TABLE OF CONTENTS

CULT I 2

EMPL II 4

ENVI I 7

FEMM 9

IMCO 11

EMPL I 14

ITRE 16

PECH 19

SEDE 21

CULT II 24

Important Contact Details

Head Organisers: Christia Spyrou (+357 99337215) and Andreas Psaltis (+357 96269656)
preselection@eypcyprus.com

Event Safeperson: Marilena Pavlidou (+357 99408808)

marilenapavlidou@gmail.com
MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY

1
 THE COMMITTEE ON CULTURE AND EDUCATION I (CULT I)

Cultural and Creative Sectors (CCSs) have been hit hard by the COVID-19
pandemic. Taking into consideration the importance of the sector in
promoting European culture, how can the EU support Member States’
actions to grant an efficient re-start of the CCS's industry?

The European Youth Parliament aims to facilitate an efficient recovery of the cultural and
creative sectors (CCSs) in response to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic by striving for
a safe, accessible, and sustainable environment for the future of the creative and cultural
industry,

because
● The long-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic remains unknown and it presents
economic and social uncertainty for employees within the CCSs,
● The European Commission has not prioritised the CCS as one of the main contributors to
GDP in order to focus on between 2020 and 2024,
● Up to 10 million job opportunities are under imminent threat due to the prolonged Covid-
19 period, leading to a loss of EUR 472 billion GDP in 2020 due to the reduction of
vacancies in the CCSs such as the 50% reduction in ⅓ of the European museums,
● The activities of the CCS mainly involve SMEs and self-employed who make up one-third
of the CCS workforce in 2020,
● Member States lack proper infrastructure for outdoor events,
● The pandemic restricts physical movement which in turn reduces business networking and
creates inefficient opportunities for physical and cultural creation and distribution,
● In 2020, The funding of the CCS in the G71 economies has significantly been reduced by
7% in Germany, 6% in French and 5% in Italy, in 2020, compared to 2019;

1 The Group of Seven (G7) is an inter-governmental political forum bringing together the world's seven leading
economies. Those economies are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

2
by
1. Urging the European Commission to secure financial support from the Support to Mitigate
Unemployment Risks in an Emergency Fund (SURE) 2for employees within the CCS who
were not eligible for the pandemic emergency unemployment payment and promote a
wider variety of economic incentives in the form of tax reductions, subsidies, and job
creation;
2. Requesting the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and
SMEs (DG GROW)3 to support socially and environmentally sustainable tourism centres
by developing local strategies, such as the Copenhagen City of Cyclists regarding the
growth of cultural tourism;
3. Inviting Member States to provide CCS institutions with technological equipment for video
live streaming, and invest in improving outdoor infrastructure in order to allow cultural
events to be organised in a digital, hybrid or physical form;
4. Asking the European Commission to ensure that non-profit organisations are eligible to
receive funding from the Pan-European Guarantee Fund;4
5. Suggesting Member States to cooperate with the European Commission to enhance the
Creative Europe Programme (CREA) with the aim of:
a) creating pan-European festivals promoting their cultural heritage and,
b) organising public events in collaboration to create a forum for creative
professionals;
6. Instructing the European Research Executive Agency (REA)5 to acknowledge the CCS’
demand for precise statistics and information necessary in order to develop sustainable
policies for the reopening of the sector after the pandemic.

2 The Support to Mitigate Unemployment Risks in an Emergency Fund (SURE) is a temporary pan-European
instrument intended to support Member States in providing alternative income for citizens who have become
redundant during the pandemic.

3 The Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW) is the
European Commission service responsible for fostering entrepreneurship and growth, and providing access to funding
for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

4 The Pan-European Guarantee Fund is a fund worth an estimated EUR 8 billion, providing immediate financial
relief to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across the EU in response to the pandemic.

5 The European Research Executive Agency (REA) is a body responsible for funding high-quality research and
innovation projects that generate knowledge for the benefit of society.

3
 MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY
THE COMMITTEE ON EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS II
(EMPL II)

Already before the COVID-19 pandemic, 92.4 million people in the EU

were living at risk of poverty, with this number likely having increased
since. Are additional measures necessary to alleviate poverty in Europe
and if so, what should these look like?

