Youth advocacy toolkit

This toolkit is designed to support Caritas staff working with young people to complement their existing offers and to address interested youths in general. It breaks down all essentials about advocacy related to global migration and development, thus creating the perfect basis for successful advocacy actions to change our future world.

Migration is a fact. It has always existed and will continue to exist during our lifetime and beyond. The way in which we see and deal with migration has a profound effect on the extent to which migration will be successful.

Unfortunately, the public discourse on migration in Europe is mostly problem-centered. Policies are focused on border control and forced return, the media struggle to convey a constructive image, and public opinion is predominantly based on fears rather than facts. While it is internationally recognised that migrants make a positive contribution not only to the development of their country of origin but also their country of destination, migration is still too often perceived as a threat rather than an opportunity.

Those obstacles impede migrants’ full contributions to development. Furthermore, it leads to exclusion and poverty. Across Europe, migrants are confronted with discrimination in the housing and labour markets as well as with xenophobia in everyday life, placing them among the most vulnerable groups in society.