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1. Editorial

2. News from the CSO Members of the Liaison Group

3. Past events

4. European Elections

5. News from the EESC

6. Past events

7. EESC Plenary Session

8. Civil dialogue in the EU and European Citizens' Initiatives

9. Link to our members' newsletters

Editorial

News from the CSO members of the Liaison Group

EESC Civil Society Week "Rise up for democracy", 4-7 March 2024

Leading up to the 2024 European elections in June, the EESC, as the institutional partner of civil society, launched its first ever Civil Society Week under the overarching theme Rise Up for Democracy!. More than 800 representatives from civil society and youth groups gathered for four days to discuss the upcoming elections and the future of the EU. Over 25 sessions, 14 of which were organised by 18 Liaison Group civil society organisations, various threats to democracy and challenges to safeguarding Europe's democratic values were discussed, and solutions to address these shortcomings were explored. The specific steps forward developed during the event will feed into an EESC resolution in July, outlining civil society's expectations of the incoming leadership of the European Parliament and Commission. On the #CivSocWeek webpage you will find early insights, press releases, video recordings, a photo gallery, and soon reports from each session. Stay tuned and follow us on social media for updates.

EASPD/SSE: Making better and more effective use of ESF+ and ERDF for providers and users of social services, 16 April 2024

The Final Conference of the Social Services Helpdesk ‘Unlocking EU Funds for Social Inclusion: Investing in quality services, support and lives’ will be held on 16 April 2024 at the EESC in Brussels. Bringing together a diverse array of social service providers, managing authorities of EU Funds from different EU countries, policymakers and beneficiaries of EU Funds, the event will serve as a forum to discuss the enabling environment needed to foster social inclusion with EU funds. The conference is organised by EASPD and Social Services Europe (SSE). EESC Member, Krzsysztof Balon, will open the event. You find more detailed information on the project as well as the draft agenda of the event and the link to register here.

EASPD: Guaranteeing Choice and Control: Transforming Mental Health and Psychosocial Disability Support, Bratislava/Slovakia, 20-21 May 2024

The European Association of Service providers for Persons with Disabilities (EASPD) invites you to join us for our International Conference: 'Guaranteeing Choice and Control: Transforming Mental Health and Psychosocial Disability Support'. Hosted in Bratislava, Slovakia on 20th-21st May 2024, the conference will address the critical issues which stem from a mental health system that is rooted in a medicalised paradigm and will explore how we can move towards the provision of person-centred, community and recovery-based mental health services rooted in human rights principles. Register here.

ECAS Online Course: Crowdsourcing for Civil Society Organisations

This ECAS course is carefully curated to address various aspects of crowdsourcing, providing a holistic understanding of its application in citizen organisations, national contexts, EU-level initiatives, technological setups and citizen engagement campaigns. Read more here.

ECF: Listen to our latest episode of Civic Spaces!

In the second episode of our podcast series on the Civic Pride Award winners, we focus in on the movement for Sámi rights. The Sámi are the only recognised indigenous group in Europe and live in Sápmi, which stretches over four countries: Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia. In this episode, we hear from Anja Márjá Nystø Keskitalo of the Saami Council and sit down for an in-depth interview with Sámi activist Martina Fjällberg. Listen now!

Philea: ECNL and Philea publish second edition of How to Use EU Law to Protect Civic Space

The ECNL and Philea have published the second edition of the handbook How to Use EU Law to Protect Civic Space, which highlights how CSOs can use EU law and participatory tools to protect civic space and uphold the rule of law. Read more.

Cooperatives Europe calls for integration of cooperative models in European education

Cooperatives Europe urges the European Commission to include cooperative models in all EU educational initiatives, emphasising their economic and social importance, which is often overshadowed by the shareholder company model. The call specifically advocates the introduction of cooperative models and values in primary and secondary education, and proposes the inclusion of cooperative themes in higher education curricula to foster collaborative learning environments. Additionally, Cooperatives Europe calls for the integration of cooperative entrepreneurship in the Erasmus+ programme to promote creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship among future leaders. You can find their call to action here.

Eurochild: Two years on, what are the needs of Ukraine’s children and families?