The European Youth Parliament aims to present a number of realistic and efficient steps
and measures that alleviate poverty in different forms while also tackling the COVID-19
pandemic's effect on the economic status of European citizens and protecting a variety of
vulnerable demographic groups. We ultimately strive towards ensuring an adequate
standard of living for every European citizen,

because

● As stated in the European Pillar of Social Rights' 20 principles every EU citizen deserves
equal opportunities in the labour market,
● Migrants make up a significant part of the EU's workforce, with young people born outside
to EU holding a 27.4% share of part-time employment in 2020,
● The COVID-19 pandemic has increased unemployment, as there were 5.2 million fewer
people employed in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the end of 2019,
● According to the Vienna Declaration and Program of Action of the 1993 World Conference
on Human Rights, widespread poverty inhibits the full and effective enjoyment of human
rights, therefore its immediate alleviation and eventual elimination must remain a high
priority for the international community,
● According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), unequal employment and poor
working conditions affect the guarantee of decent living conditions,
● The Universal Declaration of Human Rights addresses in Article 25 that “everyone has a
right to a standard of living adequate for the health and wellbeing of himself and of his
family”,
● Around 21% of the EU’s population was at risk of poverty as of 2019, 16.5 % of European
inhabitants were facing a life of penury (lack of economic independence);

4
by
1. Calling upon Member States to invest in job-creation strategies such as:
a) Rebuilding infrastructure,
b) Developing renewable energy sources,
c) Renovating abandoned housing;
2. Suggesting Member States to implement policies geared to more equitable distribution of
wealth, income and social protection coverage such as:
a) Stricter progressive tax system for individuals with a significantly higher income,
b) Educational grants, subsidies and low-interest loans,
c) Welfare and income support for low income earners;
3. Asking the European Commission to initiate mass social media campaigns to:
a) Educate the general public on issues relating to European poverty,
b) Encourage helping charities such as Save the Children Europe;6
4. Recommending the European Commission to create a specialised programme, similar to
the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)7 in the USA, which will:
a) Provide benefits to eligible low-income individuals and families via an Electronic
Benefits Transfer card,
b) Alleviate hunger and malnutrition by increasing availability of resources for the
purchase of food for a nutritious diet;
5. Instructing the European Central Bank (ECB) to introduce "Equality Loans", which would
give additional funds to people living or close to living in poverty, as would be determined
by the AROPE8 indicator;
6. Urging Member States to strengthen their healthcare systems by:
a) Implementing United Healthcare (UHC) and strengthening health systems,
b) Creating comprehensive integrated health services that embrace primary care as
well as public health goods and function as central pieces;

6Save the Children Europe is a charity which works with the European Union to ensure their policies target child
poverty in Europe.

7 The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is an initiative which provides nutrition benefits to
supplement the food budget of needy families so they can purchase healthy food and move towards self-sufficiency.

8 The AROPE (At Risk of Poverty or Social Exclusion) Indicator corresponds to the sum of persons who are either
at risk of poverty, or severely materially and socially deprived or living in a household with a very low work intensity.

5
7. Appealing to the European Commission to allocate funding from the COVID-19 EU
Solidarity Fund in order to help impoverished groups;
8. Requesting the European Anti-Poverty Network to conduct Poverty Watch Reports in all
the EU Member States in order to dissect the regions in which help is needed.

6
 MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY
THE COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT, PUBLIC HEALTH AND
FOOD SAFETY (ENVI I)
With Europe producing 58 million tonnes of plastic every year but only
30% being recycled, how can the EU reduce plastic waste and ensure
plastic materials are recycled or discarded in a safe for the environment
way?

