I’m me and you’re you but together we’re the German Rural Youth Association. We have one thing in common although we’re all different. We want to live in the countryside. And to ensure it stays like that, that’s exactly what we do. Everyone contributes their mite, from the smallest local group to the largest regional association. That starts with rural youth fetes and doesn’t stop with political events such as the annual Parliamentary Evening because it’s the young people who create new openings and who, through their events, enrich life in rural areas.

The BDL is therefore a network offering free-time and educational activities run by young people for young people. It’s a network in which children and young people in rural areas can decisively shape their lives and which enables them to assume responsibility from an early age. On the other hand the BDL fights for the interests of children and young people in rural areas. Or in other words, opinions are formed in the association. As the BDL, we can break down this cluster of opinions and we therefore become a mouthpiece, a lawyer.

And another thing: we don’t live on an island. The influence of the big wide world can also be seen in the smallest village. It’s exactly for that reason that it’s worth looking beyond your own cultural horizons because it’s not just your own experiences of foreign cultures that benefit you. That’s why the BDL supports international rural youth exchanges but also plays a part itself on the international stage, in order to influence European politics.

Further information about all this can be found on the following pages.