Being young means, by definition, to live in the future, searching for a point of equilibrium on which to construct yourself, avoiding threatening pitfalls or at least seeking to learn from them. Romano Guardini wrote: 'The youngster who has passed through the crisis of his/her development years has made contact with and seeks to acquire mastery of him/herself'. The youngsters go within themselves and face the world, commencing to perform their work. The youngsters have become aware of their vital energy and feel their potential of evolving and gaining experiences; but this also entails duties: to affirm and discipline, save and shape their vital energy, to achieve what is truly important (Note 1).
The youngsters, committed to this task of self-awareness and affirmation, are also citizens of a world that calls on them, attracts and disorientates them, but also needs their contribution to evolve and improve.
Today's social-economic and institutional situation requests a confident glance ahead. A sensation of finding oneself in a stall situation, shared by many people, where it is necessary to seek those energies required for a re-launch. Natural sciences discuss potential energy confronting a kinetic energy concept. The youthful reservoir can hold that subterranean energy, not always manifested, which can be transformed into kinetic energy for positive dynamism.
Concentrating on youngsters also means reflecting on the generating capacity of our society, wanting to pay the right attention and centrality for which they should be recognised, and designing a possible future. A society is generative if, by investing in youngsters, it understands how to take advantage of those with potential and thus intuitively perceive the possible development conditions. It emerged from a Censis (Social Investments Studies Centre) study in 2011 (Note 2) that 48% of Italians think that our Country's future will depend precisely on how we prepare youngsters from now for the next ten years.

2013 was proclaimed 'European Citizens year' by the European Commission and dedicated to the citizens of Europe and their rights, in conjunction with the 20th birthday of EU citizenship, namely a concept launched by the Maastricht Treaty in 1993. This initiative aims to boost a sense of belonging to the EU and takes on an even more meaningful nuance during this delicate period of greater disaffection. It represents an opportunity to learn about individual rights as EU citizens, and thus also to make the best of all the possibilities made available by the EU, particularly to the younger generation.
According to the Eurobarometer 2012 survey conducted by the European Commission (Note 3), 51% of Italian interviewees already feel like European citizens, especially adults between the ages of 40 and 54 (58%). The sense of European identity among the young is more enhanced between the ages of 15 and 24 (54%), whereas it drops to 51% for those between the ages of 25 and 39. The remaining half still struggles with the notion of European identity, 68% in any case admit not being fully aware of their rights as citizens and would benefit from further information relating to the possibility of working and living in another EU Member Country on a permanent basis.
Active citizenship and participation are concepts that have been addressed time after time by the EU, also by inviting the Member States to adopt active policies advancing the full expression of European citizenship based on the values of democracy and solidarity, with special consideration for the young. The promotion of the participation, social inclusion and active citizenship of young people is tantamount to enhancing their role within society and creating incentives for broadening their potential scope for action.
Nowadays, participation also implies the avoidance of delegation, whereby the resolution of the current economic situation is expected from the outside. Lastly, participation entails the promotion of human capital, arising from the very appreciation of young people's efforts.
In a European comparison, one Italian youngster in two actively takes part in local social life via cultural and political activities or activities oriented towards human development, in alignment with the situation depicted by young Europeans. This value is the highest among the Mediterranean countries, but remains lower than the one pertaining to the reality in Central and Northern Europe. (Figure 10.1.1)
Active participation within society also means commitment to the community, which when made by youngsters may also lead to political involvement and community-oriented interest at an adult age. The current gap between citizens and politics may affect even the younger generations, who therefore risk disaffection in terms of political life.
Youth and politics constitute an ambiguous combination: many talk about it but few are actively engaged. Membership of political parties, trade union organisations or merely having the choice to vote are all signs of 'visible participation'. On the basis of the survey conducted by the European Commission, young Italians who in the recent years expressed their opinion by voting make up 71%, less than the European average (79%). The participation rate, irrespective of how high, differs according to the election type: high for national and municipal elections, less so for provincial and European ones. (Figure 10.1.2)
In a study conducted by Anci (Note 4) young people were interviewed on their voting intention during the next elections, by comparing the percentage of youngsters who were certain about going to the polls versus those who declared always having voted: the intention appears to decrease for all election types, excepting European elections.
However, the discrepancy between youth and politics appears more pronounced on a national scale, which context seems to suffer more than others from the increasing climate of mistrust in Italy, and that possibly due to the greater mass media exposure is subject to heavy criticism: as regards the elections of the Italian Parliament, and based on a comparison of past trends and the future voting intention, a hypothetical drop in the participation rate by 3.6 percentage points is detected. (Figure 10.1.3)
The trend may be observed not only in terms of voting intention, but also in relation to the actual participation in electoral consultations. Compared to the elections taking place in 2008, a decrease of youngsters between the ages of 18 and 24 going to the polls was registered in 2013, although it is worth mentioning that the percentage of young people from the Veneto region remains higher than the national average. (Figure 10.1.4)
Participation may be expressed also at other levels. An interest in public affairs is not necessarily converted to activities supporting politics as such, but is developed also by staying current and exchanging viewpoints. This may be defined as 'invisible participation'. In just one decade there has been an increase in youngsters who admit to talking about politics at least once a week (from 36.9% in 2001 to 47.5% in 2011 in the Veneto region). However, one may wonder whether this is a reflection of the existing debate, especially among the media, on the matter of parties and political issues, or if instead it stems from an actual personal in-depth development relating to public matters and issues. In fact, there is a simultaneous increase in the amount of youngsters who never stay informed about politics (from 16.1% to 17.9% in the Veneto region). Likewise, the number of those attending political debates is reduced.
