Study Session

• Gathers 35 students from different national movements in Europe (who are responsible on local, regional or national level) in order to share, confront and deepen their experiences and reflections.
• Analyses an actual social or cultural theme and discerns it through the “signs of the times”.
• ”Studies” the way this issue is present in the university environment, the respective countries and in whole Europe.
• Reflects in a Christian perspective the consequences and responsibilities for students (individual) and student movements (society).
• Develops guidelines for action and work in the concrete reality of each movement and the European Coordination, based on the challenges of the reality perceived and the common reflections made.

The Study Sessions are organised in collaboration with the Council of Europe and take place in the European Youth Centres in Budapest or Strasbourg every year.

Summerweek

University Summerweek:

• Gathers around 50 students of higher education (19-30 years old) engaged in the different national movements.
• Offers a space of encounter and enables to exchange and share students’ experiences on a theme related to their daily life; this aims to find out about the diversity among higher education students in order to get a wider vision of European reality of students in higher education.
• Promotes deepening on a theme aiming to empower participants to take their own initiatives to develop their personal responsibility in transforming their milieu.
• Through the development of common ideas and actions.
• Deals with issues present in the life of higher education students in several and very different dynamics, combining participants experiences’ and creative methodologies, trying to combine a good balance of reflection and leisure times.
• Enables participants to have a different kind of leisure and holidays time, providing a multicultural frame in which they are invited to have fun, to share their faith and to work together with other students from other European realities discovering things about such a multicultural space.

Secondary Summerweek:

• Gathers from 50 up to almost 100 secondary students (15 – 19 years) engaged in the different national movements.
• Offers a space of encounter and enables to exchange and share students’ concrete experiences on a subject, related to their daily life, in order to discover similarities and differences to get a wider vision of the students’ reality in Europe.
• Promotes reflections, encourages participation and self-responsibility and aims to empower young students through the development of common ideas and actions.
• Centres on a school-related subject working upon with a variety of creative and comprehensive methodologies, linked to the local reality and balanced with common leisure time activities.
• Offers an interesting multicultural holiday experience, as a time to relax and to enjoy, to work, to celebrate and to discover things together.

The Summerweek take place annually and can be either in July or August.

Colloquium

 • Gathers 40-60 young people engaged on local, regional or national level in different European Youth Organisations (among them around 30 from JECI-MIEC) to share their experiences and reflections around a subject of common concern. It is held every three years.
• Promotes exchange on the work and engagement of the participants and their organisations and to deepen their knowledge about each other.
• Analyses different aspects of a social, political or cultural theme coming from a diversity of viewpoints and backgrounds in a European perspective.
• Initiates common formation processes around a subject in an inter-organisational, inter-confessional and inter-cultural context.
• Develops common reflections about the possibilities and motivations of young people to engage in Society and the common challenges arising from the theme for them and their organisations.
• Defines possible lines of action for the concrete reality on all levels (local-national-European), by encouraging collaboration as an important dimension of changes.

It takes place every three years – alternating with the Theological Session and the Training Session – usualy in the first half of the year.

Theological Session

• Gathers around 40-60 from the different national movements and federations (persons with medium or high responsibility on national or regional level). It takes place just every three years.
• Offers a space of reflection, confrontation and contemplation in order to share, deepen and celebrate our experiences and faith around a theme.
• Chooses to approach the issue from a religious, theological and ethical point of view discerning the elements our faith provides in order to broaden our understanding and aspirations.
• Is to be an assimilation point of culture, social reality and religion, a departure point towards a mediation of concrete experiences and faith, which enables to reinforce our conscious and active engagement as Christians in the world.
• Is supposed to strengthen the theological dimension of the movements and aims to initiate further debate on national and European level, in order to arrive to common reflections and orientations.

The Theological Session takes place every three years – alternating with the Training Session and the Colloquium – usualy in the first half of the year.

Training Session

• Gathers 40 to 60 young students (who are local, regional or national animators/responsibles or who have an active role within the national movement) in order to share, confront and deepen their experiences and reflections.
• Centres on a relevant subject for the national movements, aiming to tackle a broad variety of elements related to the subject, using the widest and richest approach possible.
• Is a training space inside the Coordination aiming towards common intercultural learning and formation on the subject through exchange of experience, common reflection and the integration of new elements.
• Develops conclusions, new approaches and guidelines for the concrete life of every national movement and the European Coordination.
• Intends to contribute to pedagogical developments on a subject and to reach a multiplier effect promoting the new-gained knowledge in- and outside of the national movements.

It takes place every three years – alternating with the Theological Session and the Colloquium – usualy in the first half of the year.

European Congress

• Is a key moment of the European Coordination JECI-MIEC, gathering secondary and university students, Chaplains and responsables of national movements (up to five delegates per national movement or federation).
• Is an expression and celebration of the common faith, a sign of identity and a symbol of the diversity and unity of the different realities within JECI-MIEC.
• Is a forum of exchange, sharing of experiences and common reflection within the European Coordination.
• Is a point of convergence in terms of contents and centres on the subjects that define JECI-MIEC: University, School, Church, Europe and international life.
• Tries to define the present and future challenges for the Coordination and define possible answers while elaborating the Orientations, which set the priorities and will animate the whole European Coordination (reflections, activities, work priorities,…).
• Is an expression of the commitment to the international work in the light of the preceding International Committee and its Orientations.

The first European Congress was held in 1982. A Congress takes place all four years in October/November, preceded by an International Committee and followed by an European Committee.

European Committee

• Is the supreme and decision making body of the European Coordination JECI-MIEC and gathers responsible of national movements (two delegates per movement/federation), as well as observes and guests.
• Decides upon the de- and affiliation of membership applications and the composition of the European Team and the decisions of the European Coordination JECI-MIEC for the forthcoming year (activities, elections, finances, work plan…).
• Has the political control over the work of the European team, the finances and the external relations.
• Evaluates the work achieved at all levels (national, European and international) in the light of the Orientations and is in charge of modifications of the basic documents of the Coordination.
• Ratifies the Orientations proposed by the European Congress that precedes its meeting once every four years.

It takes place annually in September/October, including a Study Session which centres on a subject vital for the European Coordination, which aims to inspire the national movements and the European Coordination.