Empowering Youthwork for the Green Debate Present at Lithuania’s National Championships
On April 13th, 2025, the Lietuvos Debatų Centras hosted the Outrounds of the 31st Lithuanian Schools Debating Championships (LSDC) in Vilnius. As part of the Erasmus+ project Empowering Youthwork for the Green Debate, the event provided a platform where Lithuania’s best young debaters could test their skills on pressing environmental issues.
Green Themes in the Spotlight
The championship brought together nearly 50 debaters who advanced from regional and national qualifiers, supported by a strong community of adjudicators, coaches, and managers. As the country’s most prestigious debating event, LSDC offered the perfect stage to integrate green debate education developed within the Erasmus+ project.
The highlight was the final motion, which challenged students to think outside the box:
“Assuming the existence of such a person, this House supports a green version of Donald Trump.”
The motion came with an infoslide characterizing Trump’s well-known political style — combative, provocative, unapologetic, and polarizing. Framed under the banner “MAKE AMERICA GREEN AGAIN”, the debate pushed participants to consider what it would mean if such an influential figure were to channel their energy into the climate fight.
Empowering Youth Through Debate
The framing created a fiery and high-stakes clash of values and strategies. It also demonstrated how debate can be used to empower young people to think critically about climate politics, not only through policy discussions but also through the lens of leadership, communication, and public influence.
By incorporating such motions, the Lithuanian Championships showed how the Empowering Youthwork for the Green Debate project is helping debate organizations across Europe to engage youth with creative, challenging, and socially relevant approaches to environmental issues.
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