Thanks to the dissemination of new technologies, an innovative way of taking an interest in politics and the institutions is advanced via the Internet as in the case of cyber citizens, namely young people using the worldwide web not only to stay abreast of latest events but also to exchange information on social and political issues, including via social networks. Almost 30% of young people in the Veneto region use this mode of information. National data shows that this trend seems to be increasing. (Table 10.1.1)
Despite the lack of trust in the institutions, youngsters continue to show an interest in public affairs, on a national level, among those taking part in voluntary activities, 58% of youngsters embrace volunteer work for the purposes of bringing about positive changes in their local communities, against the European average of 51%. The ability to shift interest from the self to others, working towards the wellbeing of the local community, is a crucial indicator of maturity in a youth embarking on adulthood endowed with community-oriented responsibility. (Figure 10.1.5)
The youth represents the moment in which abilities are put to the test and new experiences are sought, as attested by a wealth of youngsters devoted to voluntary organisations.
Among its cultural traditions, the Veneto region boasts a plethora of values that include local involvement, attention paid to those who are at a disadvantage and taking to heart the cultural and social development of the local community. In this sense, the younger generation has always played a cardinal role. The challenge lies in liaising, expanding and optimising the collaboration between institutions, the non-profit sector and youngsters, fostering a fruitful exchange between people endowed with experience and structured abilities and the younger generation able to relay an innovative spirit as well as new forms of relations. Even the collaboration between generations is a key element for reinforcing united social actions.
The younger generations represent one of the main assets in our society, and voluntary work may be viewed as preparatory for active participation. On the one hand, volunteerism promotes the development of a community-based society; on the other hand it represents an educational experience for youngsters, cultivating values such as commitment and responsibility, which in turn contribute to understanding to what extent the gift of self-awareness may also be considered in terms of personal enhancement. The Charter of voluntary values suggests that 'the free-of-charge basis is the hallmark of voluntary action, rendering the latter unique compared to other non-profit components and other forms of community-based commitment'.
In the Veneto region almost 1 youngster in 5 declares carrying out pro bono activities for non-profit voluntary associations or groups, thus setting an increasing trend in recent years (14% in 2007), well above the national average. Young people appear to show their spirit of social participation more through pro bono activities conducted via voluntary work, as opposed to participation in the political life. (Figure 10.1.6)
Life satisfaction refers to a gamut of diverse spheres relating not only to basic needs allowing for a dignified existence, but also to superior needs of an intangible entity. Health above all, but also employment, financial conditions, and family and social relations are viewed by youngsters as facets contributing significantly to a high quality of life, since their importance score 9 points out of 10.
Compared to other life quality aspects, the opinion relating to income and profession is affected to a greater extent by the effects of the current economic trends. In ten years these have worsened considerably: if in 2001-02 youngsters in the Veneto region satisfied with their job made up 84.2% of cases, today this percentage falls to 69.5%. A similar situation is to be seen in relation to satisfaction with the economic situation, which in ten years dropped from 66.8% to 49.2%. The younger generations are the most affected, as they struggle to manage their life independently and personally deal with the consequences of an unstable and uncertain labour market. Apart from the difficulty in finding a job matching personal expertise, they currently face the fear or uncertainty in securing and holding down a job.
The level of satisfaction with social relations and health remains essentially stable and with high values. Also, according to young people, loved ones as a source of moral and material support belong to those values which remain stable in terms of importance and hold in the face of difficult economic trends.
Despite the many difficulties faced, in 2011, youngsters in the Veneto region rate their personal life satisfaction as 7.3 points out of a maximum of 10, which value is aligned with the national average and slightly decreasing compared to the previous year (7.4 in 2010). (Figure 10.1.7)
The social and economic situation and personal life satisfaction also have an impact on the future expectations of young people. In the meantime, what the latter expect or speculate affects their current choices and personal investments in terms of energy and projects. Thinking about the future inherently contributes to selecting those behaviour patterns that may yield the appropriate answers to the expectations cultivated by each youngster. According to 57.7% of youngsters, Italy will change drastically or enough in the next ten years, thus confirming the perception of an evolving reality, even if not always this is associated with positive and confident thoughts. Youngsters are worried about their future, especially as regards work, since long periods of unemployment are considered in relation to financial and living difficulties. (Table 10.1.2)
Although it still enjoys a reasonable quality of life, Italy currently has a more precarious outlook, and youngsters are aware of the fact that society in future will be unable to sustain the same intensity with which it evolved over the decades of their parents.
The current social uncertainty tends to reverberate among the younger generations which, if compared to the adults, are more evolved in certain fields such as technology and communication but appear more fearful and fragile in the face of an evolving social reality. In fact 47.4% of youngsters are worried about their future, against 45% of the overall population. Such concerns involve collective and individual wellbeing alike, as the very paralysis of a number of key areas of economy and society run the risk of jeopardising the attainment of personal future independence. However, there are also young people (19%) who view their future as an encouraging challenge, stimulating for those who benefit from a curious attitude (23%).
In spite of the uncertainty, many youngsters still trust in a future in which their social and economic situation may improve compared to the current one and to that enjoyed by their family of origin. This trust may represent the incentive required in order to contribute to a community-based society and to lay the foundations for personal independence. This will depend on the personal energy level of the younger generations, but also on the opportunities that society will be able to offer them. (Table 10.1.3)

Society succeeds in being generative if it is able to pass the baton to the younger generations, enabling the latter to face adulthood, and to ensure even greater opportunities than those experienced already.