The European Youth Parliament aims to ensure plastic, including Single-Use Plastics
(SUPs), is recycled in an environmentally friendly way. We aim to decrease the amount
of plastic waste entering the seas and destroying the environment. Furthermore, we aim
to educate our citizens on the dangers and consequences of plastic pollution on the
environment, wildlife, and health. We aim to continue the progress of the EU towards
reaching the targets stated in the Paris Agreement,

because

● There will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by weight in 2050,

● Only 41.9% of plastic waste was recycled in the EU in 2017,

● Biodegradable plastics such as PLA and PHA9 account for less than 1% of the worldwide
plastic consumption,

● There is an increase in consumption of Single-Use Plastics (SUPs) as a result of the

COVID-19 pandemic, leading to a slower implementation of the Single-Use Plastics
Directive,

● The effects of plastic ingestion by humans through food and water sources are still
unknown,

● Plastic waste is polluting the environment and harming wildlife at increasing rates;

9 PLA and PHA are biopolymers made from renewable resources. They are made from natural resources which can
biodegrade.

7
by

1. Encouraging Member States to introduce a EU-wide tax on multinational companies who

refuse to comply with targets stated in the Paris Agreement;

2. Urging the Directorate-General for Environment (DG ENV)10 to collaborate and further
assist with multinational companies in setting up their own recycling schemes, with a focus
on less waste consumption;

3. Instructing the European Environment Agency (EEA)11 to establish a task-force which

will:

a) monitor the Member States’ efforts to decrease plastic consumption in their

countries,

b) research the consequences of plastic ingestion on humans,

c) provide guidance in decreasing the consumption of SUPs in the wake of the

COVID-19 pandemic;

4. Inviting Member States to provide consumer incentives to recycle plastic, such as the Palpa
system in Finland;

5. Calling upon the European Commission to encourage the implementation of environmental

studies at a primary and secondary level in pan-European national curricula;

6. Recommending the European Commission to initiate multimedia campaigns to further

promote recycling and environmentally friendly practices within the European community;

7. Directing the European Commission to create a Zero Waste Europe by 2030, instead of the
target of 2050 set out in the aforementioned Paris Agreement.

10 The Directorate-General for Environment (DG ENV) is responsible for EU policy on the environment.

11 The European Environment Agency (EEA) is an agency of the European Union, which aims to support
sustainable development by helping to achieve significant and measurable improvement in Europe's environment.

8
 MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY
THE COMMITTEE ON WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND GENDER EQUALITY
(FEMM)
Given the economic and societal inequality that exists between men and
women marked by the "glass ceiling" and women’s wage being 14.1% lower
than that of a man’s in 2019, what further steps should the EU take to reach
gender equality in the workplace?

The European Youth Parliament aims to reduce gender inequality in the labor force by
implementing gender neutral systems in recruitment and salary setting, creating more
inclusive and diverse workplaces, and tackling the stigma surrounding gender roles in male-
dominated and female-dominated fields. We aim to further the work of the Directive on Pay
Transparency in closing the gender wage gap and bringing to light the inequalities that exist
within employment in terms of wage rates, employment rates as well as benefits such as
parental leave,

because
● 52% of men believe wage gap does not exist,
● The gender pay gap in the EU stands at 14.1% and has only changed minimally over the
last decade,
● 30% of the gender pay gap caused by the overrepresentation of women in low-paying or
part-time jobs,
● A lack of pay transparency12 stands as a major obstacle to reducing gender inequality in
the workplace,
● Over 2.7 billion women globally do not have the same work opportunities as men, with
women’s imposed role as a caregiver often hindering their independent employment
opportunities,
● The EU employment rate for men of working age was 79% in 2019, exceeding that of
women (67.3%) by 11.7%,
● There are large disparities among Member States regarding access to adequate pay and
length of maternity leave while men nowadays do not have extended parental leave in most
Member States,
● Time out of the workforce can directly impact women’s earning potential and often
mothers returning to the workforce experience a ‘motherhood penalty’,

