The European Charlemagne Youth Prize 2026 once again honors committed young people who live and strengthen the European idea with innovative projects. Applications are possible until February 2, 2026.

Inspiring young people for the idea of Europe - that is the aim of the European Charlemagne Youth Prize. The prize was established in 2008 and honors initiatives by young people who actively promote and live the European idea. It honors the daily commitment of young people who work with creativity, responsibility and dedication for a common European identity and help shape the future of Europe in a sustainable way.

Projects with a strong European connection in areas such as sustainability, culture, media, politics or social commitment are honored. The European Charlemagne Youth Prize is awarded jointly by the European Parliament and the Charlemagne Prize Foundation. The award ceremony takes place two days before the presentation of the International Charlemagne Prize in Aachen's Coronation Hall.

Application

Young people between the ages of 16 and 30 who are resident in a Member State of the European Union and who are carrying out a project at local, national or European level are eligible to participate. Applications can be submitted by individuals or on behalf of an organization or group of young people.

The closing date for entries is February 2, 2026 at 11:59 pm.

Selection procedure

All submitted projects will first be evaluated by national juries, each of which will nominate a project for their country. The representatives of the national winning projects will be invited to Aachen on May 12, 2026. There, the three best projects will be announced at European level. The winners of the first, second and third prizes will be selected by a European jury from the 27 national winning projects.

The price

The aim of the competition is to highlight and support inspiring projects supported by young people with a strong connection to the EU. The prizes are endowed with 7,500 euros for first place, 5,000 euros for second place and 2,500 euros for third place. The winners will also have the opportunity to visit the European Parliament in Brussels or Strasbourg. In addition, one representative of a winning project will be offered a Schuman internship.

Since the first call for entries in 2008, a total of 7,150 projects from all over Europe have taken part in the competition.

The European winning projects 2025

1st place: "Forum Europaeum" (Hungary)
This Europe-wide media project promotes European identity, values and cohesion through articles, podcasts, TikTok videos and interviews. The aim is to make European topics accessible to young people, shed light on social challenges and create space for constructive debate.

2nd place: "Díky, že můžem volit (Thank you for letting us vote)" (Czech Republic)
The initiative was launched to counteract the low voter turnout among young people in the Czech Republic. It motivated 18 to 29-year-olds in particular to take part in the 2024 European elections, focusing on political education, cooperation and innovative public relations work.

3rd place: "Feminist Law Clinic" (Germany)
The project offers free legal support for people who are particularly affected by gender-based discrimination, sexualized violence and legal insecurity - especially women, lesbians and inter-, trans-, non-binary, agender and queer people.

Youth Charlemagne Prize in the media

Further information on the competition, participation and the award-winning projects can be found at www.charlemagneyouthprize.eu and on social media. The discussion about the competition can be followed under the hashtag #ECYP2026.