Nowadays we risk witnessing a contradiction: today's youngsters enjoy better standards of living, and social, cultural and interpersonal opportunities than their parents, in that they have invested in educational paths endowing them with high levels of human capital, yet it appears that they are heading for an uncertain and problematic future.
Reasons of various nature may be speculated. Based on the perusal of the economic macro transformations, our country faces a strenuous economic trend and criticality in terms of employment. Conversely, from a more sociological angle, the adult perspective on youth and on the way of relating to the latter appears quintessential.
Not always do adults endorse the orienting and guiding role, favouring an attachment to acquired positions over making space for the new generations. Hence society runs the risk of becoming unable to generate and remaining entrapped in a contradiction: it cares about youth as such, but not always does it care for youngsters.
Opportunities are assessed also in terms of possibility of growth in the social scale throughout life and in relation to the conditions of the individual family of origin, where generally the expression 'social status' refers to the position occupied by any given person within society in relation to other people. It is determined by diverse factors such as the possession of material assets, job, access to economic resources, culture and social standing.
The appraisal of social mobility suitably approximates to the degree of fairness and tolerance of society, to be attained if the opportunities for growth are equally distributed and such as to ensure identical educational and professional possibilities for all and, in general, the same margins for personal success, irrespective of any potential disparities of origin.
In an international comparison, Italy displays a still limited social mobility, especially if compared to the situation in Northern European countries. A high social fluidity also characterises Canada and Australia, unlike the United States, where the leverage exerted by the families of origin and financial conditions are still preponderant.
On a national scale, an indicator of social mobility refers to the percentage of people achieving jobs deviating from those obtained originally (their own or of their parents) compared to the overall population. In 2009, both in Italy and in the Veneto region, 37% of people have a similar occupation in terms of expertise, qualification and level of specialism to the one their parents had during the mature stage of their own career (immobility rate). Among those involved in the processes of social mobility (63%), 30% of Veneto inhabitants enjoy an increasing mobility (in Italy these represent 32%), although there is a not entirely negligible percentage of people failing to preserve the same social level of their family of origin (descending mobility: 19% in the Veneto region and 16% in Italy). The situation is essentially stable compared to ten years ago, without registering any significant progress in terms of tolerance and upward drive. (Figure 10.2.1)
When considering the social opportunities made available to youngsters, it is preferable to refer to intergenerational mobility, namely to compare the situation of initial work placement of the youngster with the one experienced by the parent.
Only 15% of youngsters in the Veneto region are able to place themselves immediately in a social class higher than the one of origin (18% in Italy), there is rather a downward mobility.
Approximately one third of employed people aged between 18 and 34 at the time of entry into the employment world have access to a job that is less qualified than the one held by the parent, despite the upgrade in the level of education compared to previous generations. This is partially obvious, as the comparison cross-references the initial job held by the youngster with the occupation of their parents at a mature age, namely more or less at the peak of their working career, and the disadvantage experienced during the stage of initial work placement does not imply a total lack of scope for social mobility for young people. Nevertheless, this occurs later, particularly via career paths and in terms of intergenerational mobility. However, changes in social opportunities may be observed as being to the detriment of the younger generation. If we compare today's youngsters with the previous generations (aged 35 and above), it becomes clear to what extent it is increasingly difficult to find employment from the start of the working career in a social class higher than the parent's one. On the contrary, the risk of doing worse, which had lowered for a long while, marks an increase for those born after the mid 70s reaching 32.3%, whereas it was equivalent to 23.6% for all previous cohorts.
The increasing drawbacks for youngsters facing first work placement are cross-sectional: nowadays young people from the middle and upper classes regress more frequently than their parents/grandparents, and the offspring of workers advances to a lesser extent than those coming before them in the past 30 years.
However, there are indeed various levels of intensity, and the family of origin still has a strong foothold in social mobility, generating disparities across individual opportunities. Youngsters appear to inherit both privileges and disadvantages of their parents, and the upper classes succeed in ensuring their offspring access to better positions as well as a greater level of protection from the risk of downward mobility. (Table 10.2.1)
Education plays a potentially leading role in enhancing social mobility. Nevertheless, if the selection of any given academic path as well as the ensuing outcome gravitate strongly around social origin, it follows that education is virtually unable to carry out its function of social promotion and all disparities across social classes tend to multiply and linger over the course of time.
For the purposes of adhering to the constitutional principles, our educational system has increasingly shifted towards a model enabling all students to attain their instructive and educational objectives solely by relying on their abilities and not on the basis of the characteristics of their family of origin. The progress made is considerable, yet much remains to be done in terms of actual opportunities.
In a recent study, the OCSE (Note 5) analysed the influence exerted by the family of origin in relation to educational choices, and academic and occupational outcomes. What emerges is a country unable to separate the results obtained by the offspring from those of their parents. On an academic level, the offspring of graduates has more than 50% chance of graduating compared to others, whereas the offspring of poorly educated parents has more than 45% probability of never gaining a higher education. These discrepancies then remain in the labour market: on average the offspring of graduates enjoys a 50% higher income than the offspring of parents lacking a higher education. Besides, 40% of the financial advantage of a well-paid person compared to another less well-paid person is handed down from parent to offspring.
