How do Participatory Models Influence Youth Participation? A Case Study from Hungary

The starting premise of the paper is that structures created for the political participation of young people should reflect and accomodate processes which are appropriate to them. How can local democracies help young people to better understand politics and to increase their motivations to participate? Based on the objectives of the European Charter on the Participation of Young People in Local and Regional Life, this paper reveals conditions for political participation of young people in a particular subregion of Hungary. A unique, novel form of cooperation among youth organizations exists within the Mórahalom subregion. The analysis of this cooperation brings empirical evidence for how youth advocacy organizations can increase political participation of young people in a post-communist society.