EEB and Solidar: Conference "Building a Just Transition to a Sustainable Future in Latin America", 17 July 2023 On 17 July, during the EU-CELAC Summit, a Civil Society Conference will be held in Brussels to discuss building a just transition in Latin America. The conference will address issues such as greenwashing sustainability, critical raw materials, industry certification schemes, human rights, civic space, socio-economic inequalities and indigenous rights. With leaders from the EU, Latin America, and the Caribbean attending the summit, this conference aims to shed light on the challenges and opportunities for a more equitable and environmentally responsible development model in the region. For more information and to register, click here. AGE: Interested in intergenerational mentoring? Join the "Mentoring across Borders" project, info session on 25 July 2023 AGE Platform Europe participates in the EU-funded project "Mentoring Across Borders" and invites organisations and people interested in mentoring to join the online info session about the project on 25 July at 10:00 CEST. Read more. SEE: European Social Economy Awards, 2nd edition, San Sebastián (Spain), 14 November 2023, deadline 31 August 2023 The second edition of the European Social Economy Awards will be celebrated on 14th November in San Sebastian (Spain). The call for applicants is open to all social economy enterprises and organisations (cooperatives, mutuals, WISEs, associations, foundations, microcredit institutions, social enterprises…) working on social innovation, skills, green transition or digitalisation. Please, submit your application before 31st August here. EASPD: International Conference on Social Innovation, Helsinki, 12‑13 October 2023 The meaning of social innovation has become so blurred and vague that social innovation in practice – and, in turn, the ability of support services to implement the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities – has been hindered. Our conference in Helsinki on 12-13 October 2023 will be centred around this topic. You can register here. In addition, the Social Innovation Awards will also be held in Helsinki. The most innovative practices in the field of social innovation will be awarded. Eurochild: Making early childhood development a priority through EU public policy and spending Integrated early childhood development policies are the most effective tool for reducing poverty and promoting social inclusion. Comprehensive and comparable data are necessary, at national and European level, to inform policy-making and public spending on early childhood so that all children can have the best start in life. All children, including those living in extreme poverty, Roma and Traveller children, children in (or at risk of entering) alternative care, migrant and refugee children (including those who are undocumented) and children with disabilities should have nurturing care from the start, and access to quality essential services including quality early childhood education and care (ECEC), social protection, work-life balance and employment policies, adequate minimum income, safe and secure housing and access to maternal and child healthcare. Specific and targeted interventions are needed to reach the most marginalised young children and their families. Read more here. EEB: Find out what renewable heating is for you with our webtool! The European Environmental Bureau (EEB) unveiled a ground-breaking webtool on 20 June 2023, designed to facilitate the exploration of renewable heating and cooling solutions. This tool serves as a vital resource for citizens, policymakers, and consumers, offering a wide range of options to decarbonise heating and cooling systems based on building type, location, and budget. Continuously evolving, the webtool will undergo further enhancements in the coming months, ensuring its relevance and effectiveness in promoting sustainable practices. EEB: Lost in transit: EU waste management fees fail to follow second-hand exports to Africa When products are exported from the EU to Africa for reuse, the EPR fees paid by producers to support waste management costs often fail to travel that far. A new EEB study highlights what this means for African economies, and how the EU can fix it to increase fairness and transparency. AGE: The EU should "not lose momentum on the Social Taxonomy!" We have joined a coalition of 13 organisations in a letter to EU Commissioners calling to extend the current EU Taxonomy framework to include a social and human rights dimension. Read our joint letter. AGE: A comprehensive approach to mental health: European Commission plan released In June, the European Commission released its plan for a comprehensive approach to mental health in Europe. The plan includes 20 flagship initiatives and EU funding to support Member States in "putting people and their mental health first". The release of this plan follows a consultation, to which AGE responded. Read more. CEV: The CEV Faces and Voices Podcast is now available This podcast is produced by the Centre for European Volunteering (CEV). It is part of a project funded under the European Union's Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme fund called VERA – "Volunteering, Equality, Rights, Action". You will be able to hear (and if you are watching online, see) the faces and voices from volunteers around Europe! These stories were collected on a voluntary basis by CEV Vice President George Thomson during the Storytelling Faces and Voices workshops in 10 EU countries, with the aim of creating a European resource that shares the deep value of listening and the underlying European values in volunteering. Find the first podcast here (future episodes will be uploaded at the same link). CEV thanks all partners and volunteers that made this possible. Solidar: Just Transition: A New Social Contract for the Wellbeing of People and the Planet Solidar and over 30 civil society organisations, trade unions, social economy enterprises, think tanks and other stakeholders, call on European Ministers for Environment and Energy, as well as other EU and national level decisionmakers to create a New Social Contract and place a socially Just Transition to carbon neutrality at its heart! Read our call to action here. |