EURACTIV, the pan-European media network specialised in EU policies, is the dissemination partner of the STYLE Project. The aim of EURACTIV’s participation was to raise the profile of the project in EU policy-making circles and to present the outcomes of the STYLE Project’s research to relevant policy stakeholders, hence ensuring the uptake of the Project’s results in EU policies.
Throughout the implementation of the Project, EURACTIV ensured editorial coverage of youth (un)employment with articles, interviews, opinion pieces and videos published in English on its main website, euractiv.com. The Social Europe & Jobs section acted as the policy hub for project-related coverage, collecting all relevant editorial content for an easier consultation and a continuous flow of information.
The logo of the STYLE Project was clearly visible and listed as one of the section’s sponsors. The logo directed readers to the STYLE website with a view to making the learn more about the Project. A dedicated RSS feed also linked the EURACTIV Social Europe & Jobs section content to the Project website.
Stories were translated into French and German and published on euractiv.fr and euractiv.de, respectively, reaching a wider number of readers in their local language. More than 150 editorial items were published in French and German.
During the implementation of the Project, EURACTIV published more than 400 editorial items in English on euractiv.com, resulting in more than 800,000 page views (of which approximately 350,000 are unique visitors) and hence raising awareness of youth (un)employment policy among stakeholders.
Policy-makers from the EU institutions and national governments represent approximately 23% of readers on EURACTIV. It is therefore estimated that approximately 80,000 of these policy-makers have been informed of youth (un)employment policy through EURACTIV, proving the impact created by the Project’s dissemination activities.
The top 15 countries of origin of the readers are: US, Belgium, UK, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Romania, Australia, Canada, Portugal, Denmark, Poland and Ireland. Other countries of origin of the readers include countries in which the EURACTIV Network is present and others participating in the STYLE Project, including Greece, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Turkey, Switzerland, Norway.
Special coverage was ensured through two ad-hoc publications on euractiv.com: a Linksdossier and a Special Report.
A Linksdossier is a comprehensive editorial overview that presents the main issues and stakeholders’ positions in the policy debate – the Linksdossier Fighting youth unemployment: an EU priority was published in July 2014 (attracting more than 6,000 page views, more than 4,000 of which are unique page views).
A Special Report is an in-depth publication comprising five articles published over the period of one week to raise the visibility of a specific policy issue – the Special Report Youth unemployment was published in September 2015 (attracting more than 12,000 page views, more than 9,000 of which are unique page views).
Of the topics covered by EURACTIV in the Social Europe & Jobs section and related to the Project, the most read articles were related to:
- Youth Guarantee. See Youth Employment Initiative under threat in 2016 (05/11/2016) Thyssen: Our fight against youth unemployment is beginning to bear fruit (22/01/2016) Pushing the Youth Employment Initiative into overdrive (10/03/2015)
- Over-education. See Don’t just take first job offer, new graduates warned (19/01/2016) Youth leader: ‘We need to stop internships replacing real jobs’ (18/03/2016)
- See Addressing youth unemployment through human rights (13/05/2016) Youth unemployment: Addressing the skills gap (01/04/2015) Study: Countries with faster school-to-work transitions have lower unemployment (18/08/2014)
- See Immigration helps push German employment to record high (04/01/2016) Germany debates new immigration law amid skills shortage (17/04/2015)
- Social impact. See Young Europeans continue to find it difficult to fly the nest (28/11/2016) Youth organisations have role to play in tackling violent radicalisation (20/05/2016) Commission seeks to reach disenfranchised youth (25/03/2015)
- Investment in education and skills. See EU eSkills campaigns reduce gap in the labour market (18/11/2016) Giving youth the skills to innovate and lead Europe in the 21st century (19/05/2016) Education expert: Linking schools with businesses is win-win (02/06/2015) Can Juncker’s investment plan live up to the promise it offers young people? (20/04/2016) ILO: EU investment plan could create 2.1 million jobs (29/01/2015)
- Gender issues. See Promoting gender equality in the construction sector (11/03/2016) MEPs’ last attempt to save maternity leave extension (16/03/2015)
Editorial items concerning the effects of Brexit and of new technologies and job models (e.g., Uber) on employment in Europe also attracted the attention of the readers. For example, see How the gig economy is changing employment (28/11/2016) Brexit could cost Britain £100 billion and one million jobs, CBI says (21/03/2016) Good jobs – threatened by the Internet (15/02/2016)
EURACTIV also organised a final policy conference in Brussels in September 2017. The conference presented the Project’s results to policy stakeholders and researchers, creating a constructive debate with institutional representatives. More than 500 stakeholders received the invitation, including MEPs, European Commission officials, representatives from the industry and association level, NGOs, think tanks and universities. Approximately 50 participants attended the final event.
For a first-hand account of EURACTIV’s role in the STYLE Project and to discover how editorial coverage helped raise the profile of the Project among policy-makers, see the video interview with Natalie Sarkic-Todd, EURACTIV European Network and Projects Director.