Strengthening accountability and transparency in governance
Empowering the next generation of European leaders with the skills to strengthen democratic processes, ensure accountable, transparent governance, and build more peaceful, inclusive, and stable societies.
The Challenge
Trust, transparency and accountability are essential pillars of healthy democratic governance. Building trust in institutions is complex and multifaceted, and much of the responsibility lies with governments and political leaders. However, an active and vibrant civil society is essential in holding leaders accountable, in identifying and proposing reforms to improve transparency, and fostering a more trusting and inclusive political culture.
Young people are increasingly at the heart of civic movements. Across Europe and the world, they are finding innovative and effective methods to make governments more open, transparent, and accountable to citizens. Yet they need our support, and opportunities and spaces to learn from each other.
“Politics is too important to be left only to politicians. Democracy depends on the lively participation of organised civil society in political life.”
The project brings young leaders from across Europe together in a comprehensive training and networking programme to share knowledge and experience, enhance key leadership skills, and develop their own projects (“pilot actions”) to put ideas into practice in their countries and communities.
10 young leaders (aged 20-35 years) with experience in accountability and youth empowerment have been selected for this unique training opportunity. Over 12 months, the young leaders will take part in a comprehensive training and mentoring programme, consisting of both online and in-person activities.
The training covers topics such as: leading for positive change; ethical leadership “the Kofi Annan Way”; financial oversight, anti-corruption; public debt management; gender-responsive budgeting; elections and political rights; efficient project management; advocacy and communications; and working with international partners.
Seed grants
As part of the training, Hub members are invited to design their own projects (“pilot actions”) and apply for seed grants to put their ideas into practice.
The ideas will be developed as part of the training, which includes critical concepts in project design, monitoring and evaluation, and fundraising. By bringing their lessons and ideas back to their communities, the young leaders will be able to reach many other young people in their countries and communities, thereby helping strengthen their national democratic structures.
Hub Members
Accountability Hubs Europe – 2026
Stefan Blagic
Bosnia and Herzegovina
A journalist and civil society leader focused on political corruption, Stefan combines investigative journalism with grassroots mobilisation and media campaigns. He has developed numerous projects and initiatives focused on monitoring public spending, advocating for transparency, and mobilising citizens.
Natalie Bews
Germany & UK
Nathalie is a member of the Committee of Youth Representatives of the Baltic Sea Region Youth Forum, where she focuses on regional cohesion and youth inclusion in politics. She leads work on digital literacy and democracy, aimed at addressing threats posed by disinformation and new technologies, with a clear security dimension.
Sophie Véritier
Belgium
Sophie is the Founding Director of the Global Society Foundation, which empowers young people to navigate media and politics to participate meaningfully in democracy. She leads the development of a civic platform that facilitates citizen engagement with public institutions and an impact measurement framework that assesses societal democratic resilience. Sophie holds a PhD in Security and Global Affairs from Leiden University and a MPhil in Politics from the University of Oxford. She previously designed and launched the ‘Young European Ambassadors’ initiative of the European Union.
Nora Griefahn
Germany
Co-Founder of Cradle2Cradle, an NGO that designs responsible, scientific, and climate-friendly policies and an economy. This includes training young people, creating tools to scrutinise political and corporate claims about sustainability, and building coalitions that inform and influence public and legislative debate on circular economy and green standards.
Enrique Collada Sanchez
Spain
Enrique is one of the youngest mayors in Spain and co-founder of RumboRural, a youth-led civic and political leadership organisation. He uses social media to promote youth political participation and to raise awareness of urban-rural development issues.
Tamara Ristic
Serbia
Tamara focuses on Applied Academic research on democratic accountability. She is currently at Sciences Po, specialising in Diplomacy and Human Rights. She was involved in the Serbian Gen-Z protest movement and has helped develop multiple civic engagement initiatives, including one on youth participation in the 2024 parliamentary elections.
Jana Andreska
North Macedonia
Jana is a Young European Ambassador and a member of the European Democracy Youth Network (EDYN), actively engaged in promoting democratic values and youth participation. She participated in the YouthDecide 2040 national workshop, which aimed to co-create future democratic scenarios. With a strong focus on European integration, Jana completed a Volunteer Programme at the Assembly of North Macedonia, working within the Foreign Policy and European Affairs Department.
Ani Bigvava
Georgia
Ani is a project Manager for Youth for Democracy, focusing on youth participation and democratic engagement. She helps develop and deliver mentoring programmes, training, and initiatives to increase digital literacy. Her work focuses on using tech platforms and social media to create awareness campaigns and civic education initiatives.
Beatrice Bucht
Sweden
Beatrice is currently working to increase democratic participation of under-18s from Northern Sweden. She launched a Political Leadership Incubator for young people, and she has a strong record on climate policy – she was one of the creators of the Children and Youth Pavilion at COP. She was selected by the Swedish MFA to serve on the Youth Committee responsible for convening the first Arctic Youth Forum.
Szmo Kacprzak
Poland
Szmo focuses on ensuring youth participation in climate policy decisions. This includes organising campaigns around local elections to promote the adoption of climate-friendly policies, working with youth groups to develop action plans, and training others. As a member of The Friends of The Youth Climate Strike Foundation’s executive board, they lead projects focused on strengthening the leadership capability of young activists.
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