Youth Democracy Academy (YDA) is an online course comprised of a set of webinars, toolkits, guidelines, videos and other relevant material that can be used by young people, youth workers, teachers, etc. that want to work on the topic of EU, democracy, critical thinking and combating fake news with young people.

YDA is created within #EUInfluencers project that gives an active role to young people from Sweden, Croatia, Serbia, Italy and Portugal in being the influencers of the European project towards their peers, by increasing their understanding of the EU, development of critical thinking and combating fake news. We believe that young people are the key to reaching their peers, through peer-to-peer communication and non-formal education. The project aims to create an international network of young influencers who are well informed and critical about the European Union, can re-think, re-shape it, and have the capacity to pass this ability to encourage their peers by, giving them a platform where they can feel empowered to create change.

YDA consists of eight modules with the following structure:

- Module 1 European Union introduction - understanding how the European Union works and what it does for us in our daily lives. In particular, two questions are addressed: “What do we know about the European Union?” and “What does the European Union do for us?”

- Module 2 Intro to fake news - glossary of terms: fake news, misinformation, disinformation, propaganda, manipulation, etc

- Module 3 Exploring online tools for combating fake news and fact-checking

- Module 4 Critical thinking: tools to encourage and develop critical thinking among young people. Critical analysis of EU and rebuilding trust in the EU from a youth perspective

- Module 5 Peer education: how to lead a team of peers, facilitate discussions and workshops by young people for young people, how to create group dynamics, empathy and connection between participants

- Module 6: Inclusion and outreach: how to reach excluded groups of young people/young people with fewer opportunities through local projects

- Module 7: Use of social media in the context of local projects and campaigns: how to communicate attractively and dynamically with young people using social media

- Module 8: MAGI - “Mini Action, Great Impact” - how to organise a small but effective campaign activity that requires minimal preparation and almost zero materials.

This project is implemented during 2022-2024 by DYPALL Network in cooperation with Elios (Italy), Centar E8 (Serbia), LAG Zagorje-Sutla (Croatia) and African Empowerment Center (Sweden) co-funded by the European Youth Together programme of the European Union.