Family background affects the choice of secondary school and, accordingly, students grow up in extremely diverse settings: the group of peers they fall in with throughout their academic path as well as their approach to the subjects are equally diverse. This will then be crucial in their future university-and employment-oriented choices.
The data emerging from the survey conducted in 2007 by Istat on the study and employment-based paths selected by 2004 secondary-school graduates shows that it is feasible to envisage a synthetic indicator based on the parents' educational qualifications and their occupation (Note 6). It follows that in the Veneto region, 35% of secondary-school graduates come from families with a 'poor background', 32% come from families with an 'average background ' and the remaining 33% come from families with an 'upper-class background', which values are aligned with the national average.
Family background affects the choice between employment and university. Regardless of the school-type attended and the results attained, youngsters from low-profile families mostly undertake an occupational path, whereas youngsters from high-profile families undertake a university-oriented path. In particular, the majority of youngsters holding a vocational diploma choose to start work, although to a lesser degree in the case of youngsters from well-off families, whereas youngsters attending Italian lyceums go on to university (or they study and work), whereby in 90% of cases they belong to an upper-class background and in 77% of cases they belong to a lower-class background. Nevertheless, the gap is more apparent when the polytechnic schools are analysed: on average, among the youngsters with a high-class background 55% pursue their studies, which percentage gradually dwindles to 27% among the youngsters with lower family profiles (a difference of 28.2 percent points). (Figure 10.2.2)
Likewise, among Italian graduates after the first three-year cycle, studies are pursued more often by the offspring of parents with a higher social status, whereas the prospect of employment prevails among the offspring of workers. (Table 10.2.2)

The transition to adult life appears to have been extended in recent decades, which places youngsters in an unusual situation within society in that they find themselves in the situation of not being considered as fully adult and responsible citizens, as they are not always able to be independent from their family of origin, even if only financially. The economic hardship that our country is currently enduring further complicates the achievement of complete independence, since the complexity of attaining stable employment generates uncertainty and insecurity as regards life projects.
This situation of uncertainty and insecurity may be a source of disorientation hindering the undertaking of a specific position within community-based society. Youngsters are at risk of self-retreat and withdrawal within their uncertain condition, lacking a reliable future to which they may aspire.
Being generative is a key step in adulthood, a milestone that every young person has to attain during the transition to mature life. Being generative spurs youngsters to become responsible for their future and that of others, it initiates the unfolding of a relational dimension of mutual care, social awareness and active citizenship.
In order to be generative it is imperative to be able to place a safe distance between oneself and one's family of origin, the very distance allowing for particular achievement in terms of independence, thus a personal contribution to society.
At the end of 2011 there were 881,389 youngsters aged between 18 and 34 in the Veneto region, dropping by 23.4% compared to 1998 and now representing 18.2% of the population. 36.3% belonged to the 18-24 age group, and the remaining percentage referred to young people aged between 25 and 34. These youngsters were more educated than in the past: 57.2% have a secondary-school diploma, whereas 16.2% boast a degree, compared to 5.6% ten years earlier. However, in view of an investment in terms of human capital a decrease in the employment rate may be observed, which in 2012 dropped to 65.8%. A quarter is married and 17% have children; these represent receding percentages compared to a few decades back.
The profiles relating to the families of origin are also altered. 9% are the offspring of separated or divorced parents, albeit less than at the national level, they have more educated parents (43.3% have a parent with at least a secondary-school diploma) and a higher social status, with mobility shifting from the middle class towards the upper class, whereas the offspring of lower-class families remains stable. (53.4%). (Table 10.3.1)
More than half the youngsters in the Veneto region declare that they are still living with their family of origin, 58.3% in Italy and 48.4% have never stopped living with their family of origin up until now, although it is felt that the proper age to fly the maternal nest is set at 25, whether male or female. The ripe age at which youngsters currently leave their family home is a phenomenon that has been affecting our Country for decades, as per a trend common in many Mediterranean societies. In the Member States of Northern and Western Europe the detachment from the family of origin occurs earlier than in the Eastern and Southern area, usually by the age of 25, and even shortly after becoming of legal age in Scandinavian Countries. Conversely, in Italy there is a tendency to stay with parents until well over the age of 30, an increasingly widespread phenomenon which has also affected the Southern regions, where up until a few years ago youngsters were more inclined to start a family early on.
This is firmly rooted in a cultural factor, but not exclusively. Specifically in Italy, but more generally in all Mediterranean Countries, the bond between parents and offspring is certainly different in nature. It is stronger and long-standing; parents tend to invest a great deal in their offspring in emotional and material terms alike, they are particularly protective and ever willing to sacrifice themselves more for their youngster's wellbeing and therefore agreeable to keeping them on at home until better opportunities for their future materialise on the horizon. Moreover, the current crisis appears to further discourage youngsters from leaving home since, because of the lack of employment, they postpone the decision to start their own family and in a few cases actually seize the opportunity to complete their studies. (Table 10.3.2)
Incidentally, the most frequent reasons cited by youngsters behind their prolonged stay at home are related to financial straits: 35% would be hard put to pay rent, whereas 12% still struggle with finding stable employment; one in three declares being a student and hence far removed from financial independence. In any case there are also some who are happy with their lot, as they are able to count on a certain degree of independence (26%). Compared to ten years ago reasons relating to economic issues such as rent and work are rising.