12 Pay transparency is the practice of making an employee’s wages openly accessible to all for comparison purposes.

9
 ● In terms of social environment, women are much more likely to be exposed to adverse
social behaviours, such as threats, verbal abuse or harassment;

by
1. Calling upon Member States to target the stigma surrounding gender roles in male-
dominated employment fields by:
a) Implementing national media campaigns highlighting employment prospects for
women in these areas,
b) Raising the minimum wage rate for highly feminised jobs which tend to be
systematically undervalued;
2. Suggesting Member States tackle gender inequalities in employment in the public sector
by:
a) Prioritising skill-based assessments in recruitment over continuity in applicants’
working experience,
b) encouraging the participation of the females in the military and politics through
media coverage and celebration of their achievements,
c) Utilising gender-balanced interview boards for recruitment and promotion of
employees;
3. Calling upon Member States to award tax relief schemes to employers who:
a) Use unbiased hiring criteria based on skills, qualifications, experience, and abilities,
b) Provide mothers with flexible working hours and the option of working from home;
4. Appealing to Member States to provide a minimum of seven months of parental leave for
all biological and adoptive parents, following the example of Finland;
5. Urging the European Commission to increase the minimum requirement of gender-based
pay scale reporting13 to all companies with 25+ employees in order to ensure that apart
from sole traders, most businesses have equal/fair employment rates as well as equal/fair
wage rates;
6. Asking Member States to require all businesses to:
a) Carry out police background checks at least twice a year for safety reasons,
b) Increase employees’ awareness of their rights related to discrimination and gender
diversity in the workplace by implementing training classes and information
seminars which will be facilitated by government officials.

13Gender-based payscale reporting requires transparency in pay grades for all employees, including the earner’s
gender. It is currently required by the Directive of Pay Transparency for Men and Women for all companies with over
250 employees.

10
 MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY
THE COMMITTEE ON INTERNAL MARKET AND CONSUMER
PROTECTION (IMCO)
With the lifespan of electronic devices used in the EU shortening and many
companies basing their revenues on forcing consumers to frequently
repurchase broken products which the consumers are unable to repair, how
can the EU ensure the production of more sustainable products and ensure
consumers’ rights to repair?

The European Youth Parliament aims to limit the negative impact of unsustainable
production and planned obsolescence 14 of electronic devices which affect consumers and
the environment. To combat this, we suggest a series of measures aimed at fostering long-
term societal transformation. Additionally, we want to simplify the accessibility and
affordability of repairs of broken electronic devices,

because

● E-waste15 is the fastest-growing source of waste in the EU, as on average, more than 18
kilograms of electrical and electronic products are consumed per person in the EU every
year,

● Less than 40 per cent of e-waste in the EU is recycled,

● Consumers use electronic devices in an unsustainable manner decreasing their lifespan,

● The implementation of practices such as planned obsolescence by the manufacturers of

electronic devices is severely shortening their lifespan,

● Third-party repairers are being perceived as worse than the repair services offered by the
original manufacturers,

● Spare parts and blueprints are not made available to third-party repairers,

14 Planned obsolescence describes a strategy of deliberately ensuring that a device will become outdated or useless
within a certain time period.

15 E-waste describes electronic devices that are undesirable, broken, or nearing or past their useful lifetime.

11
 ● Repairs of broken devices done by the original manufacturers are often unreasonably
expensive when compared to the prices of new devices,

by

1. Requesting the European Investment Bank (EIB)16 to finance research projects on more
ecological ways of recycling e-waste;

2. Inviting Member States to establish regional collection centres:

a) Collecting repairable or working used devices to be donated to people who cannot

afford them,

b) Collecting broken devices to be recycled;

3. Suggesting the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and

SMEs (DG GROW)17 to create a certificate for third-party repairers proving the high
quality of their services;

4. Asking the European Commission to launch a campaign to raise awareness about the
sustainable use of electronics including expert talks on national TV channels and social
media:

a) on the impact of unecological business practices such as planned obsolescence,

b) outlining the rules for sustainable product use that can help with extending the
lifespan of electronic devices;

5. Further asking Members States’ national Ministries of Education to organise workshops

on planned obsolescence and green economy18 in schools across Europe;

6. Suggesting that Member States implement legislation similar to Irish law under which
warranty for new and second-hand products extends up to six years;

7. Requesting the European Commission to amend the Directive on certain aspects of the sale
of consumer goods and associated guarantees by raising the warranty on electronic devices
from two to four years;

16 EIB is an EU body providing long-term project funding that furthers the objectives of the EU.

17 DG GROW is responsible for EU policy on the single market, industry, entrepreneurship and small businesses.

18 Green economy is defined as low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive.

12
8. Encouraging Member States to implement solutions similar to Swedish tax breaks for
appliance repairs done by technicians in their homes.

