European Youth Event 2016

During the event, young people will exchange ideas and perspectives on youth-related issues, develop innovative solutions to crucial questions for the future, and meet with European decision-makers and speakers with a wide range of professional experience.

The EYE 2016 will include a large variety of activities run under the political, social, and cultural slogan "Together we can make a change". Coordinated through ESA’s Education Office, the EYE event will feature exciting talks from ESA speakers, including astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, who will address how space is generating innovation and new opportunities for society.

This year’s main themes are:

• War and Peace: Perspectives for a Peaceful Planet
• Apathy or Participation: Agenda for a Vibrant Democracy
• Exclusion or Access: Crackdown on Youth Unemployment
• Stagnation or Innovation: Tomorrow's World of Work 
• Collapse or Success: New Ways for a Sustainable Europe

How can you take part online?

For those of you who will not be able to attend the event, you can still take part online. You can follow and participate directly in the discussions and debates taking place in Strasbourg via workshops, panel discussions, and performances through an online dashboard offering live web streaming and social media feeds.

Follow the #EYE2016 hashtag and the event’s Facebook page to participate in the event online. 

ESA’s participation in EYE 2016

The intrinsic pioneering nature of space, which feeds our ambition to discover and understand the Universe around us and humankind’s place in it, is a powerful source of inspiration for all, especially young people.

In particular, today’s Europe recognises the pivotal role of space in providing the knowledge base and the services required for smart and sustainable growth. Today’s use of space technology for navigation, security, and environmental monitoring ties us more tightly than ever to the space above our heads.

Several ESA speakers will attend the event and share their ideas, knowledge, and experience.

Friday 20 May

Title of the session: ‘Skills gap: Bridge over troubled water’
Time: 12:30-14:00

Antoine Hubert, a representative of ESA’s Education Office, will participate in a hearing in which questions related to this topic will be discussed. Some of the questions will be: What do employers want? How can your skills match what they need? Do schools prepare you for the workplace? How can Europe empower schools and universities to teach the right skills and build a bridge to a successful future for young people? Commissioner Marianne Thyssen will introduce this topic with a keynote speech.

Title of the session: ‘Research matters – New jobs on the horizon’
Time: 17:00 -19:00

Gianfranco Visentin, ESA’s Head of Robotics and Automation Section, will take part in this talk about the ‘education–research–innovation’ success chain. Based on his professional experience at ESA, Gianfranco Visentin will discuss ideas on how scientific research is contributing to the creation of jobs for the future.

Title of the session: ‘The new frontiers of space exploration – a village on the Moon?’ 
Time: 17:00 -18:30

From Christopher Colombo to Apollo 11: what does exploration mean to individuals and humankind? James Carpenter, an ESA scientist, will take the audience through the drivers of human exploration and the impact on society through history. James Carpenter’s talk will address some of the most important questions related to this topic, such as: Has the meaning of exploration changed in the space era? What are our next frontiers as a species? He will provide the latest information on the ‘Moon Village’ endeavour, ESA and Europe’s plans to go back to the Moon and build a permanent lunar base on it.

Saturday 21 May

Title of the session: ‘Digital revolution: A fountain of jobs and innovation?’
Time: 10:30-12:00

Pascal Weinberger, an 18 year-old student, will be participating on ESA’s behalf.  Pascal was a member of the team that won the ESA Space App Camp 2015 award with the GAIA App, an application that uses satellite data for agriculture, and matches areas of interest with possible diseases. The benefits of the GAIA App are that it allows farmers to benefit from early warnings so that they can evaluate crops at risk and provide tips on how to respond to possibly dangerous situations in their fields.

Title of the session: ‘Science or fiction: Will robots rise to power?’ 
Time: 11:00 – 12:30

Gianfranco Visentin, ESA’s Head of Robotics and Automation Section, will take part in this talk about robots and super-intelligent computers. Will the increasingly smart computers take away many of our job… and our thinking? Or will they always remain under human control? Gianfranco will share ESA’s current plans on robotics exploration and take the audience on a ride into the future, mixing the fascination of science with respect for human values.

Title of the session: ‘Earth from above - my extraordinary 200 days in space’ 
Time: 11:30 – 13:30

In this talk, ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti will share her magical moments and scientific challenges encountered during her Futura mission onboard the International Space Station (ISS). Between November 2014 and June 2015, Samantha spent 199 days onboard the ISS as Flight Engineer for Expeditions 42 and 43, conducting many experiments in the Station's laboratories.  Samantha will be answering questions from the audience.

Title of the session:  ‘A guide to the galaxy… and to survival of humanity on our planet.’ 
Time: 14:30 – 15:30

In this talk, Pierre-Philippe Mathieu, an ESA Earth observation scientist, will address the topic of sustainable life on Earth from the perspective of space. He will explain how the observation of Earth from space can help us understand our planet better and give us the tools we need to take timely actions for our own survival and well-being.

The talk will be shared with Thomas Hertog, cosmologist and close collaborator of Stephen Hawking, who will discuss the cosmic context of our planet.