European Quiznight

Creative Youth Information Award category

Title of the Project

European Quiznight

Organisation

Regierungspräsidium Karlsruhe / Eurodesk Karlsruhe

WEBSITE

https://rpk.baden-wuerttemberg.de/abt2/referat-27-grenzueberschreitende-zusammenarbeit-und-europa/eurodesk-karlsruhe/

Project link

https://rpk.baden-wuerttemberg.de/fileadmin/RP-Internet/Karlsruhe/Abteilung_2/Referat_27/Eurodesk/_DocumentLibraries/Documents/Angebot_European_Quiznight.pdf

Project dates

2023-06-15

2025-11-11

What is it about?

The idea behind the European Quiznight was to bring young people from all across Europe together in an interactive, informative, and fun format. While it would have been great to bring them together in person, this was neither practical nor financially feasible. As we all learnt during the pandemic, online events can work well if they are organised in an inclusive and interactive way, which is exactly what the European Quiznight did. Between 2023 and 2025, six European Quiznights were organised in total. The target audience was young people between the ages of 15 and 30. As Eurodesk Karlsruhe, we were the main host of the event, but in order to reach young people from across Europe, we worked together with partners such as Eurodesk coordinators and multipliers in each country, the Europe Direct centres (ED) in all EU member states, the European Parliament’s (EP) togetherfor.eu campaign, and the EP Ambassador Schools. This cooperation was very successful, and the number of participants grew from 23 in the first quiz in June 2023 to 92 in the last quiz in November 2025. In total, 361 people from 30 different European countries took part in the European Quiz Nights.

The quiz lasted two hours and was always held in English. It included questions about Europe in categories such as geography, politics, history, culture, society, and youth mobility, as well as a picture and music round, in which the teams had to guess the language the song was sung in.

The participants were divided into teams of five people from different countries. After each of the four rounds of questions, the teams were able to meet in breakout sessions. Here, the participants did not only have time to discuss their answers, but also had the chance to get to know each other and their countries.

How is this project relevant to the specific category?

Using a quiz to engage young people is not new. However, the European Quiznight is unique in that it addresses and regularly brings together young people from all across Europe in an interactive and inclusive format – from Portugal to Estonia and from the United Kingdom to Ukraine, Georgia, and Türkiye. The European Quiz Night was so successful because it combined various elements that made participation attractive to young people:

By being online, it was easily accessible from anywhere and by anyone; all people needed to participate was a laptop or mobile phone, an internet connection, and a basic knowledge of English.

A quiz is a game-based (and competitive) learning method that young people enjoy.

Participants had the chance to get to know people of the same age from other countries without having to leave the comfort of their homes, although the quiz was hopefully a step towards that.

The quiz combined informing young people with personal international exchange. We encouraged the participants to introduce themselves in the breakout sessions and to use the time there to get to know each other personally. In doing so, they also practised their foreign language skills.

The participants were constantly involved during the entire quiz, which made it so entertaining and appealing. At the end of the quiz, they received the answers to each question along with an informative and sometimes instructive explanation.

While the questions were shown via PowerPoint, Mentimeter was used at the beginning of the event for the participants to get to know each other (which countries they were from, etc.) and at the end of the quiz for feedback (see attachments).

The European Quiz Night is easily replicable, and its success in engaging young people can be seen in the growing numbers of participants over the course of six events.

What was the impact of the project?

The European Quiz Night had two main impacts on the young people participating, which were emphasised by most participants in the feedback (see attachments). Firstly, the participants gained a lot of knowledge about Europe in general and especially about their opportunities to go abroad, whether with DiscoverEU or the European Solidarity Corps.

Secondly, the participants got to speak to each other and therefore got to know young people from other European countries, realising that while they might live in different countries, they still listen to the same music and have the same hobbies. The European Quiz Night therefore helped break down barriers and motivated young people to get to know other countries and people from those countries. Many participants were keen to stay in touch with the others and shared their contact details and social media profiles. Some even said they had made new friends during the quiz (see attachments).

The third European Quiz Night was organised in May 2024, just a couple of weeks before the European Parliament elections. The date was chosen intentionally to include questions on the upcoming elections and to motivate those people of voting age to make their voices heard.

Furthermore, the European Quiz Night was demonstrated both at the national Eurodesk multipliers meeting in 2024 and at several national and international Europe Direct network events, thus not only making these partners and networks aware of the European Quiznight and its positive impact on young people from all across Europe, but also gaining sustainability and a wider reach through a multiplier effect.

“The European Quiz Night stimulates curiosity about other young minds, unites participants across Europe, creates friendships and solidarity while learning about Europe in a fun and engaging way, proving that when we connect, incredible things can happen!” – Nicole Wieringa, eTwinning ambassador and moderator of EP ambassador schools.

Did the project have any green focus?

The entire project was organised and implemented online, therefore minimising its carbon footprint compared to what it would have been had the European Quiz Nights been organised in person. The concept of the European Quiznights is therefore very sustainable.

The European Quiz Nights also raised environmental awareness, firstly by addressing some of the EU’s environmental policies in the quizzes, and secondly by including questions on our personal impact on the environment and how we could reduce our personal carbon footprint, for example, how we travel, what we buy/consume (e.g. food, clothes), and what we do with our waste (e.g. recycling, deposit systems for bottles, cans, etc.). Furthermore, the participants were made aware of European mobility opportunities with an environmental and sustainable focus, for example, in an European Solidarity Corps project. It is a topic that many young people are concerned about and passionate about, which is why it was included in each of the six European Quiz Nights.

How did you ensure Eurodesk's visibility in your project?

We made sure to inform our partners, e.g. the Europe Direct centres, about the Eurodesk network and encouraged them to get in touch and cooperate with their local Eurodesk multipliers. Several Eurodesk multipliers in various countries promoted the quizzes on their social media channels. Furthermore, the Eurodesk logo was used both during the promotion of the quiz (sharepic, website, social media) and in the PowerPoint presentation of the quiz itself (see attachment). There was also always a short presentation about Eurodesk at the beginning and about youth mobility and European opportunities at the end of each European Quiz Night.

Project highlights

https://rpk.baden-wuerttemberg.de/fileadmin/RP-Internet/Karlsruhe/Abteilung_2/Referat_27/Eurodesk/_DocumentLibraries/Documents/Angebot_European_Quiznight.pdf

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