympic athletes
Axelle Red, singer
Lien Van de Kelder, actress and former Erasmus student
Bulgaria
Stefka Kostadinova, president of the National Olympic Committee, world record holder in the high jump
Professor Rumyana Todorova, Ambassador Erasmus, Vice Dean of Science, Research and International Relations, Shumen University
Boryana Klinkova, Erasmus Ambassador, International Program Coordinator, Friedrich-Alexander University, Erlangen-Nuremberg
Czech Republic
Jiří Bělohlávek, Principal Conductor of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
Pavel Nedvěd, former football player, member of the Juventus board of directors
Eva Jiřičná, architect and designer
Martin Wichterle, entrepreneur
Cyprus
Professor Christopher Pissarides, 2010 Nobel Prize in Economics
Michalis Sarris, economist and former Minister of Finance
Pavlos Kontides, sailor, silver medal at the 2012 Olympic Games
Cyprien Katsaris, pianist
Vivian Kanari, TV presenter
Denmark
Professor Marlene Wind, Director of the Center for European Policy, University of Copenhagen
Professor Gerard Byrne, artist, Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts
Estonia
Helen Lokuta, opera singer
Johannes Tralla, television journalist
Finland
Tuomo Martikainen, Emeritus Professor at the University of Helsinki
Paula Pietilä, Erasmus Ambassador, Coordinator for People with Disabilities, University of Turku
França
Lilian Thuram, ex-footballer, winner of the World Cup and the European Championship, director of an anti-racism foundation
Professor Pierre Joliot-Curie, biologist, Center National de la Recherche Scientifique, grandson of Marie Curie
Michel Serres, philosopher and writer
Cedric Villani, mathematician, vice president of EuropaNova
Germany
Detlev Buck, producer and actor
Daniel Bruhl, actor
Cornelia Funke, writer
Peter Scholze, math teacher
Greece
Sia Kosioni, journalist
Maria Farantouri, singer
Giannis Tsimitselis, actor
Dionisis Tsaknis, composer
Gkikas Magiorkinis, winner of the Marie Curie Award 2012, Oxford University and University of Athens
Hungary
Aron Szilágyi, Fencer, World Champion and Gold Medal at the 2012 Olympic Games
Eszter Ónodi, actress
Ireland
Mick Galwey, former Irish rugby team captain
Gerry McLoughlin, mayor of Limerick and former international rugby player
Noelle O'Connell, Executive Director, European Movement Ireland
Jessica Gough, Erasmus Ambassador, National University of Ireland, Galway
Italy
Beppe Severgnini, journalist, columnist and writer
Margherita Hack, astrophysicist and scientific text writer
Federico Taddia, radio DJ and television presenter
Elisa Di Francisca, Fencer, Gold Medal at the 2012 Olympic Games
Latvia
Juris Šteinbergs, professor of Molecular Biology and well-known TV personality
Lauris Reiniks, singer/songwriter, TV presenter and actor
Aleksejs Naumovs, Ambassador Erasmus and Rector of the Latvian Academy of Arts
Madara Apsalone, Deputy National Representative of the Erasmus Student Network, Ministry of Finance
Lithuania
Rūta Meilutytė, swimmer, gold medal at the 2012 Olympic Games
Martynas Levickis, accordionist
Erica Jennings, singer/songwriter
Luxembourg
Jean Muller, pianist
Liz May, triathlon athlete
Patrick Weimerskirch, President of the Youth Parliament
Joseph Lorent, Journalist and Secretary General of the Press Council Ranga Yogeshwar
Ranga Yogeshwar, author, scientific journalist and physicist
Malta
Valerie Vella, TV presenter
Pierre Mejlak, writer
Ira Losco, pop singer
Países Baixos
Bram Peper, Ambassador Erasmus, Assistant Professor, Erasmus University Rotterdam
Désirée Majoor, Ambassador Erasmus, Vice-Chairman of the Management Board of the Faculty of Arts, HKU University of Utrecht
Poland
Wojciech Bach, actor
Jerzy Baczyński, Editor-in-Chief of Polityka Magazine
Wilhelm Sasnal, artist, winner of the biennial Vincent van Gogh Contemporary Art Award in 2006
Małgorzata Ludwisiak, curator and deputy director of the Łodz Art Museum
Romania
Ivan Patzaichin, canoeing champion
Vlad Petreanu, journalist and blogger
Luca Niculescu, journalist and television presenter
Slovenia
Mojca Mavec, journalist, TV presenter and publicist
Eva and Nika Prusnik, singers, ambassadors of the Youth on the Move initiative
Eslovaquia
Emilia Vašáryová, actress
Karin Habšudová, tennis player
Adela Banášová, TV presenter
Spain (España)
Pedro Almodóvar, film director
Sandro Rosell, president of FC Barcelona
Fernando Savater, philosopher and writer
Enrique Pérez Vergara (Flipy), TV presenter
Javier Marías, writer, winner of the national literature award
Sweden
Anders Wijkman, Principal Advisor at the Stockholm Environment Institute and President of the Club of Rome
Staffan Nilsson, Chairman of the Economic and Social Committee
Rolf Gustavsson, journalist
Hans Åhl, Ambassador Erasmus, University of Central Sweden
Karl-Fredrik Ahlmark, Ambassador Erasmus, University of Gothenburg
United Kingdom
Rhodri Morgan, former Prime Minister of Wales
David Hare, playwright
Larry Lamb, actor
Sian Lloyd, TV weather report host
Claire Belcher, 2012 Marie Curie Award Winner, University of Exeter
Cornelia Parker OBE, sculptor and author of art installations
John Stezaker, artist
Gwyneth Lewis, poet and writer
Mererid Hopwood, poet and writer
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