The Soča Valley Development Centre and the Fundacija Poti miru v Posočju (Walk of Peace Foundation in the Upper Soča Region) participated in the first youth policy dialogue with European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos and European Commissioner for Intergenerational Justice, Youth, Culture, and Sport, Glenn Micallef. The event that took place on February 7 and 8, was co-organized by the Commissioners' cabinets, the Commission Directorate-General to focus on Enlargement and Eastern Neighbourhood (DG ENEST), and the Representation of the European Commission in Slovenia. Representatives of the youth political dialogue took part in a program focused on exploring the Walk of Peace as part of the opening of the European Capital of Culture 2025 Nova Gorica – Gorizia.
On February 7, young representatives from EU Member States and neighbouring countries were introduced to the historical background of the cross-border area by historians from Slovenia and Italy: Petra Svoljšak, PhD (Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts – ZRC SAZU) and Alex Tamer. Maša Klavora (Walk of Peace Foundation) and Vesna Kozar, Alexander Klarić (Soča Valley Development Centre) presented the concept and projects of the Walk of Peace, including the ongoing initiatives GOV4PeaCE, WALKofPEACE+, and BeWoP. These projects are being implemented under the Interreg Italy-Slovenia 2021-2027 and Interreg Central Europe 2021-2027 Programmes.
Curators of The regional museum Goriški muzej, Marko Klavora and David Kožuh, then conducted a guided tour for 40 representatives, showcasing the museum collection Kolodvor (Exhibition: The State Border in the Goriška Region 1945–2004) and Trg Evrope – Piazza Transalpina.
The final part of the program was dedicated to representatives of the first youth political dialogue in 2025, who shared their perspectives on life in cross-border regions, peace and conflicts, the EU enlargement process, and other topics of importance to them.
On the morning of February 8, a discussion took place with European Commissioners Marta Kos and Glenn Micallef on intergenerational justice, youth policies, and the future of Europe. The discussion with the Commissioners was also attended by Maša Klavora (Walk of Peace Foundation), Vesna Kozar, Alexander Klarić (Soča Valley Development Centre), and Petra Svoljšak (ZRC SAZU).
