Brežice, a small town in eastern Slovenia, has been picked to host the European Youth Event (EYE) in May alongside Berlin, Vilnius and Italy's Forli. The event brings together young people from all over the EU to discuss topical issues and share and shape their ideas on Europe's future.

One of the four local EYE events, the meeting in Brežice will run between 23 and 26 May, gathering more than 200 young people from Slovenia and neighbouring countries, aged between 16 and 30.

MaMa, a network of 55 Slovenian youth centres, will organise the event in cooperation with the Brežice institute for entrepreneurship, tourism and youth, the Brežice municipality and the National Youth Council of Slovenia.

"On the initiative of young people from Brežice, we decided to apply for the project because they identified MaMa Network as an organisation that could, together with them and other young people, contribute to greater inclusion of young people in society and provide opportunities for joint participation," said Maja Hostnik, head of the MaMa Network.

Taking place at the European Parliament in Strasbourg and online, the biannual EYE event is attended by more than 10,000 young people from all over the EU and the world.

It is seen as one of the strongest points of contact between the European Parliament and young people. With local EYEs, the organisers want to take a part of the event across the EU.

"We believe that the Brežice event will be an excellent overture in the run-up to the elections, introducing young people to the workings of the EU, the importance of participation in elections and providing guidance on how everyone can contribute to strengthening European democracy. Even if it's just by casting their vote," said Jan Štrukelj of the European Parliament Office in Slovenia.

The programme, which has been created based on the ideas provided by young people, will include workshops in photography, fine art, music, dance, improvisational theatre, theatre of the oppressed, short film, and poetry and short story writing.

There will be debates featuring well-known Slovenians, debate competitions, speaker's corner, and workshops on opportunities for the young in the EU. Concerts will be held in the evenings.

Before the EYE, an online campaign will be launched to raise awareness among the young about the role, results and impact of the European Parliament on their lives to encourage them to turn out in the June election.