{"id":1912,"date":"2026-08-18T10:07:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T10:07:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/?p=1912"},"modified":"2026-08-18T10:25:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T10:25:33","slug":"festival-2026-to-strengthen-youth-voices-media-literacy-and-democratic-resilience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/2026\/08\/18\/festival-2026-to-strengthen-youth-voices-media-literacy-and-democratic-resilience\/","title":{"rendered":"Festival 2026 to Strengthen Youth Voices, Media Literacy and Democratic Resilience"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The\u00a0<strong>Nordic Media Festival 2026<\/strong>, entitled\u00a0<strong>\u201cYouth Voices for Democracy: Strengthening Media Literacy, Democratic Resilience and Information Integrity,\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0will take place from\u00a0<strong>20 to 23 August 2026<\/strong>\u00a0at the\u00a0<strong>Scandic Avia Congress Hotel in Vantaa, in the Greater Helsinki area of Finland<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The four-day international gathering will bring together young people, educators, journalists, media professionals, researchers, policymakers and civil society representatives from across the Nordic\u2013Baltic region. Organised by\u00a0<strong>Femina ry and the Sillam\u00e4e Society for Child Welfare (SSCW)<\/strong>\u00a0in cooperation with Nordic partners, the Festival will create a platform for learning, dialogue and practical cooperation on some of the most urgent challenges facing contemporary media and democratic societies.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Young people are growing up in a digital environment increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence, social media algorithms, influencers, information overload, disinformation and rapidly changing technologies. The Festival will examine how young people can navigate this environment responsibly while becoming active content creators, storytellers, fact-checkers, community leaders and contributors to democratic resilience.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Nordic Media Conference on 21 August<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The central event of the Festival will be the\u00a0<strong>Nordic Media Conference on 21 August<\/strong>, featuring keynote contributions, expert panels and youth-led working groups.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The conference will include keynote contributions from\u00a0<strong>Leif L\u00f8nsmann of the Nordic Journalism Centre<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong>Maia Klaassen of the University of Tartu<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The first panel,\u00a0<strong>\u201cGrowing Up in the Digital Age: Youth, Identity and Cognitive Wellbeing,\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0will explore how social media, information overload and the attention economy affect young people\u2019s identity, emotional wellbeing and resilience. Participants will discuss online pressure, comparison culture, healthy digital habits and ways of supporting young people\u2019s cognitive wellbeing.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The second panel,\u00a0<strong>\u201cCritical Thinking and Fighting Disinformation in the Age of AI,\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0will examine misinformation, propaganda, deepfakes and AI-generated content. Journalists, researchers and media experts will discuss practical fact-checking and source-verification skills, the democratic importance of media literacy and ways of strengthening young people\u2019s information resilience.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The third panel,\u00a0<strong>\u201cSocial Media, Influencers and Civic Participation,\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0will focus on the role of content creators and digital opinion leaders in public life. The discussion will consider how social media can be used responsibly to encourage youth activism, constructive dialogue, community participation and positive social impact.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The conference will conclude with cross-national youth working groups under the theme\u00a0<strong>\u201cYouth Voices and Democratic Resilience: Preparing for Future Challenges.\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0Participants will formulate recommendations addressing democratic participation, polarisation, social cohesion, community action, responsible media use and information integrity.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">These recommendations will contribute directly to the\u00a0<strong>Nordic Youth Media Manifesto<\/strong>, one of the Festival\u2019s principal outcomes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Digital exhibition and opening discussions<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Festival will begin on\u00a0<strong>20 August<\/strong>\u00a0with the arrival of national delegations, opening discussions and a digital exhibition showcasing media content created by young participants.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The exhibition will provide young people with an opportunity to present their perspectives through videos, interviews, photographs, podcasts, social media materials and other digital formats. It will highlight young people not only as consumers of information but also as responsible media creators capable of influencing public conversations and strengthening their communities.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Youth Media Skills and Digital Activism Lab<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">On\u00a0<strong>22 August<\/strong>, the Festival will continue with the practical\u00a0<strong>Youth Media Skills and Digital Activism Lab<\/strong>. The programme is designed for young people, youth leaders, content creators, media activists and emerging journalists.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The laboratory will include three practical workshops:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\" style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><strong>\u201cVerify Before You Share: Fact-Checking and AI Content Detection,\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0led by Katrin Vilimaa-Otsing, will introduce participants to source verification, reverse-image searches and methods for recognising manipulation, deepfakes and AI-generated content.