On the occasion of European Youth Week 2026, MEDIActive Youth Network calls on young people, youth organisations, educators, and decision-makers to strengthen media literacy and support young people as informed citizens and responsible media creators.
Screens are everywhere. They rest in pockets, glow on desks, illuminate bedrooms, and quietly shape how young people think, feel, and connect. For many adolescents and young adults, digital spaces are no longer separate from “real life”, they are simply life itself.
In recent years, the use of mobile phones and social media among children has become one of the most frequently discussed social issues. The rapid development of digital technology has brought many advantages, but it has also opened numerous questions about its impact on younger generations.
As Montenegro moves forward in its European Union accession process, the views of its academic youth reveal a landscape of divided opinions. For some students, and young academics, EU membership is seen as a natural and necessary step towards political stability, educational alignment, and institutional modernization.
As Generative AI (GenAI) becomes a standard “colleague” in our workflows, the primary threat to critical thinking is no longer misinformation alone, but cognitive offloading. This phenomenon occurs when we delegate the “productive struggle” of reasoning to an algorithm, leading to what researchers now call “metacognitive laziness”.
Do you want to strengthen your news literacy and critical thinking skills? Welcome to an engaging and practical online course designed to help you navigate today’s complex media landscape and become more resilient to fake news, misinformation, and propaganda.