A wave of youth-led protests is sweeping across Europe, with Generation Z demanding better education, affordable housing, economic opportunities and action against corruption, as growing frustration with political leaders fuels demonstrations from France to Serbia and Albania.
In Brussels, 19-year-old student Maya Gourdel writes a slogan that has become a rallying cry for young people challenging those in power: “If we burn, you burn with us!”
Borrowed from the 2012 film “The Hunger Games,” the phrase has been adopted by youth movements worldwide, reflecting the anger of a generation that feels excluded from decisions shaping its future.
From the suburbs of Paris to the streets of Belgrade, thousands of young people have protested deteriorating school facilities, limited job prospects, rising living costs, corruption and a lack of political accountability.
Some demonstrations have turned violent, with thousands of shops damaged or looted in France in recent weeks and police deploying stun grenades and water cannons.
But the protests have also delivered a major political breakthrough. In Serbia, nearly two years of student-led demonstrations against perceived corruption and growing authoritarianism culminated in the electoral defeat of longtime leader Aleksandar Vucic this weekend.
“Waking up, the first thing we felt was certainly a sense of relief and freedom,” said Stasa Piletic, a student protester. “Personally, I feel a sense of victory. I feel that we finally moved from protests to responsibility.”
For many young Europeans, the protests reflect a growing belief that traditional political institutions have failed to address their concerns.
Chiara, a 21-year-old student in Milan, said spontaneous demonstrations had created an opportunity for collective action after years of mounting frustration.
“I think the worst damage this ruling class has done to my generation is stealing even the ability to imagine a future, to dream,” she said.
Italian students face schools struggling with teacher shortages and deteriorating buildings, followed by the prospect of poorly paid jobs and increasingly unaffordable housing, she said.
The unrest reflects a broader international trend. Generation Z, generally defined as people born between 1997 and 2012, has mobilized against political and economic grievances in countries including Bangladesh in 2024, Nepal in 2025 and India this year.
Europe has now become a focal point.
Rising prices and the cost of living concern 40% of Europeans aged 16 to 30, according to an EU survey published in 2025.
Of the 92.7 million people in the European Union who faced the risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2025, young adults aged 18 to 24 recorded the highest risk, at 26.3%. The rate among people 65 and older was 18.8%.
Young protesters are also questioning how governments distribute resources between younger and older generations.
In France, people over 60 account for about a quarter of the population but own 60% of the country's wealth, according to the OFCE economic research institute.
Public pensions are France's largest category of government spending and are projected to reach 14% of economic output as the population ages. Efforts to raise the retirement age or reduce benefits have faced strong opposition.
France spends less on pensions than Greece and Italy, which devote about 16% of gross domestic product to public pensions, according to 2025 figures from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Australia, Chile, Iceland, Ireland and South Korea each spend less than 4% of GDP.
A French government report published in October found that pension spending increased by 2.5 percentage points of GDP between 2000 and 2023, while education spending declined by 0.5 percentage points. Pensions also accounted for 32% of the Education Ministry's budget, limiting resources available for other priorities.
For students facing deteriorating classrooms and staff shortages, the figures reinforce concerns that their needs are being overlooked.
In a suburb north of Paris, 17-year-old high school student Bilal Narjissi has protested what he described as deplorable school conditions and staff shortages.
“There used to be rats,” he said.
Students were evacuated last year after a roof collapsed in the school courtyard, although nobody was injured, he said.
Narjissi said the demonstrations had shown that young people across Europe shared common concerns.
“We all agree on one point: that young people are treated like children, far too much, and that they aren't listened to enough,” he said.
Gourdel, who has also protested for better school conditions in Belgium, said students initially tried peaceful action but struggled to attract attention.
“We tried to do it passively. Nobody heard us. It's only when people started to burn trash or that kind of stuff that the media and cameras started showing us,” she said.
Protests are continuing to spread, with a demonstration planned in Germany this weekend over the cost of living, inequality, war and school conditions.
Albania has also experienced unrest, with student-led demonstrations against Prime Minister Edi Rama's government spreading from Tirana to other cities.
Protesters have voiced anger over perceived corruption, limited employment opportunities and poor education standards.
“Our Prime Minister spent 130 days not listening to us,” said Xyke Kurti, a 19-year-old architecture student.
Kurti said many young Albanians saw emigration as their best chance of securing a future.
“If you ask a student in Albania, 'where do you see your future?' Everyone says 'outside this country',” she said.
She argued that qualifications and talent were often insufficient to guarantee success in a system where personal connections could determine who advances.
Serbia's student movement has achieved what demonstrators elsewhere in Europe are still seeking: an electoral victory after sustained public pressure against an established political leader.
The challenge now is turning protest into effective government. The students and candidates they support have little governing experience, raising questions about their ability to deliver reforms.
Luka Stojakovic, another Serbian protester, dismissed concerns about their inexperience.
“We have seen where people with political experience have brought us,” he said.