The home issue is definitely not a secondary one and it discourages the possibility of undertaking an independent course of life. As underscored by the research conducted by the Cnel (Note 7), youngsters complain about the unsustainable costs, both in terms of rent and property purchase, also exposing the shortcomings of the institutions in adopting housing policies aimed at people under the age of 35. Furthermore, the problematic access to financially sustainable dwellings restricts territorial mobility for those intending to pursue studies or occupational-based opportunities, resulting in an inflexible labour market.
All this should be viewed in conjunction with the peculiarities archetypal of the welfare regimes, which in Italy are often ungenerous with the younger generation and family in general. The lack of appropriate public aid and adequate welfare safety nets clearly fails to encourage young Italians to leave home and rely on their ability to support themselves without any help from their parents.
Those who still remain at home struggle in their quest for financial independence and thus are not always able to contribute to family expenses: 64.7% of youngsters in the Veneto region do not help towards the household, as most of them do not have an independent income; so much so that in order to at least sustain personal expenses over half (55.3%) declare receiving money from their parents quantifiable on average as 182 Euros per month.
On the other hand, on the understanding that the unemployment rate of youngsters aged between 20 and 34 has risen in recent years from 5.9% in 2005 to 11.2% in 2012, it is higher among those who are still living with their parents (from 6.5% to 14.5%) than among those who are not based outside home. (Figure 10.3.1)
The support of the family of origin has always been and continues to be the basic social safety net for the younger generation, enabling them to cope with the transition to adulthood and therefore providing them with the opportunity to make a cost/benefit analysis, when leaving their family, involving as few risks as possible. 61.6% have relatives they can count on when they need help, including financial support.
It is not always easy and natural to address this type of change. 54.5% of young people from Veneto intend to quit their family of origin within the next three years, above the national average, although this intention does not always immediately materialize.
Personal resistance or financial obstacles may certainly be one of the reasons, but, especially in recent years, affected by the crisis, young people are having a hard time trying to embrace and internalize the new paradigms of education and work. Despite the fact that youth culture is open to the needs for mobility and flexibility required by today's labour market, it is not easy to get used to being flexible and accommodating and there may be some resistance to these adaptation processes.
When young people decide to separate from their family of origin, in most cases this is due to marriage or cohabitation (53.8%), although these factors are down sharply compared to ten years ago (78.7%): this is typical of the Mediterranean countries, while young people from northern and central Europe move out of home earlier, alone or with friends or their partner. Others leave home to study or work (26.5%) and more generally seeking independence (12.1%).
They mostly live in rented homes and housing costs are especially burdensome for singles who choose to live alone compared to young couples, as shown by the total financial sustainability indicator, which takes into account the level of housing costs and the impact on income. The index ranges from 0 to 100, where 0 represents the worst condition and 100 the most favourable situation, i.e. maximum sustainability.(Note 8) While for Veneto households in general the index score is 73 out of 100, showing an acceptable financial sustainability level in terms of housing, for the young people living alone, on the contrary, the indicator highlights a discomforting situation, reaching a value of 43.5, down almost 10 points compared to a few years ago.
Among those who decide to get married in order to leave home, 63.4% enjoy a home of their own, mainly because they either built it or purchased it, sometimes because they inherited it, free of charge, or because it was already owned by one of the partners. While abandoning the nest, they do not go too far from their family of origin, as 69% of them choose a residence within 16 km from their family, thus maintaining frequent contacts with their relatives and relying on them for emotional and material support when necessary.
Given the current economic changes affecting Italy, young people are more likely to face the prospect of going to work and live abroad, not so much as a temporary solution, but as a final, or at least medium to long term, project.
The growing trend, at least hypothetically, to live and work abroad may be the result of a defence, sometimes self-retreat, mechanism: if you risk having less than your parents, then you are more likely to imagine your life elsewhere.
At the national level, according to a recent survey conducted by Censis, the majority of the population believes that in the future, staying in Italy will still be worth the effort: 66.5% said that, if given the chance, they would not leave Italy especially because they feel their roots are here. However, if we look at young people's opinions, the situation is reversed: among the 18-29 year olds, 57.1% envisage leaving Italy in the future, especially because they notice a decline in the quality of life
The prospect of moving to another country is seen as an option not only by young people, as it also seems to be taken into consideration by their respective families: 38% of Italian families with children think their children will study abroad, 43% in the Northeast, and this proportion rises to 62% for families whose members are university graduates. There seems to be a growing general perception that current education paths are unable to promote social mobility and fail to ensure a way out of job insecurity.
Considering the data from municipal registers, in the last decade the number of young people moving abroad, transferring their official residence, is growing, which shows they are considering a long-term stay. While in the first five years of the millennium these relocations affected less than a thousand young people aged 18-35 per year, over the past five years they have involved more than 1,600 young people, especially those aged 25-34 years (approximately 83%). They mainly go to the UK (18% in 2011) and Germany (12%), but over time also destinations are changing: while until a few years ago they mostly went to the UK, now other destinations are becoming more attractive, including non-European destinations such as Brazil (10%) and the United States (6%). (Figure 10.3.2)
Limiting attention to graduates, including those who earned their degree in 2007, one graduate from Veneto out of 8 in 2011 was working in a region other than his/her region of origin, albeit in Italy, in line with Northern regions and lower than in the South of Italy. The choice of moving to another country involves fewer students: in the North 2.6% of graduates holding 5-year degrees or post-graduate master degrees opted to live abroad; this data is in line with the trend in our region (Note 9). (Figure 10.3.3)

In this difficult transition from national to global economies, in this period of profound changes in production methods and work organization and of demographic changes, the younger generations have to bear most of the resulting costs. The difficulties that young people face today in finding a job and, in particular, a stable job, affect all other spheres of life: delay in achieving financial independence and, therefore, in leaving the family of origin, delay in setting up their own family, delay in having children if not giving up the idea altogether, which is a strong sign of social discomfort and will have even stronger repercussions on demography and intergenerational relations in the future.
