Context/backgroundStudent debate organizations promote debate among young people, teach important skills, participate in and organize debatecompetitions and promote debate in broader society to improve the quality of societal debates. They often work on their own andbuild up their own knowledge, which is sometimes lost as leadership changes. ObjectivesIDEA wishes to stimulate student debate organizations to promote debate further, and to cooperate more so that they will become more effective at spreading debate. The IDEA Debate Exchange 2016 provides student debate organizations an opportunity to exchange best practices in training, organizing and promoting debate. The goal is to improve the organizational capacities and sustainability of these student organizations and to thereby promote their reach to other young people, their effectiveness in debate trainings and organizing debate events and their impact on their societies. The Exchange will stimulate the exchange of ideas and critical thinking, build their capacities, seek new inroads for cooperation and teach new training methodologies to the participants. It will also stimulate the use of debate outside of competitions. The 6-day event will provide a series of workshops, practice sessions, seminars a panel discussion and implementation day. Number and profile of participantsForty participants, students or recent graduates, will stay in Sofia and exchange experience, practices and ideas. Description of activities;Experienced trainers from partner organizations provide interactive workshops in their general area of expertise, in either training or organization or debate promotion, while the seminars allow all participants to share insights from their specific knowledge area, raise questions or present plans in order to get input from other partners with similar experiences. A panel discussion looks at the future of European cooperation and ways to promote debate in each country on issues like pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity and equality and practice sessions provide participants a chance to try their hand at setting up projects or giving training. The implementation day allows all participants to put what they have learned into practice and reflect on how they can best use their skills and knowledge.Methodology to be used in carrying out the project;Training will be participant-driven and created by the partner organizations. They will be recorded and summarized for furtheruse by those not present at the Exchange. Short description of the results and impact envisaged and the potential longer term benefitsIDEA will support the further development of cooperation ideas built at or on the basis of the Exchange. The participants should leave the Exchange with a lot of new knowledge, ideas, practice and skills to improve debate training, organizational capacity and outreach of their own debate organizations. They will also have built up a network among student debate organizations across Europe. All of this should benefit the quality and reach of debate organizations across Europe and strengthen ties among them.