On 24 February, which marks the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Eurochild asked its members in Ukraine to tell us what their priorities for the wellbeing of children are. Read more here.

Eurochild: EU Council Presidencies and their impact on children

Eurochild welcomes Spain, Belgium and Hungary, as the current EU presidency trio, pledging to collaborate to address the needs of the most vulnerable populations including children affected by multi-crises. This aligns with the EU’s commitment to social justice and inclusivity. Read more here.

Eurochild: DAY: High school students release their Youth Civic Agendas

Young people from Naples, Italy share their ideas on how to redevelop their urban areas and improve the education system with local decision-makers as part of the DAY project run by Eurochild, Albero della Vita and CIDIS. Read more here.

ACE manifesto on the New European Bauhaus

Elevating the complexity of our natural and built habitat to an unprecedented political level, the New European Bauhaus has invited us to reimagine together our living spaces in order to make them more sustainable, inclusive and beautiful. It also issued a challenge to the architectural profession – to alert, persuade and empower civil society to engage in designing their living spaces. The ACE (Architects' Council of Europe) manifesto highlights the key issues that the New European Bauhaus brings to the fore, explaining the role of architecture therein, and calls on architects to take their place in the NEB movement. Download the ACE manifesto on the New European Bauhaus.

CEV: European Volunteering Ambassadors 2024

Volunteers Edona Shehaj, Wannes Huybrechts and Lotte Rens from Belgium will promote the essential contribution of volunteers to the future of Europe, making a special link with the Belgian Presidency of the EU in the first part of 2024. This activity is part of the Centre for European Volunteering's (CEV) #VERA2024 Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme, which seeks to promote the power of volunteering for equality and inclusion in Europe. In 2024 it is placing a special focus on the EP elections and why anyone interested in enabling volunteering in Europe should be voting #VoteVolunteerVision. More here.

CEV: Call for EVCapital 2026

The call for candidates to the EVCapital 2026 Competition is open with a deadline of 3rd June 2024. Click here for the call and application form, and here to discover more about the European Volunteering Capital Candidates Community (EVCCC).

Philea launched the Philanthropy Manifesto and invites the wider civil society sector and social economy sector to support it

Philea launched the European Philanthropy Manifesto at last year’s EuroPhilantopics – and we are now inviting the wider civil society and social economy sector to support the recommendations ahead of the EU elections.

European Elections

ALDA: Better Europe Together: Local Ideas, European Results

With this campaign, ALDA wants to encourage the engagement of European citizens and promote democracy and civic participation in European policymaking. Additionally, the campaign aims at raising awareness of the activities of ALDA members and close partners, with the goal of establishing a robust network and amplifying our voice to reach a wider audience of people in Europe. There cannot be a European campaign without European partners. We cordially invite any organisation to organise events and publish resources on the campaign’s webpage with ALDA and its 300-member network. Read more here.

SEE Memorandum for the European Elections 2024

The SEE Memorandum for the European Elections 2024 is now available on our website. SEE's three main proposals for the elections are:

1. Renewal of the European Parliament´s Social Economy Intergroup,

2. Appointment of a European Commissioner responsible for Social Economy,

3. Continue and further develop the implementation of the Social Economy Action Plan.

Read more here.

EAEA calls for Quality Adult Learning and Education for Everyone in the next European Elections

In the context of the 2024 European Elections, the European Association for the Education of Adults (EAEA: member of LLLP, Concord and Social Platform) launched 10 key recommendations, highlighting the transformative role of adult education and its importance in tackling Europe’s most pressing challenges – from sustainability and digitalisation to democracy and active citizenship. The recommendations, translated in several languages and complemented by three learners’ stories, are available here.

Past events

ECAS State of the Union Citizens' Rights 2024 Conference, 19 March 2024

The State of the Union Citizens' Rights Conference is ECAS's annual flagship event. It aimed to take stock of recent developments in the European citizenship domain and to provide a forum for discussion for civil society, decision-makers and academics on ways to improve the implementation of EU Rights and to innovate EU citizenship. Read more here.