Since the early nineties the recession has been weighing heavily on young people, greatly reducing the generational turnover in the workplace. The average age of the workforce has grown steadily since then: companies, in fact, reacted to the difficulties not only by dismissing adult workers, but also by reducing turnover. Since 1997, partly due to the introduction of flexible forms of employment envisaged in the so called Treu package, youth employment experienced a new surge, showing a positive trend for some years. But the recent crisis has brought to light old and new issues and in 2012 the unemployment rate in Italy for young people aged 25-34 reached 14.9% and even 35.3% for the 15-24 age group, the highest value of the last twenty years and above the European average which tops at 22.8%. Focusing on the youngest group, Italy remains among the countries with the worst job prospects: only Greece and Spain show less favourable conditions, where more than half of the young people cannot find a job, and Portugal, where unemployment is at 37.7%. Conversely, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands offer the best conditions, where less than 10% of young people have difficulty in finding a job.
Fortunately, the situation of young people in Veneto is among the most favourable in Italy: in fact, with a 23.7% unemployment rate compared to 17% twenty years ago and 8% a decade ago, Veneto ranks second among Italian regions in terms of lowest unemployment rates, Trentino Alto Adige ranking first with 15.2%. Much lower, compared to the Italian average, is also the share of young people from Veneto looking for a job for over a year: 6.1% of the labour force compared to 17.2% nationally. (Figure 10.4.1)
The situation is more favourable also from a contractual point of view: Veneto ranks third only after Molise and Lombardy as regards the percentage of young people employed under a permanent work contract. This is definitely a positive result, but we must not neglect the trend of the phenomenon and the effects of the crisis of recent years: in 2005 the share of workers 20 to 34 years of age with a fixed-term employment contract was 15% in the Veneto region and 19% in Italy. Within a few years, this share has increased by nine percentage points in the Veneto region and by seven and a half points at the national level, reaching 24% and 26.7% respectively in 2012.
But alongside unemployment there is another more critical issue that is increasingly affecting young people today: the NEET issue, from the acronym 'Not in Employment, Education or Training', i.e. young people who 'do not work, do not study, do not train', i.e. they do nothing.
In Veneto in 2012, 25% of young people aged 15-24 years had a job, while 59% were studying or were completing their preparation through training courses. The NEETs, however, represent 16% of young people in Veneto, which is still better than the national average standing at 21%.
Who exactly are these young people? Some of them had a job and, after losing it, they are looking for a new one (formerly employed unemployed), others have just completed their studies and are seeking their first job (unemployed looking for their first job) and others after a period of inactivity, have begun an active search for work (formerly inactive unemployed). However, the largest portion is represented by young people who do not have a job and are not looking for one, i.e. the inactive: in Veneto they are 9% of the total number of young people aged 15-24, while in Italy they are over 12%. The most worrying thing is that in our region over the years it is the inactive NEETs that have increased the most. It would be too easy and hasty, however, to define them as 'big babies': it is necessary to understand the personal and social implications, and especially to analyse the causes. The phenomenon is related to the employment crisis that has affected our country, but this is not the only cause, which is intrinsic to the environment where the young person lives. In addition, one should also consider the feeling of discouragement felt by young people facing a society that seems to have little to offer at this time; furthermore, we should consider what these young people are willing to do: are they willing to take any job just to be able to work or can they afford to wait, feeling safe at their parents' home? (Table 10.4.1)
The impact of demographic changes, the increase in the educational level and the economic crisis are significantly changing the youth labour market. These factors had manifold effects, leading to a highly qualified labour force, with high academic qualifications, which, however, has been strongly penalized by the effects of the economic crisis.
Upstream there has been a decline in the birth rate which led to a decrease in the number of young people: while in 2005 in Veneto there were 1,130,798 young people aged 15-34 years, in 2011 this figure was down by 10.4%. On the other hand, the increase in the educational level has been swelling the ranks of the inactive: an increasing number of young people decide to continue their studies until a university degree or higher qualification, thereby delaying their entry into the labour market. Finally, the economic crisis impacted on the unemployed group, increasing the number of 15-34 year olds in search of employment. The most affected are boys and girls with a low level of education: their unemployment rate grew by almost 10 points from 2008 to 2012, reaching 17.2% last year, compared to 11.3% for graduates. Thus, while a high level of education is no guarantee of a stable and qualified job, it still represents an important tool for young people when they access a very precarious and uncertain labour market.
These three dynamics determined some major changes in the composition of an increasingly well trained and qualified workforce: in 2005, nearly one-third of employed aged 15-34 years had at most a middle school diploma, a percentage that in 2012 stopped at 22%; on the contrary, graduates weighed 12.8% in 2005, while in 2012 they accounted for 18.3%.
