İzmir Speaks for Climate
From İzmir to Europe: Young Voices for Climate Action
In İzmir, ECHOES became more than a project activity. It became a meeting point for young people who wanted to understand how climate change is discussed, how information travels, and how youth voices can reach beyond the room. Organised by EFTA, the dissemination event brought together 17 participants from different organisations, creating an open space where climate awareness, civic engagement and European youth opportunities could meet.
The event started with a simple but important question: How can young people make their voices heard in climate action? From this point, participants were introduced to the ECHOES project, its journey across Europe and the tools developed to support youth climate participation. The session highlighted the project’s main outputs, including the CADPRO training programme, the youth4climaction platform, campaign materials and policy recommendations designed to connect young people with decision-making processes.
What made the İzmir event meaningful was its local energy. Participants did not discuss climate change as a distant or abstract issue. They connected it with their own realities: cities becoming hotter, environmental pressures increasing, young people searching for spaces to speak, and the need for clearer pathways between youth, municipalities, universities and civil society. Through these conversations, ECHOES showed that climate action is not only about individual behaviour, but also about communication, participation and collective responsibility.
The event also created a bridge between local youth engagement and European cooperation. Participants explored how Erasmus+ projects can open new doors for learning, networking and active citizenship. For many young people, the event was also an introduction to how European project culture can support local ideas and turn them into wider conversations.
A key focus was the role of digital tools and communication. As EFTA has a strong experience in education and future technologies, the event also reflected on how young people can use social media, online platforms and digital campaigns not only to share content, but to build messages, challenge misinformation and advocate for climate action in a more informed way.
By the end of the event, İzmir had become one of the local echoes of a wider European call: young people should not only be informed about climate change; they should be supported to speak, organise, question and participate. The discussions, exchanges and contacts created during the event showed that the ECHOES message can continue beyond the project itself, through young people who are ready to carry it into their own communities, schools, universities and networks.
The event reached young people, involved local stakeholders, and introduced five project outputs to the participants. More importantly, it created a space where youth climate voices could be heard with sincerity, curiosity and hope.