Youth Speak Up at Women and Gender Minorities Open 2026

The Women and Gender Minorities Open 2026 took place on 8 March, on International Women’s Day. This was the second edition of the tournament, continuing an initiative focused on creating a more inclusive debating environment.

The main idea of the Women and Gender Minorities (WGM) Open is not only to organise a debate tournament, but to provide a space where participants can develop their skills in a supportive setting. Many women and gender minorities in debating have experienced situations where their contributions are not taken as seriously, or where they feel less confident to speak. Events like this aim to address this problem by offering an environment where these participants are the majority and can practise without the usual pressures.

In this context, the tournament becomes a place for learning and improvement. Participants can work on public speaking, argumentation, and critical thinking, but also on confidence and leadership. Seeing women and gender minorities in roles such as judges, organisers, and Chief Adjudicators also plays a vital role. It shows that these positions are accessible and helps participants imagine themselves in similar roles in the future.

Workshop:
Alongside the tournament, a workshop was organised as part of the Youth Speak Up project, Erasmus+ project designed to empower youth to start and maintain their own debate clubs. This session thus introduced practical materials on how to start and lead debate clubs. While it was only one part of the event, it supported the same goal: helping participants take what they learn and apply it in their own communities.

The workshop focused on simple and practical steps, such as:

• Organising regular meetings
• Encouraging active participation
• Creating inclusive spaces.

This aligns closely with the broader aim of the WGM Open, which prioritises long-term development over one-time participation only.

Participants also had time to go through the materials from the Youth Speak Up Project and see how they could use them in practical application. They looked at examples of debate sessions, club organisation, and different ways to run activities. This made it easier to understand how to apply these ideas in their own universities or local groups. Many participants discussed how they could adjust the materials depending on their context, for example if they have a small group or limited resources.
This segment of the event was valuable because it connected the workshop content with real situations participants might face when starting or developing their own debate spaces.