UIPI: One-stop-shops and integrated renovation solutions supporting EU-wide deep building transformation, EESC, 22 February 2024

This dynamic full-day, in-person partnership event at the EESC brought together esteemed EU representatives, participants from EU Horizon 2020 and LIFE projects and diverse stakeholder groups rooted in Brussels, from construction and financing to local authorities and property owners' associations. The event featured compelling keynotes shaping the future today, inspiring success stories from digital and physical renovation hubs across various Member States and panel discussions with key stakeholders from sectors vital for the widespread adoption of integrated home renovation solutions on a grand scale. The focus was on emerging trends within renovation one-stop-shops, technical solutions, innovative business models and financing strategies. Navigate the entire customer journey and value chain, unlocking the secrets to scalable integrated home renovation solutions. For information click here.

EASPD: Gender-based violence, safety in the workplace and more to come from EASPD in four events on 20 and 22 February 2024

In 2024 EASPD aims to build on its work to promote the delivery of quality support to persons with disabilities and increased social inclusion. In February we hosted four events on the topics of gender-based violence, safety in the workplace, the use of virtual reality for vocational training and building skills through interaction with therapy animals. Read more here.

EPA: Two webinars on 15 and 16 February 2024

In the framework of the ELNE – Educational Leadership Network Europe's webinar week from 12 to 16 February, the EPA (European Parents' Association) held 2 webinars: On Thursday, 15 February – International Digital Learning Day – it hosted a talk with experts about Media Education and a presentation of HERMMES – Holistic Education, Resilience and Media Maturity in Educational Settings project. On Friday, 16 February, the presentation of the Empowering of Schoolboards project concluded the Educational Leadership Week, focusing on collegial leadership involving all stakeholders in education. More information about the whole week can be found here.

LLLP: "Encouraging youth participation in Europe": main takeaways of the COYV Conference in Brussels, 12-13 February 2024

At the conference on 12-13 February, the COYV project (Co-operation Youth Vote: Enabling future active European citizens) brought together young multipliers, representatives of national and European youth associations and civil society organisations, experts and policymakers to address the challenges in terms of youth engagement and take action with a view to the 2024 European elections. Explore the outcomes of the "Encouraging youth participation in Europe" events here.

Philea: Belgian EU Presidency kicks off with social economy event in Liège, 12-13 February 2024

The Belgian EU Presidency hosted the European Social Economy Meeting on 12-13 February in the city of Liège. Fully aware of the potential of the social economy, the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union has made it one of its priorities. Read more.

SDG Watch/EEB: Real Deal Citizens’ Deliberation: 100 people came together in Brussels to discuss the future of the European Green Deal, 10 February 2024

In this article Jessica den Outer, UN expert on the Rights of Nature, recounts her experience as moderator of the Real Deal’s citizens’ deliberation on the European Green Deal. The article was originally published in Dutch in Vanaf Hier. 100 European citizens gave up their precious Saturday and came to Brussels on 10 February for a democratic experiment. They were given the opportunity to express their thoughts and wishes for European future plans and deliberated on: Food, Mobility, Circular Economy and Wellbeing Economy.

For future events in the Real Deal project, see here. The next one will take place in April in Brussels.

News from the EESC

Conference: Strengthening civil society and participatory democracy in the EU: the way forward, 25 March 2024

The conference on Strengthening civil society and participatory democracy in the EU: the way forward will explore how the EU as a whole and Member States individually can work towards effective sustainable civil dialogue and participatory democracy. The event will feed into the current and future work of the Civil Society Organisations' Group, including a possible own-initiative opinion. Read more here.

Conference: Building Together the EU We Want, 16 April 2024

The conference will bring together approximately 140 participants, including the Members of Group III and civil society organisations at the European and national levels. The discussions will centre around three topics: the expectations of European citizens vis-à-vis the socio-economic and political challenges facing the EU; the EU we want: a democratic and inclusive EU of social justice and protection; the EU we want: a sustainable economy based on fair green and digital transitions and quality jobs.

The conference is open to the public. You can either join the conference in person or from remote. Prior registration for both is required. Registration will open shortly. Read more here.

