Youth Associations

Co-determination and self-organised and self-determined youth work are quality criteria of their work. Youth associations are places of non-formal learning and offer diverse opportunities for voluntary commitment. They organise children’s and youth group work, train youth leaders, organise children’s and youth holiday camps, conduct international exchanges and extracurricular youth education seminars.

The Landesjugendring (“State Youth Council”) umbrella organisation

34 associations are currently organised in the Landesjugendring Berlin e.V., the umbrella organisation for the youth associations that are active state-wide. The main focus of the work of the umbrella organisation is to represent youth-related interests in politics, society and administration.

With its numerous projects, including those aimed at strengthening democratic participation, the State Youth Council helps to give the voice of young people more weight in all areas that affect them. The project Youth in dialogue round table should be mentioned as an example in this context.

As the sponsor of the Voluntary Social Year (FSJ), the State Youth Council places volunteers in youth associations, youth education centres and other youth work organisations in projects that also take place in cooperation with schools.

The State Youth Council is entrusted with the task of a central agency for transferring public funds to its members and the sponsors of the youth education centres in Berlin. Based on a jointly concluded framework agreement, it forwards to the youth associations and youth education centres the funds earmarked in the state budget for supporting youth association work – also for the measures that are carried out in cooperation with schools – and the youth education centres.

The migrant youth self-organisations are associations of young people with an immigrant background who are involved in civil society and youth politics. They are contributing to doing justice to the cultural diversity of Berlin.

The volunteers in the organisations not only participate in youth policy decision-making processes with their commitment but also actively and in a self-organised and self-determined way shape our city into a place of a mutual exchange of views and cooperation.

Ten organisations are now active in the State Youth Council of Berlin. These organisations advocate for social, political and societal equality for their members and aim to provide all young people living here with the same opportunities for participation.

For the intercultural opening of the youth associations and the integration of migrant youth organisations, the State Youth Council of Berlin in cooperation with the Hamburg State Youth Council is carrying out the Participation education integration project to support initiatives by young people with a migration background in order to build stable association structures and to achieve a stronger participation of young migrants in the structures of the State Youth Council.

The youth leader card, Juleica for short, is a nationwide uniform, official ID for regular voluntary activity in youth work. It is used by youth leaders for legitimation and as proof of qualification to participants and their parents as well as to government and non-governmental agencies.

Individuals aged 16 and over who are active as volunteers in youth work and who have Juleica training and first aid training can acquire the Juleica. The card can be applied for online at the State Youth Council of Berlin. The current discounts for youth leaders as well as information on basic and advanced training can also be found on the website of the State Youth Council.