13
 MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY
THE COMMITTEE ON EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS (EMPL
I)
We’re all in this together: With the levels and forms of parental leave
varying across Member States, what can the EU do to provide each
citizen with an equal chance to pursue activity in the labour market and
raise their children?

The European Youth Parliament aims to ensure equal rights of parental and adoption leave
for all couples, regardless of any differences or circumstances that might occur. In order to
achieve that, we acknowledge the importance of reducing the gender gap in terms of pay and
employment while limiting the influence of social norms and gender roles on work culture,
while trying to ensure true gender equality in the labour market, particularly with regard to
parental leave,

because

● There is a decreasing number of mothers taking maternity leave despite the recent growth
in female participation rates in the labour market,
● The gender pay gap has decreased only by $0.01 since 2015,
● The concerns fathers have about job security19 and concerns regarding missed career
opportunities during the time of their absence are reasons why they are reluctant to take
paternity leave,
● The effects of stereotypes of women being the primary caregiver and homemaker and that
of men being the primary breadwinner,
● There is a lack of obligatory gender quotas which ensure equal payment during paid
maternity and paternity leave,
● Parents with newborns face psychological pressure due to the short periods and uneven
application of parental leave between both parents, causing them to quit work,
● There are vast inequalities in periods of parental leave and amounts of compensation
between mothers and fathers in Member States,

19 Job security is the assurance that the employees will be able to work in their job as long as they please, therefore,
will not become unemployed.

14
 ● There is a disparity regarding parental leave for same-sex couples, surrogate mothers and
adoptive parents compared to “traditional families”;20

by

1. Inviting Member States to increase salary transparency by requesting reports from

companies regarding the consistency and persistence of the parents’ salary during paid
parental leave;
2. Suggesting that Member States provide governmental protection of parents during parental
leave by ensuring:
a) Their job security and the continuity of the family’s income provided by their
respective workplaces,
b) An alternative to full-time face to face employment through working from home
schemes or flexible hours for the parents who desire to not take a full-time break
off of work;
3. Encourages Member States to raise awareness on the benefits of both maternity and
paternity leave on equal shares of parenting through:
a) Creating media campaigns led by experts on the field,
b) Organising educational trainings which include courses on battling stereotypes and
gender roles both in the workplace and society,
c) Working with psychologists in organising workshops on raising awareness about
the benefits of both parents exercising their right to take parental leave;
4. Reminding Member States to ensure equal payment during paid maternity and paternity
leaves;
5. Suggesting the adjustment of the terms “mother” and “father” to “parent” in the Work-Life
Balance Directive of the EU;21
6. Calls upon Member States to ensure that paid parental leave is issued to both traditional
and non-traditional families equally.

20 Traditional family is a family structure that consists of a man, woman, and one or more of their biological or
adopted children.

21 The Work-Life Balance Directive aims to improve families’ access to family leave and flexible work
arrangements. It was passed in 2019.

15
 MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY
THE COMMITTEE ON INDUSTRY RESEARCH AND ENERGY (ITRE)
Living smart: With the consistent population growth resulting in the
scarcity of spaces and resources, as well as the increase of emission, cities
like London and Helsinki serve as great examples of implementing smart
solutions. Given that by 2050 around two-thirds of the world’s population
are expected to live in towns and cities, how can the EU assist Member
States in integrating innovative technology in cities for comparing current
pressures and working towards sustainability?

