At its meeting in Helsinki in April, the expert group awarded funding to nine projects, totalling EUR 229,000. Norden 0-30 is the Nordic Council of Ministers’ funding programme, which enables young people to engage in social, political, or cultural issues.
The group’s chair, Sigurd Krabbe, hopes to see more projects where young people take on the role of applicants themselves. For older applicants, he recommends using the ladder of participation, a planning tool which effectively evaluates different levels of involvement of children and young people in the project.
“The stronger the role of young people in a project, the better. There are so many capable young people in the Nordic Region, such as in our youth organisations, so there are really not many excuses for not having a child or youth partner involved already at the application stage,” explains Sigurd.
More alike than we think
Sigurd says that young people may find it challenging to identify partners from other countries to build a project with, but he emphasises that it’s worth the effort and that applicants can learn a great deal during the process.
“A pan-Nordic project is a good opportunity to pursue an international initiative within your organisation, as cultural differences between young people in the Nordic countries aren’t that significant. In the expert group, we pay attention not only to the value a project can bring to participants, but also to how project leaders can develop through the role,” says Sigurd.
Ahead of upcoming application rounds, Sigurd reminds applicants to keep the budget – especially salary costs – proportionate to the scope and scale of the project.
“We want to ensure that we achieve as much youth co-operation as possible in Norden 0-30 with the funds that we have available. That’s why we’ll prioritise projects where partners can make the money go further thanks to a strong culture of volunteering, if we assess that the project doesn’t require high salary costs. On the other hand, we’re happy to fund salaries for projects where the scale requires it and where, for example, we can support the work of a youth organisation,” he says.
Examples of projects that have been granted funding
- Nordjobb ambassadors – the project gives former Nordjobb participants aged 18 to 30 the opportunity to inspire other young people about job opportunities in the Nordic Region through workshops and creative outreach activities.
- Nordic Summer Camp – a Nordic summer camp for 100 young people who will work together to develop their ability to identify disinformation, understand the importance of dialogue, and strengthen Nordic co-operation against polarisation and information influence operations.
- Young Nordic Diabetes Forum – brings together youth representatives (aged 13 to 30) from six Nordic diabetes organisations in connection with the Nordic Diabetes Forum in Oslo in August 2026. The forum offers seminars, advocacy training, and the exchange of ideas on meaningful youth activities.
- Dolvot Sámi Songwriting Camp – gathers young Sámi musicians from Norway, Sweden, and Finland through songwriting and joik camps during 2026–2027. The young participants help design the camps, create new music, and strengthen networks, language use, and cultural confidence across Sápmi.
The final application round for Norden 0-30 this year opens in September.