Citizens can defeat disinformation 2024: Civil society for an open democratic debate, Moldova State University, 18 April 2024

This is the 2nd campaign on fighting disinformation that the EESC is organising as part of its overall project on disinformation to be implemented with the help of civil society. Disinformation typically spreads among the population, often horizontally, so that the best way to tackle the problem is not in a top-down approach, but in citizens’ reflection and direct engagement. This is where organized civil society can play a crucial role. The project consists in holding events and information campaigns in the Member States and applicant countries. Following a successful campaign in Bulgaria, the Republic of Moldova has been selected for the 2nd edition. The EESC is organising this event in cooperation with the Moldova State University in Chișinău. Read more here.

Save the date: Celebrate Europe Day and learn about the EESC: Open Doors Day on 4 May!

On Saturday 4 May, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) opens its doors to you, the public. The EESC Open Day is a unique chance to learn about the work of the EESC, the only EU institution representing organised civil society, including employers, workers and other interest groups like youth organisations, environmentalists, consumers, women’s rights groups and many more. This year, 2024, is a very special year for the EU, thanks to the European elections in June. It is also an important opportunity to reflect on what peace, cooperation and solidarity have built and what we hope to achieve in the future. Read more here.

Past EESC events

Hearing: No place for hate: a Europe united against hatred, 19 March 2024

The European Commission published its communication on “No place for hate: a Europe united against hatred” in December 2023 as a call for action to all Europeans to stand up against hatred and speak up for tolerance and respect. This comes in the wake of an alarming increase in hate speech and hate crime with evidence showing that Jewish and Muslim communities are particularly affected. This hearing invited relevant actors to discuss the measures in the communication and how civil society can contribute to address this surge in hatred. Read more here.

Public hearing: How to best achieve Europe's 2040 climate target and path to climate neutrality by 2050, 18 March 2024

This event had two parts, with a morning session to set the scene with representatives from the European Commission, the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change and the International Energy Agency. The afternoon session brought more food for thought with the participation of a large number of European civil society organizations and stakeholder representatives to share critical reflections and proposals on Europe's 2040 climate target and how to best achieve the path to climate neutrality by 2050 with civil society. Read more here.

Public hearing: Ensuring Roma political participation at local, national and European level: identifying obstacles, solutions and good practices, 14 March 2024

Encouraging the Roma community's participation in political life at local, national and European level is one of the objectives of the EU Roma strategic framework 2020-2030. At an estimated 10-12 million, the Roma community constitutes the largest minority in Europe. Yet, in many countries the Roma are not part of the decision-making process, finding themselves in some cases deliberately excluded, intimidated or prevented from representing their rights and needs. Read more here.

Public hearing: Potential and challenges of Assistive Technology and Artificial Intelligence on the life of persons with disabilities, 14 March 2024

When implemented effectively, assistive technology (AT) can improve accessibility and quality of life. Artificial intelligence (AI) can enhance the effectiveness of AT in a number of fields, but it is important that it is developed safely with accessibility and inclusion in mind. During the hearing, we discussed with stakeholders the potential but also challenges associated with the use of AT and AI on the life of PWDs. Read more here.

EESC represented European civil society at the UN Commission on the Status of Women for the first time, 13 March 2024

This year the UNCSW, the UN’s top annual meeting on gender equality, focused on ending women’s poverty. During its inaugural participation in the event, the EESC contributed to the theme with a declaration comprising ten action points for the economic empowerment and social protection of women. Read more here.

Conference: Meet the Champions of excellence, 23 February 2024

"Meet the champions of excellence" was a flagship event of the European Year of Skills, jointly organized by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and the European Commission. It showed inspiring skills of young people and highlight the value of vocational education and training as an effective learning and career path. Some 400 young people exchanged with young champions of Euroskills competitions, EESC members, Commission representatives and other invited participants, during plenary sessions and highly interactive workshops. Participants were also able to watch demonstrations of innovative skills, like virtual reality, 3D printing and robotics. For more information, click here. Interested to join us or to watch the webstream of the event? Click here! Read more here.