The European Youth Parliament aims to facilitate the growth of cities throughout the EU
by supporting the main pillars that make up a successful city: infrastructure,
transportation, energy, safety and the public realm. The propositions are practical and
offer flexibility so as to adapt to the context of each city rather than proposing a pan-
European scheme that will prove not to tailor the needs and characteristics of each city.
We aim to facilitate the modernisation of cities, through sustainable practices that will
form ‘smart’ cities,

because
● By 2050, 70% of the world population will be based in cities,
● Urban areas consume 75% of global primary energy and contribute to global waste,
● Natural resources such as water, fossil fuels and habitable space are becoming
progressively scarce, such that by 2025, 1.8 billion people will be living in countries or
regions with absolute water scarcity,
● Environmental sustainability and the creation of smart cities are top priorities of policy-
making on the EU level, as displayed by the European Green Deal, where London,
Barcelona and Oslo are meritorious examples,
● Smart city services can facilitate a largely equitable and accessible society, where
citizens from a variety of backgrounds can be alleviated of alienation and segregation,
● Smart cities rely heavily on the digitalisation of services which can be vulnerable to
cyber threats and data breaches,

16
 ● Public transport and re-imagination of the city grid can improve congestion, minimise
environmental effects and make European cities more productive, taking examples from
London’s and Japan’s successful underground projects,
● Megacities today often serve as examples of congested and alienating environments but
examples like Barcelona serve as models for the integration of green public spaces,
● designing roads for pedestrians and bikes as well as use of Internet of Things 1
technology, to allocate resources where they are needed;

by
1. Encouraging the European Commission to continue financing the purchase of electric
vehicles across all Member States through:
a) Subsidising the creation of charging stations through the European Investment
Bank (EIB) funding programme,
b) Promoting their use through public campaigns that are informative of their
ecological benefits,
c) Offering grants to make them more affordable for purchase;
2. Supporting Member States in improving their infrastructure regarding electricity and
public transport through:
a) Grants from the European Union to facilitate the installation of generators of
renewable energy,
b) Kickstarting projects to design cities where electricity grids provide an equitable
urban environment,
c) Including urban planners in re-imagining the public transportation systems (e.g.
routes, accessibility, connectivity) to make them more attractive;
3. Encouraging Member States to promote walking and cycling through:
a) Advertising campaigns that inform citizens in regards to the health and ecological
benefits of their use,
b) Designing for pedestrian and cycle paths,
c) Making the first half-hour of a bicycle renting free;
4. Encouraging the European Commission to create a body of scientists responsible for
helping Member States set environmental goals and monitor their progress in order to
support all local authorities in the effective integration of sustainable strategies in cities,
and allocating European resources according to the city’s needs;
5. Recommending that Member States incentivise eco-friendly start-ups to focus on smart
city technology development by:

17
 a) Further facilitating their cooperation with city administration,
b) Reducing imposed company taxes to these companies;
6. Encouraging Member States to eliminate bureaucracy and streamlining of access to
services by further utilising the data-collection capabilities of the Internet of Things
(IoT)22 in a GDPR23-compliant manner;
7. Strongly urging the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) to assist
Member States in upgrading their software systems and firewalls;
8. Creating engaging and connecting urban fabrics by:
a) Funding public projects in these cities for green spaces and plazas for people to
gather,
b) Formulating design regulations that allow for high-density housing
configurations which respect people’s needs for adequate living space.

22 The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to a distributed network connecting physical objects that are capable of sensing
or acting on their environment and able to communicate with each other, other machines or computers.

23The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a legal framework that sets guidelines for the collection
and processing of personal information from individuals who live in the European Union.

18
 MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY
THE COMMITTEE ON FISHERIES (PECH)
Always a Bigger Fish: With rising levels of plastics and microplastics in the
ocean finding their way into the food pyramid, how should European waters
be kept clean from this pollution, to protect marine life and ensure human
wellbeing?
The European Youth Parliament aims to drastically reduce the amount of plastics entering
European waterways by raising awareness and stimulating innovation to reach the
Sustainable Development Goals. It also strives to take immediate action by regulating the
use of plastics in industry, encouraging sustainable ways of life, and supporting ocean-
cleaning actions,

