The European Youth Parliament the Netherlands (Stichting Europees Jeugd Parlement Nederland) is the Dutch chapter of the European Youth Parliament (EYP; http://www.eypej.org). EYP provides a platform for European youth from all levels of society to speak out on European issues, meet each others cultures and develop their social and academic competences.

This is done at the EYP sessions, which consist of Teambuilding, Committee Work and General Assembly. Debating European issues is an important part of the sessions. Unlike most debating competitions though, the aim of the European Youth Parliament is not to find the best public speaker. EYP looks for constructive debating, to find out what the actual opinion is of young people on European issues, and how they think the problem is best solved. Also, EYP is more than debating. Meeting new cultures from all over Europe is a social experience that often has a lifechanging impact on the participants of our sessions.

The video below gives an illustration of all parts of an EYP session:

EYP NL organises several sessions in the Netherlands. Every secondary school can join the preliminary sessions of EYP, which are a day long. Schools are selected to participate at the National Conference, of which most participants are sent to international sessions or fora of the EYP. All EYP sessions use the English language, although French is also allowed. The type of debate is a close copy to the working procedure of the European Parliament. The sesions are organised by EYP the Netherlands, which consists of Dutch alumni of past international sessions and fora. We invite several international alumni each year to participate in various organisational roles.

In total, about fourty schools participate in these sessions every year. Every school sends a fixed number of students, in 2009-2010 every school was allowed to send 6 delegates.

The majority of the participants in the National conference are sent to international sessions (internationals) or international forums. As two international and a varying number of regional sessions (e.g. in Istanbul or Greece) are held every year, between two and six delegations continue to the international level.

How is EYP the Netherlands organised?

EYP The Netherlands’ daily affairs are managed by a board. Currenly, the national board consists of the following people:

Wim van Doorn (President) – Wim.van.doorn@eyp.nl
Caspar Jansen (Treasurer) – Caspar.Jansen@eyp.nl
Rosa Douw (Secretary) – Rosa.Douw@eyp.nl
Leonie Goettsch (Alumni Coordinator) – leonie.goettsch@eyp.nl

The board is monitored by a supervisory council (Raad van Toezicht). Currently, the monitoring council consists of the following people:

Ruben Wagenaar (President) – ruben.wagenaar@eyp.nl
David Bokhorst (Member) – david.bokhorst@eyp.nl
Marjolein Pichel (Member) – marjolein.pichel@eyp.nl
Maite Karssenberg (Member) – maite.karssenberg@eyp.nl