Across Catalonia, more than 7,000 students have taken part this academic year in a Catalan Parliament workshop aimed at improving youth political engagement. The programme, called “Soc diputat / Soc diputada” (I Am a Member of Parliament), places students in a simulated parliamentary setting where they debate proposals and send ideas to elected officials.
The initiative is designed to address youth abstention in elections and wider disengagement from institutional politics. According to the Centre d’Estudis d’Opinió, people under 24 are the age group most likely to abstain from voting and are less informed about political matters. In the 2024 European elections, only two out of ten people under 24 voted.
An evaluation co-directed by pedagogue Verónica Moreno of Pompeu Fabra University found positive results. By comparing similar students who did and did not attend the workshop, the study found that participation increased interest in Catalan politics, strengthened the view that voting matters, and reinforced the idea that young people’s votes can influence the Catalan Parliament.
The workshop also changed how many students understood politics. The evaluation found that some moved from seeing politics as general “politicking” to a more institutional view, with a clearer sense that Parliament can drive change. The effect was short-lived, but it also prompted some students to think more carefully about where they get political information, with some shifting attention away from Instagram and TikTok towards TV and radio.
Researchers said civic education can help, but it has limits. Some students remained highly critical after the programme, although they were no longer indifferent. The study argues that a healthy democracy depends on critical citizens, not apathetic ones.
For more Catalonia-wide civic and political coverage, see our news page. For background on the institutions involved, visit the Catalan Parliament and Pompeu Fabra University.