Embracing Democratic Conflict: Encountering the Other in Youth Political Participation

Democracy is inherently conflictual. Education should support individuals in navigating an agonistic and contested democratic space, where political identities and subjectivities are continuously shaped and reshaped through processes of conflict and negotiation. Drawing on 26 phenomenological in- depth interviews with young members of leading European youth organisations, this contribution explores how personal encounters with cultural and national diversity foster a profound process of getting to know the other. Participants’ narratives illustrate that these direct experiences not only deepen their self-awareness but also enables youth to reframe conflict as a dynamic space for constructive dialogue, without necessarily converging on identical viewpoints. Such transformative encounters highlight the central role of the educational relationship in fostering interventions and practices that allow young people to acknowledge and embrace conflict as an inherent dimension of democracy.