Austerity Bites exhibition launched by Council of Europe

12 May 2015

The Council of Europe has launched Austerity Bites, an exhibition of short films and animations created by young people across Europe.

The 36 films focus on the impact of austerity measures on the lives of young people, as the effects of the 2008 financial crisis still resonate throughout the continent.

With the help of professional producers Caged Beastie, the young people involved used their films to illustrate how the response to Europe’s economic crisis is hurting their rights and life chances.

Opening the exhibition, Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjørn Jagland said:

"The moral justification for austerity is that we take the pain today so that future generations are not still paying the price for mistakes tomorrow…Yet, too often it is precisely our children who are bearing the brunt of these policies."

ENOC and Austerity Bites

Austerity Bites is a joint initiative by the Council of Europe and the European Network of Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC), and was first created for the latter organisation’s conference last year.

As current chair of ENOC, Scotland's Commissioner for Children and Young People Tam Baillie was present for the exhibition’s launch.

Speaking in a podcast released by the Council of Europe, Tam talked of millions of children affected by austerity measures across the continent.

He drew attention to the fact that 1 in 5 of Scotland’s children live in poverty— and that poverty can have an impact that lasts a child’s life.

Find out more

Find out more about the exhibition on the Council of Europe’s website.

Find out more about Austerity Bites on our website.

Read ENOC’s position statement on children and austerity.