“Young people do not need someone to speak on their behalf. They need opportunities, knowledge, and trust to speak for themselves.” These words from Dario Mihajlović, one of the participants in the Youth Digital Civic Lab, perfectly capture the spirit of the project “Digital Voices Lab: From Media Literacy to Civic Impact.” Implemented by the Center for Community Media Development (MEDIUM) in North Macedonia, the initiative empowered young people from the Polog region to strengthen their digital literacy, understand democratic participation, and develop practical tools that encourage transparency and accountability in their local communities.
From digital skills to civic responsibility
Across many local communities in North Macedonia, young people are highly active online but often have limited opportunities to participate meaningfully in civic life. At the same time, they face an increasingly complex digital environment filled with misinformation, manipulative content, and rapidly changing communication platforms.
Recognizing these challenges, MEDIUM designed the project “Digital Voices Lab: From Media Literacy to Civic Impact.” Rather than offering traditional lectures, the project created a practical learning space where participants could explore how digital literacy and civic participation are interconnected.
The project forms part of the Regional Support Mechanism EECA, implemented by Metamorphosis Foundation and TechSoup, in partnership with CIVICUS, under the Digital Democracy Initiative (DDI), which supports civil society across the Global South.
Its overall objective was not only to increase knowledge but also to encourage young people to become active contributors to democratic processes in their own municipalities.
Bringing young people together
Twenty motivated young participants from different municipalities across the Polog region gathered at the Civic Resource Center in Gostivar for the two-day Youth Digital Civic Lab.
From the very beginning, the atmosphere was different from a typical training. Instead of passive listening, participants were encouraged to exchange ideas, question information, collaborate in teams, and jointly search for solutions to local challenges.
The training combined theoretical knowledge with practical exercises covering media literacy, fact-checking, digital safety, online privacy, civic participation, youth advocacy, and local democratic processes.
Participants analysed real examples of misinformation circulating on social media, including sensational Facebook posts using misleading headlines, manipulated images, and unverified information shared without credible sources. Working in groups, they identified common warning signs such as clickbait headlines, emotionally charged language, and missing references before learning how to verify information using official institutional websites and independent fact-checking sources.
The highly interactive methodology created an environment where every participant could contribute regardless of previous experience. Discussions quickly evolved into collaborative problem-solving, allowing participants to connect digital skills with real challenges affecting their own communities.
Creating the Youth Digital Civic Scorecard
Perhaps the most valuable outcome of the project was the collaborative creation of the Youth Digital Civic Scorecard.
Instead of providing participants with a ready-made evaluation tool, mentors and trainers challenged them to design one themselves. Working in small multilingual groups, they discussed what makes local institutions transparent, accessible, and responsive to young people.
One of the first practical exercises focused on analysing the online presence of the Municipality of Gostivar. Together, participants developed a set of indicators that could later be applied to other local institutions as well. Among the criteria they identified were: Whether the municipality maintains active Facebook or Instagram profiles; whether it regularly publishes information relevant to young people; whether public information is written in simple and understandable language; whether citizens can easily communicate with municipal representatives online; whether opportunities for volunteering, internships, training, and youth participation are promoted; whether the municipal website is accessible and easy to use on mobile devices.
Rather than simply assigning scores, participants discussed why each indicator mattered. For example, while some participants initially believed that having an official Facebook page deserved a high rating, others argued that social media presence alone was insufficient if institutions rarely responded to citizens or failed to publish information relevant to young people. Through discussion, they agreed that visibility and active communication should become separate evaluation criteria.
The exercise encouraged participants to think critically about the quality of communication, not merely its existence, between institutions and citizens.
Through facilitated discussions, brainstorming sessions, and teamwork, participants gradually created a practical framework that will serve as the foundation for assessing how local institutions engaged, listened to, and responded to young people.
The process itself proved just as valuable as the final product. Participants experienced first-hand how democratic decision-making works, how consensus is achieved, and how different perspectives can be transformed into practical solutions that reflect the needs of an entire community.
Learning beyond the classroom
One of the project’s greatest strengths was its emphasis on practical application.
Instead of ending with the training itself, participants entered a mentoring phase during which they will continue refining their civic initiatives with the support of experienced mentors.
This follow-up support allows young people to transform newly acquired knowledge into real community action. They will further develop civic media products, improve the Youth Digital Civic Scorecard, prepare recommendations for local institutions, and design digital awareness campaigns addressing issues relevant to young people.
The project therefore goes beyond capacity building — it creates a pathway from learning to action.
Young people as partners, not beneficiaries
Throughout the project, one important message remained constant: Young people should not be viewed merely as beneficiaries of development programs but as partners capable of creating meaningful social change.
The training encouraged participants to challenge existing assumptions, engage respectfully in discussions, work collaboratively, and recognize that their opinions matter in shaping local democratic processes.
Several participants shared during the final evaluation that this was their first opportunity to explore civic participation in such a practical and inclusive way. Many admitted that before the training they associated democracy mainly with elections, while afterward they understood that democratic participation also includes asking questions, analysing public information, communicating with institutions, and actively contributing to community engagement.
As participant Eli Gjurchinoska reflected: “I realized that transparency is not only about publishing information. It is also about whether young people can actually understand it, find it easily, and communicate with their municipality. Creating the Youth Digital Civic Scorecard helped me see local institutions from a completely different perspective.”
Building stronger communities through digital democracy
Although the Youth Digital Civic Lab lasted only two days, its impact extends far beyond the training room.
The mentoring process will continue supporting participants as they develop concrete civic initiatives and prepare for the project’s Final Event, where they will publicly present their Youth Digital Civic Scorecard, recommendations, and digital civic outputs.
The project demonstrates that strengthening democracy does not always begin with large institutional reforms. Sometimes it begins with a small group of motivated young people sitting around the same table, learning how to verify information, listen to one another, identify local problems, and work together toward solutions.
For the MEDIUM team, this experience reaffirmed that investing in young people’s knowledge, confidence, and civic leadership creates lasting value for entire communities.
As digital technologies continue to shape the way citizens access information and engage in public life, initiatives such as the Youth Digital Civic Lab help ensure that the next generation is prepared not only to navigate the digital world safely but also to use it responsibly, to question information, participate in decision-making, and become active contributors to democratic change.
