Nordplus Junior Aurora Award 2026 to Democracy Project for Children
The Nordplus project "Hear the Children" allows the children to take a seat and participate in democratic processes. Now the project receives the Nordplus Junior Aurora Award 2026.
- I am so happy but at the same time surprised that we are getting the Aurora Award, says Maria Lundin Lindgren, coordinator for the project.
The purpose of the project was not to "just" listen to the children, but to hear their opinions on issues that concern them. A total of eight preschools from Sweden, Lithuania, Greenland, Estonia and Iceland participated in the project.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and UNESCO's values were the basis for the project.
- The children are the citizens of the future who must carry democracy. Through the project, we developed tools and models for working with children's voices, says Maria Lundin Lindgren.
This year's jury was unanimous in its decision to award the Nordplus Junior Aurora Award 2026 to "Hear the Children" with justification: “The democratic project engages schools across the Nordic-Baltic region and demonstrates concrete and lasting outcomes.”
The jury consisted of representatives from the Secretariat of the Nordic Council of Ministers in Denmark, State Education Development Agency of Latvia and Nordplus Head Coordinator in Sweden
The Nordplus Junior Aurora Award has been awarded since 2020 to highlight good examples of projects financed by Nordplus Junior. This year's award will be presented during the Swedish Democracy Week in Almedalen, Visby, on the 25:th of June.
Read more about the project “Hear the Children” here.