Focusing on graduates, through the Istat survey on graduates' integration into the labour market we may analyse the choices and directions taken by young people who after graduating make their first steps in the labour market. It turns out that, out of those who obtained their degree in 2007 and residing in Veneto at the time of the interview, 40% were working at the time of graduation, a figure that rises to 60% after one year (in 2008) and to 78% after about four years (in 2011). These data, however, should be more carefully analysed in light of the type of university degree: career choices are, indeed, very different between graduates with a 3-year degree, those with a specialization degree (two year courses) and those with a degree earned in the old system or the so called single cycle degree courses, lasting 4 to 6 years. In this regard it should be noted that over the past few years there have been numerous university reforms: since 1999, in fact, the new 3+2 system was introduced, consisting of a first level three-year degree, followed by a two-year specialization degree; in 2004 the system was changed with the transition from specialized degrees to the so called 'lauree magistrali'. (Note 10).
To be more specific, 54% of the three-year graduates who live in the Veneto region have continued their studies for the two-year specialization degree; the employment levels for this group of young people are clearly lower than for graduates who did not pursue their studies further: the employment rate four years after earning the three-year degree is 65% for the former, while it is 89% for the latter. This value is even higher than the employment rates of those who have a specialization degree (83%) and graduates from the old system or the single-cycle degree courses (79%), many of whom are still engaged in training activities such as internships, apprenticeships and specialization.
Even graduates are affected by the crisis which is bringing the positive growth trend in employment levels to a halt; however, it is difficult to make direct comparisons due to the university reforms that have taken place in the meanwhile. For this reason it is possible to compare the results of the previous editions of the Istat survey (starting from 1998 graduates) only for graduates in the old system, whom in the last year are treated as those holding specialized degrees and the single-cycle graduates; for the three-year degrees only the last two editions are comparable (2004 and 2007 graduates). For young people with a 'long' degree, the employment rate four years after earning the qualification is generally on the rise, but in recent years it has remained stable if it has not slightly worsened (81.2% in 2011 compared to 81.7% in 2007). For young people with a three-year degree the decrease in employment levels is more evident (-3.6 percentage points), a sign that this group of young people is most affected by the economic crisis.
For graduates holding specialization degrees, the comparison is only possible one year after graduation, and for them too, employment fell from 73.4% in 2008 to 65.5% in 2011. (Figure 10.4.2)
In 2011, more than 9 out of 10 graduates had a job on an on-going basis, although more than a third had a fixed-term contract. From 2001 to 2007 the percentage of graduates hired under fixed-term contracts grew steadily, reaching 38% for young people holding 'long' degrees. This rate showed a decrease thereafter but at the same time there was an important increase in temporary workers. These two trends reflect the efforts made in the last decade to move away from a rigid labour market towards a more flexible one, better suited to today's society; fixed-term contracts were introduced and subsequently reformed in order to fight the rigidity of the Italian labour market: indeed, in many cases, employers were burdened with heavy obligations that often ended up hindering the growth of employment rather than helping workers (Note 11). (Figure 10.4.3)
Looking at the jobs in more detail, 3 out of 4 graduates in 2011 were salaried employees: in particular, 14% were either managers (dirigenti) or middle managers, 46% were medium/high level employees and a further 14% were clerical workers. A smaller number of graduates were self-employed (18%, mostly professionals), while the remaining 7% were employed under project contracts or as freelance workers. 'Long' 4-6 year degrees and specialization degrees ensure more qualified jobs: indeed, in this group there is a greater share of self-employed compared to the three-year degree group (18% vs. 11%), as well as a greater share of medium and high level employees (39% vs. 54%).
18% of the three-year graduates who did not continue their education towards a specialization degree ('laurea magistrale') are clerical workers, and are therefore overqualified for their job, as they hold a higher academic degree than is required to carry out that type of work. It should be noted, moreover, that for almost 4 out of 10 graduates, holding a university degree was not a necessary requirement to obtain their current job, a figure that rises to 50% among the three-year graduates who did not pursue their studies further.
This over-qualification condition is growing and mostly affects young people. With increasing age this problem diminishes, although it only significantly improves after age 34. The under-utilization of human capital risks undermining the delicate link between academic qualifications and the labour market: education costs both in terms of direct costs (taxes, materials, textbooks ...) and in terms of lost revenue during the period spent in college. This initial disadvantage must be subsequently recovered and should lead to benefits that translate into higher incomes, more opportunities for employment and good jobs. Education is an investment and as such it must produce tangible results, otherwise the value of a degree will tend to decrease.
Looking at their income, in 2011 graduates working as salaried employees earned on average about €1,250 per month (Note 12): single-cycle graduates (€ 1,280) and three-year graduates who continued their studies (€1,200) appear at a slight disadvantage compared to three-year graduates who did not continue their education (€1,300). Clearly these differences are due to the delayed entry into the labour market resulting, as already pointed out, from further post-graduate training, especially internships and specialization activities, for single cycle graduates.
Besides the job characteristics and the salary received, it is interesting to analyse the issue from a more subjective standpoint, namely that of job satisfaction. In 2011, in Veneto graduates felt satisfied with their job especially in terms of degree of autonomy and tasks carried out: about 88% of graduates expressed a positive opinion (very or fairly satisfied). Satisfaction in terms of job stability was also at a good level (76% of positive opinions) - despite the economic crisis and the increasingly alarming issue of job precariousness - while less satisfactory results were obtained on the use of knowledge gained during the course of study (69% is satisfied), salary (64%) and career opportunities (60%). With regard to the use of acquired knowledge, it should be noted that 38% of graduates believe the degree they earned is not actually required to perform their current job.
