The voices shaping Europe’s future | Rural Youth Forward Conference 2026

In this episode we’re taking you back to the first ever European Rural Youth Forward Conference. Earlier this year, around 100 rural youth leaders and European policy-makers gathered in Piloña, Spain, for an event dedicated to strengthening rural youth policy-making across Europe.Hear from Ketrin, Spyros, Rosie, Martin and Jana from the RYE team, as they catch up with some of the conference delegates about their work ensuring rural voices are heard at a national and European level. They speak to Matías Rubio (EPA! Association), Lenka Lejčková (National Local Action Group Network of the Czech Republic), Richard Beattie (Young Farmers’ Clubs of Ulster) and Landry Gourdon (Familles Rurales). Links: National Local Action Group Network of the Czech Republic - 21 examples of Participation and Engagement: https://rebrand.ly/9f54d4 Young Farmers’ Clubs of Ulster: www.yfcu.org Familles Rurales: https://www.famillesrurales.org Find out more about the Rural Youth Forward project: https://rebrand.ly/93e0f9 The podcast is part of Rural Youth Forward project and its European Rural Youth Forward Conference event. This podcast has been produced by Rural Youth Europe with the financial support of European Union and the European Youth Foundation of the Council of Europe. The opinions expressed herein are the responsibility of the authors and do not reflect the official opinion of the Council of Europe and European Union.