5 ded they are backed by 40 signatures from the same age group. The Zurich youth have the support of Julia Kneubühler. She is responsible for the youth conferences for the city of Zurich on behalf of the Association of Swiss Youth Parliaments (ASYP). The ASYP promotes political participation at all three levels of government – communal, cantonal and national. The digital platform www.engage.ch, developed by the ASYP some ten years ago, is a valuable tool in gauging the needs of young people. Besides the city of Zurich, the canton of Solothurn also uses it, for example to organise a “Jugendpolittag”, a forum where young people can make themselves heard. “Red mit!” (“Join the discussion!”) is the name of the campaign, which is being held for the 18th time in 2025. What outcomes has it brought? There was, for example, a procedural request from 2023 that was supported by all the political parties last year in the cantonal parliament: a school identity card valid throughout the canton allowing pupils discounts. Thousands of requests in the Federal Palace Young people and young adults have also had a voice at a national level for nine years; they have already brought thousands of requests to the Federal Palace. The ideas of 12-to-25-yearolds are gathered every spring on the www.engage.ch platform under the motto “Verändere die Schweiz!” (“Change Switzerland!”). Young members of the Swiss parliament across the entire political spectrum then choose one idea each they would like to act on. At least 100 ideas have been formulated to date with their authors. Granted, they may not have brought groundbreaking change to Swiss politics, but the ASYP is still satisfied. “The fact that young people are playing an active role in the political process is already a success. If ideas turn into specific political requests, so much the better. We know how hard Above: Snapshot from Locarno, where the youth council “Zukunftsrat 2023” drafted 20 recommendations in the area of mental health. Photo: Pro Futuris, Dimitri Brooks IREM DÖ NMEZ Advocate of a procedural request relating to young people’s health. She is proposing new prevention measures to THE CITY OF ZURICH TO strengthen mental health at secondary school level. Photo provided Swiss Review / July 2025 / No.3
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