For each of the aspects considered, it is then possible to calculate an average score ranging from 0 (not at all satisfied) to 100 (very satisfied). The three-year graduates who did not continue their studies, on average are more satisfied than the others, especially as regards job stability; they feel, however, that the degree they earned is not fully exploited in terms of acquired knowledge. In contrast, graduates with specialized/long (laurea magistrale) degrees believe they are taking advantage of the competence acquired at university and feel more satisfied in terms of salary and career opportunities. Also single-cycle graduates feel satisfied for the use they are making of the knowledge gained at university, but consider their salary and job stability less adequate. (Figure 10.4.4)
Overall, the general satisfaction with their employment situation expressed by graduates can be considered as good: if we combine the six aspects discussed above, the satisfaction indicator was 65.8 out of 100, which is slightly higher among graduates with specialization degrees. Over the years, it has remained virtually unchanged for the three-year graduates, while it has increased slightly for those in the old system. It should be emphasized, however, that in 2011 the indicator was calculated taking into account the specialization degrees, which in fact have relatively high values compared to single-cycle graduates (67.4 vs. 65.5).
In addition, not all the components have changed in the same direction: three-year graduates, for example, are proving increasingly less satisfied as regards the use of the knowledge gained at university and job stability but are happier with their financial compensation compared to the survey of four years earlier. Conversely, graduates in the old system and single-cycle graduates, are proving increasingly more satisfied with the use of the knowledge gained at university, but complain about increasingly scarce career opportunities. (Figure 10.4.5)
Entrepreneurship is one of the drivers that can help revive the country. Investing in ideas, human energies and entrepreneurs can help give new impetus to the development.
The future of young people, their success or their failure, also depends on the system's ability to steer them towards entrepreneurship, cultivating their enthusiasm, optimism and motivation to do things by themselves and with others. In addition to contributing to the economy, young entrepreneurs employ other young people, thus encouraging processes of autonomy and personal self-fulfilment.
In 2012, in Veneto people aged less than 30 owning a business were 13,879, 5.2% of the total number of business owners. The businesses owned by the under 30s are almost exclusively sole proprietorships, which is the simplest and least costly type of business and probably the one that better meets the needs of those entering the labour market for the first time, such as a commercial activity, which in fact includes 26 % of young entrepreneurs.
Young people's contribution to entrepreneurship has recorded a downward trend in recent years, not only in absolute terms but also as a share of the total: in general, the number of new owners has decreased, but the decline is more evident for young people, whose share has fallen by 1.7 percentage points compared to 2005. This means that young people receive less help and incentives to set up new businesses. (Figure 10.4.6)
The Liberalisation Decree (Note 13) issued by the Monti Government was one of several attempts to revive entrepreneurship among the new generations. In addition to measures for the simplification of economic activities, the decree, approved in 2012, contains interesting new opportunities for young people. In particular, Article 3 provides that the under-35s who want to become entrepreneurs may set up a simplified limited liability company (Srl) that requires a simple memorandum of association and a share capital of one euro
At 31 December 2012 in Veneto there were 241 simplified 'Srl' companies (165) and 'reduced capital' companies (76) formed in the first few months since their introduction in the Italian legal system through the Liberalisation Decree, 5.8% of the total number for Italy.
The resourcefulness of young people also materializes in a sector such as agriculture, which perhaps, in the collective imagination pertains more to the adult generation, while in practice greatly benefits from the ideas and efforts of young people.
The entry of the new generation in the agricultural world is in fact bringing transformations and innovations. Although company heads under 40 only account for 7% of the companies in Veneto, the renewal process is gaining significant impetus: on average they are better educated, manage larger companies, are more willing to employ non-family workers thus contributing to local employment, organize under legal entities and make use of IT to manage their companies, exploit multi-functionality opportunities and quality production. This ensures a corporate average profitability which is two and a half times higher than that of their colleagues.
In order to stimulate research and technological innovation and to help young people implement their ideas, universities in Veneto (Note 14) have been promoting the Veneto Start Cup prize for some years.
It is a competition that rewards the best entrepreneurial innovations presented in the form of business plans, by assigning a financial support to 5 winners; it also provides all participants with opportunities for training, professional exchanges and a preferential access to the world of industry and finance. The competition also provides access to the National Award for Innovation for the 5 winning projects along with 16 other winners of the Italian Start Cups.
The competition is open to all groups, composed of at least three people, proposing a highly innovative business idea, in any field and at any stage of development, with an aspiration to become a business.
In the 2013 edition there were 108 participants, for a total of 397 people: the majority participated in the 'ICT and social innovation' (67%) categories, followed by the 'Industrial' and 'Agrifood-Cleantech' (both 13%) categories and, finally, the 'Life Science' (7%) category. Over the past 5 years, about 349 business plans were presented in the initiative.
Although it is open to anyone, including those who have no connection with universities, the competition has a large participation of young people and graduates. In the 2011-2012 period, 77% of the team leaders were less than forty years old; in terms of academic background, scientific faculties are predominant: more than half of the leaders participating in the various Veneto Start Cup editions were science graduates and 24% of them were engineering graduates. However, we should not underestimate the share of leaders who were graduates in the humanities, such as literature, philosophy and languages (11%) or psychology-sociology (6%), areas that are notoriously less inclined to entrepreneurship, as well as the 12% share of non- graduates. (Figure 10.4.7)
Tangible results from the Veneto Start Cup project were not long in coming, demonstrating Veneto's vibrant entrepreneurship in the technological field: the first eleven editions resulted in 24 university spin-offs and 3 others currently being set up, 14 non-university start-ups and 19 patents.