because

● Marine wildlife consume or get entangled in plastic debris, which endangers the marine
ecosystem,
● The damage caused by plastic pollution to marine ecosystem services is worth 2.5 trillion
USD every year,
● Humans ingest over 70,000 microplastics per year from seafood, which causes serious
health problems including an increased risk of cancer,
● Up to 75% of plastics leak into the ocean worldwide due to a lack of efficient waste
management structures,
● Only 30% of plastics within the EU are being recycled since not all plastics can currently
be recycled effectively,
● Producers and consumers are currently not accountable for the externalities and impact
caused by plastic production,
● Insufficient education, a lack of awareness, and corporate greenwashing 24 lead to inaction
despite the extensive impact of plastics on the environment;

by
1. Calling upon the European Commission to provide further funding for alternative, less
harmful materials to be developed in order to replace plastics in various applications;

24Greenwashing is the process of conveying a false impression or providing misleading information about how a
company's products are more environmentally friendly.

19
 2. Calling upon Member States to implement additional schemes and incentives that
encourage recycling, waste separation and disposal in residential, industrial and public
domains, such as:
a) The ‘Pay-as-you-throw’25 scheme,
b) The Horizon 2021-2027 programme that the European Commission oversees;
3. Inviting EUROSTAT to collaborate with large corporations to submit annual reports on
carbon footprint and plastic production on an EU-level;
4. Urging Member States to implement quotas for corporations on plastic packaging usage
and to introduce penalties for corporations that do not adhere to those quotas;
5. Recommending Member States to introduce educational programmes which:
c) Show the harmful consequences of plastic,
d) Target youth on the importance of recycling and using biodegradable materials,
e) Educate the fishing industry about marine pollution for those with a boat licence,
f) Promote volunteering clean-up activities by advertising such initiatives through the
EU Aid Volunteers platform;
6. Calling upon the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and
SMEs (DG GROW) to introduce a mandatory grading system, which grades the level of
sustainability of all products on the market from 1 to 5 which ultimately affects taxation of
the production;
7. Urging the European Commission to enforce penalties for corporations that practice
greenwashing, with recurrent cases necessitating cumulative penalties.

25 Pay-as-you-throw is ausage-pricing model for disposing of municipal solid waste. Users are charged a rate based
on how much waste they present for collection to the municipality or local authority.

20
 MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY
THE COMMITTEE ON SECURITY AND DEFENCE (SEDE)
A Space Odyssey? Space exploration has been receiving increasing
attention during the past few years from both private investors and
state actors, with international powers such as the US and China
expressing interest in its militarisation and its resources. How can the
EU develop its capabilities in the space exploration and space security
sector?
The European Youth Parliament, aims to promote the development of European space
exploration through independent projects as well as international collaboration with other
countries, agencies, and private actors. Wishing to limit space-based military aggression, we
prioritise technological development and its applications on European defence and
environmental sustainability of space projects. Finally, we aim to reap the economic benefits
of space resources in an equitable, socially beneficial way while exploring the possibility of
human settlements in space,

because

● Space exploration may reveal fundamental facts about the Earth, other planets, and the
universe while offering useful new resources,
● Space-based military and hacking attacks threaten both communication satellites and
ground infrastructure as well as the general population,
● The Space Situational Awareness (SSA) programmes of the European Space Agency
(ESA) and the European Defence Agency (EDA) are critical to detecting and limiting the
risk of impact with objects in space such as comets, asteroids, and debris,
● The increasing commercialisation of space due to private actors may result in inequality of
access and economic benefits resulting from space exploration,
● Existing investment into European space programmes is not always managed successfully,
with some projects not reaching their goals despite higher expenses than other countries'
projects,
● The great number of emissions and space debris coming from obsolete or defunct space
infrastructure causes significant man-made pollution and threaten present and future space
projects;