<\/li>\n<li><strong>\u201cCreate for Change: Digital Storytelling and Community Journalism,\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0led by Tatiana Kireeva, will help participants transform local and social issues into clear, engaging and human-centred media stories while avoiding sensationalism and stereotypes.<\/li>\n<li><strong>\u201cFrom Post to Participation: Designing a Youth Digital Activism Campaign,\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0led by German Morris of Peace Child Estonia, will guide teams through the development of small digital campaigns supporting meaningful participation and positive community action.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">During the workshops, participants will create fact-checks, storyboards, video or podcast concepts, social media content and digital campaign proposals. Selected results may be presented through the Festival\u2019s digital exhibition and further developed as contributions to the Nordic Youth Media Manifesto.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Media interaction and Nordic\u2013Baltic networking<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The afternoon programme on\u00a0<strong>22 August<\/strong>\u00a0is planned to include an interaction with representatives of\u00a0<strong>Yle<\/strong>, Finland\u2019s national public-service media company. Depending on availability, the meeting may take place in person or online.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The session will give participants an opportunity to learn about professional journalism, content production, public-service media standards and the role of trusted media in democratic society. It will also offer young participants practical insights into Finland\u2019s experience in media literacy, youth engagement and public-service broadcasting.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">An informal networking programme will provide additional space for participants, experts and national delegations to exchange experiences, establish professional contacts and discuss future Nordic\u2013Baltic cooperation in journalism, media education, digital communication and youth participation.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Nordic Youth Media Manifesto<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">On\u00a0<strong>23 August<\/strong>, participants will present the results of their work and formally adopt the\u00a0<strong>Nordic Youth Media Manifesto<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The youth-led document will set out recommendations for strengthening media literacy, democratic participation, cognitive wellbeing and information resilience across the Nordic\u2013Baltic region. It will reflect the experiences and priorities of young people and offer proposals for educators, media organisations, civil society, policymakers and youth networks.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Through its combination of expert knowledge, youth participation, practical media work and cross-border cooperation, the Nordic Media Festival aims to empower young people to think critically, protect their wellbeing, use digital technologies responsibly and participate actively in democratic and inclusive societies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Practical information<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\ud83d\udcc5\u00a0<strong>20\u201323 August 2026<\/strong><br \/>\n\ud83d\udccd\u00a0<strong>Scandic Avia Congress Hotel, Vantaa, Finland<\/strong><br \/>\n\ud83c\udf10\u00a0<strong>Working language: English<\/strong><br \/>\n\ud83d\udc65\u00a0<strong>Participants:<\/strong>\u00a0young people, educators, journalists, media professionals, researchers, policymakers and civil society representatives<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The full programme and event updates are available on the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.feminary.fi\/projects\/media\/mediafestival\/\">Nordic Media Festival 2026 webpage<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Further information: <\/strong><a href=\"mailto:info@sscw.ee\">info@sscw.ee<\/a>\u00a0 \/ <a href=\"mailto:feminasuomi@gmail.com\">feminasuomi@gmail.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Nordic Media Festival is organised with financial support from the\u00a0<strong>Nordic Council of Ministers through the Norden 0\u201330 grant programme<\/strong>\u00a0and from the\u00a0<strong>National Foundation of Civil Society (SA Kodaniku\u00fchiskonna Sihtkapital)<\/strong>, with contributions from the\u00a0<strong>Nordic Journalism Centre (Nordisk Journalistcenter, NJC)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The\u00a0Nordic Media Festival 2026, entitled\u00a0\u201cYouth Voices for Democracy: Strengthening Media Literacy, Democratic Resilience and Information Integrity,\u201d\u00a0will take place from\u00a020 to 23 August 2026\u00a0at the\u00a0Scandic Avia Congress Hotel in Vantaa, in the Greater Helsinki area of Finland. The four-day international gathering will bring together young people, educators, journalists, media professionals, researchers, policymakers and civil society representatives [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1924,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,17],"tags":[90,107,100,98,103,105,101,102,99,92,108,96,106,109,104,97],"class_list":["post-1912","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-events","category-news","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-civic-participation","tag-critical-thinking","tag-democratic-resilience","tag-digital-activism","tag-digital-wellbeing","tag-disinformation","tag-fact-checking","tag-information-integrity","tag-media-literacy","tag-nordic","tag-nordic-media-festival-2026","tag-nordic-baltic-cooperation","tag-youth-media-manifesto","tag-youth-participation","tag-youth-voices"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1912","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1912"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1912\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1913,"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1912\/revisions\/1913"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1924"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1912"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1912"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/meedia.sscw.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1912"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}