IKV Secretary General and Member of the EU Team Assoc. Prof. Çiğdem Nas addressed college students at a conference organised on the 25^th February 2015 by the Municipality of Esenyurt.

In the conference titled “The EU and Youth”, IKV Secretary General Nas gavea general overview of the principal characteristics of the EU, its geographic, cultural, economic and political structure. She explained that although the differences observed within the 28 Member States, they come together within a common goal and shared similar ideals.

Pointing out that the Turkey’s relations with the EU started with the 1963 Ankara Agreement, IKV Secretary General Nas added that the negotiations which began in 2005 were advancing slowly. IKV Secretary General Nas stressed that, whether Turkey’s EU membership process is achieved or not, relations between both parties and mutual dependence will continue to be important.

In her presentation, IKV Secretary General Nas gave further information regarding the EU’s youth policies and programs. IKV Secretary General Nas underlined that many EU initiatives as regards youth are taken within the framework of the Erasmus + Programme and she further stressed that with those programmes, the EU aims at providing individuals with the necessary skills (such as linguistic knowledge, digital skills, transversal skills) and increasing their employability in the EU common market. 

IKV Secretary General Nas explained that education and youth policies are multi-dimensional and they focus on further developing strong social and communicational links and characteristics such as solution oriented, honest, innovative, curious and entrepreneurial spirit. IKV Secretary General Nas further stated that those skills and talents corresponded to the need of the 21^st century.