Hi, my name is Lisa Marie. I’m a 17-year-old from Balbriggan, County Dublin, Ireland. On 11 March I had the amazing opportunity to attend a Youth Dialogue meeting in Dublin.
First of all, I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who helped organise the event and to all the young people who made the day enjoyable. A special thank you to Commissioner Michael McGrath for taking the time to listen to us and answer our questions. It was such a fantastic experience, and I feel so lucky to have been involved!
There were young people from all over Europe, and we got to talk about an important topic—democracy. One of the discussions was about lowering the voting age. I spoke about how important it is to be fully informed before voting. I said there should be a proper education program that teaches us about all the options so that young people feel confident in making decisions that will shape their future.
This has sparked my interest in democracy, hearing everybody’s opinions, and questions, hearing the commissioner's answers.
I also learned that even though the EU can record what young people think about lowering the voting age, it is up to each member country to decide for themselves.
This made me think how important it is for young people to understand how decisions are made and to make sure their voices are heard. Elections help decide our future, so it’s important that young people know what they are voting for and why it matters.
Commissioner McGrath told us that he had spoken to President von der Leyen about young people’s voices in decision-making. He told us that the message from the EU to young people is that our voices matter, and they want to hear us. Knowing that our voices are being heard in the EU made me feel good and even more motivated to speak up.
This event really helped me build my confidence in speaking up, working in groups, and sharing my ideas. It showed me that young people have a powerful voice, and what we say really does matter. I hope there will be more events like this in the future so even more young people can take part in these important conversations.
Overall, I had a great time meeting so many new lovely people. Thank you for the amazing day!