Press and publicity work as a way for young people to actively participate in the European society Europe has always been a variety of different peoples, languages and religions. Yet in some EU countries there is still intolerance, xenophobia and prejudice against different minorities. The potential of young people with migration background is often being not sufficiently recognized and supported. Our youth program allows young people from Russia and Germany to participate in a press and publicity activities and find new ways to call for public attention to the situation and the life of immigrants and members of ethnic minorities, as well as cultural and ethnic variety in Europe. The project contributes to promoting youth's tolerance, supports better understanding between young people from different countries, allows them to apply their skills and knowledge in various projects and to develop new skills. The project involves active young people with and without migration background from Germany and Russia. The age of participants ranges from 20 to 30 years. The participative approach used in the project allows young people to be actively involved in the planning, accomplishment and evaluation of the project. The project comprises three phases: 1) Preparatory phase (September - October 2014) The preparation of the youth congress will be done together by the both partners. An internet platform will be created to give participants a possibility to get to know each other, to discuss and to ascertain the content of the project and to distribute tasks. 2) Active phase (18th - 25th November 2014) The highlight of the project is the Youth Congress to be held in Munich from 18th to 25th of November. In the framework of the Youth Congress the young people will organise a plenum discussion on the topic „Language minorities in Europe“, „European mindset“, etc. Apart from that the participants will attend several workshops on „Press and publicity work“. The workshops will include the following topics: „press release“, „journalistic writing“, „press photography“, etc. Participants will get a chance to apply the acquired knowledge by creating an innovative press center for the JULA festival. As active members of the press center, the participants release the daily festival newspaper, take interviews, write an online blog, get in touch with representatives of the press, etc. There will be a possibility for the participants to analyze and to discuss the new experience with each other within the daily sessions. 3) Wrap-up phase (December 2014 - January 2015) The results will be summarized and evaluated in the wrap-up phase of the project. The wrap-up meetings will take place in the both partner organizations. Also potential future projects will be discussed together. By taking part in the informal learning process within the projects the young participants should acquire following skills: - intercultural skills by working in an international context - social skills (communication, team work, etc) by working in a group – better understanding of a current discourse on the immigrants' situation in European countries – independent and responsible working style by active participation in the planning, executing and evaluation of the project. – social awareness by engaging with current social topics – media competence and creative thinking – basic knowledge of press and publicity work, especially in the area integration and youth activity – basic knowledge and experience in journalistic writing – basic knowledge and experience in creating, lay out, and illustration of publications – basic knowledge and experience in press photography By combining different informal learning strategies, especially connecting theory and practical experience, the young people will acquire important skills in the framework of the youth congress. With these skills and the new experience they will be able not only to work on press and publicity projects but also with positive and authentic reporting they will be able to sustainably improve the public opinion on immigrants and national minorities.