21
by

1. Inviting the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) to cooperate with
the European Commission and the ESA in promoting collaborative international space
projects by:
a) Facilitating the project-based fundraising and infrastructure-building efforts of
national space agencies in their contact with private partners,
b) Reminding all member countries of the United Nations (UN) to sign and ratify the
Moon Treaty26 alongside pursuing similar arrangements that specify equitable
economic activity zones in space,
c) Indicating best practices for utilising the resources discovered in space;
2. Further inviting UNOOSA to promote peaceful collaboration on space exploration projects
by:
a) Initiating international agreements on likely contentious areas such as space mining
and space infrastructure capabilities;
b) Issuing recommended limitations on excessive force regarding the magnitude of
international military presence and justifiable military activity in space;
3. Proposing that the EDA build up the EUʼs space-related defensive systems by:
a) Building up existing security infrastructure aimed at counteracting space- or
ground-based military aggression towards satellites and related infrastructure,
b) Intensifying the collaboration of Member States and their space defence forces
through joint security initiatives;
4. Welcoming UNOOSA to collaborate with the European Commission in proposing viable
and widely publicly accessible economic models for the future of space travel and space
tourism;
5. Calling upon Member States to ensure that new spaceships are sustainably built by:
a) Fuelling and powering these spacecras with materials and energy derived from
renewable sources,
b) Prioritising the construction of spacecrafts with high potential of being re-grounded
and reutilised or repurposed;

26 The Moon Treaty turns jurisdiction of all celestial bodies (including the orbits around such bodies) over to the
participant countries. Thus, all activities would conform to international law, including the United Nations Charter.

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 c) Preferring degradable materials for the construction of non-reusable space devices,
d) Subsidising private actors to research, develop, and build more sustainable space
infrastructure;
6. Endorsing Member States to combat space pollution by:
a) Constructing and launching specialised spaceships such as space garbage trucks for
collecting or clearing space debris from low-Earth orbits,
b) Preferring retrievable and re-launchable satellites in their independent and
collaborative projects.

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 MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION BY
THE COMMITTTEE ON CULTURE AND EDUCATION II (CULT II)
Forgotten words: Although the EU has 24 official languages, there are 60
indigenous regional or minority languages spoken throughout the 27 Member
States. How can the EU ensure the preservation and growth of regional and
minority languages going forward?

The European Youth Parliament aims to protect and promote Regional and Minority
Languages (RMLs) across Europe and ensures that one’s RML is not a barrier in their pursuit
of a prosperous life. It will do so by reaffirming and advocating for the equal standing of these
languages, and supporting local governments in their efforts towards this. By acknowledging
that both globalisation and urbanisation are contributing factors to language endangerment,
the European Youth Parliament will work towards a symbiotic existence between official
languages and RMLs,

because

● 128 Regional and Minority Languages in Europe are at risk of extinction,

● The Council of Europe considers Regional and Minority Languages (RMLs) a threatened
aspect of its cultural diversity, due to their representation of cultural wealth,
● Despite Europeans making up 9.78% of the global population, they officially recognise only
24 out of the 7000 languages spoken all around the world,
● Urbanisation, one of the contributing factors to language extinction, will increase in
subsequent decades, as two thirds of the global population is estimated to be living in cities by
2050,
● Regional languages are vulnerable in modern societies due to a lack of available geographical
locations for these languages to be used in, as is the case with Irish and Belarussian,
● The most commonly studied foreign languages by high-school pupils in the EU are all majority
languages, specifically English, French, German and Spanish;

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by

1. Encouraging the European Commission to recognise all 60 RMLs as official and working EU
languages;27
2. Suggesting Member States to promote the teaching of RMLs in all educational stages by:
a) Highlighting the existence of cultural and linguistic minorities in geography and
history lessons,
b) Providing English terminology in textbooks that are predominantly written in the
respective RML,
c) Encouraging appreciation of RMLs by the promotion of sharing poetry/narratives in
the respective language;
3. Calling upon the European Commission to establish a social media campaign that will promote
cultural and linguistic minorities through visual, auditory and written media;
4. Urging the European Commission to coordinate the creation of a promotional public database
with local governments, which will be made up of all existing information on European RMLs;
5. Asking the Directorate General of Education, Youth, Sport and Culture (DG EAC) to support
and host popular cultural events in order to magnify RMLs and their respective communities;
6. Inviting Member States to contribute towards the preservation of RMLs by improving the
quality of life in rural areas by developing enhanced telecommunications infrastructure,
healthcare, and public transport.

27 The languages used in practice in the EU.

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26