Conference on "Housing crisis in Europe - the way forward?", 20 February 2024

The conference took stock of the progress made since the launch of the Renovation Wave Strategy as part of the European Green Deal and to address some of the main challenges. As the availability and affordability of decent housing is an issue of growing concern to Europeans, particularly young people, the conference examined the housing conditions and needs of young people. Finally, the conference looked at how to simplify and make more coherent the multiple funding systems for investment in social and affordable housing. Read more here.

EESC Plenary Session, 20-21 March 2024

The plenary session in March took place in a hybrid form.

The following debates took place:

• Debate about Strong social strategic agenda for Europe, with Nicolas Schmit, European Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights and Karine Lalieux, Belgian Minister of Pensions and Social Integration, in charge of Persons with Disabilities, Combating Poverty and Beliris, Beliris, linked to the adoption of the opinion ECO/630 on Boosting long-term inclusive growth through reforms and investment (exploratory opinion requested by the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU)
• Debate about The 2024 European elections through a civil society lens, with Thierry Beaudet, President of the French Economic, Social and Environmental Council, Zornitsa Roussinova, President of the Bulgarian Economic and Social Council, Christelle Savall, President of the Young European Federalists, Hendrik Nahr, Head of European Affairs at Make.org and Brikena Xhomaqi, Director at Lifelong Learning Platform and co-Chair of the EESC Liaison Group, linked to the adoption of the EESC resolution “Vote for a united, democratic, competitive, sustainable and social European Union”
• Presentation of the high-level report on the future of the single market, with Enrico Letta, President of the Jacques Delors Institute
• Debate about The humanitarian situation in Gaza, with Ajith Sunghay, Head of Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (remotely), and Sergio Cecchini, Humanitarian Representative to the EU and NATO, Médecins Sans Frontières
  

Amongst others the following resolution and opinions were adopted:

• Resolution “Vote for a united, democratic, competitive, sustainable and social European Union”
• MFF: Changes to the amounts for certain programmes and funds (ECO/647)
• Chemicals – "One Substance, One Assessment" (NAT/911)
• EU forests – new EU Framework for Forest Monitoring and Strategic Plans (NAT/898)
• Regulation on the welfare of dogs and cats and their traceability (NAT/922)
• Medical devices/Eudamed (INT/1060)
• Wind Power Package (TEN/827)
• Communication on availability of medicines (CCMI/221)
  

The EESC opinions adopted can be consulted here.

Civil dialogue in the EU and European Citizens' Initiatives

ECI Day 2024 debriefing

ECI Day 2024 was held as part of the EESC’s Civil Society Week in the first week of March. Did you miss it? Or were you there but would like to listen to the recordings and check the photos? See our #CivSocWeek webpage to find the outcomes of the conference, detailed reports of the sessions, a photo gallery, recordings and wrap-up video.

ECI info packet for CSOs

The ECI Forum published the first-ever European Citizens’ Initiative Info Packet designed for CSOs, by CSOs, with civil society’s needs, questions and concerns in mind. Now available in 24 EU languages, the ECI info packet answers your questions on how the ECI can serve your organisation’s mission. Find it on the ECI Forum website!

New ECI registered

On 6 February, the European Commission partially registered a new ECI entitled European Cannabis Initiative. It calls to foster access to medical cannabis throughout the EU and to allocate the necessary resources for researching cannabis for its therapeutic uses. Organisers now have six months to start collecting signatures.

Image © mstanley

Open for signature collection now

On 13 February, organisers of the citizens’ initiative on Preservation and development of Ukrainian culture, education, language and traditions in EU states started their year-long signature collection period. Read more about its objectives, and for all 11 ongoing ECIs see also the ECI registry website.

Image © BlackWhiteMouse Design

Follow-up to successful ECIs

In February, organisers of the latest successful ECI, Fur Free Europe, met European Commissioner for Health and Safety Stella Kyriakides who presented the Commission’s response to the initiative. Meanwhile, the Commission also published a call for evidence in order to ensure the best informed, participatory and transparent follow-up to another successful ECI Stop Finning – Stop the Trade. An important milestone in the follow-up to the successful 2013 Right2Water ECI has been reached in January with the adoption of new minimum hygiene standards for materials and products that come into contact with drinking water.

Image © Orange Vectors

Court judgement concerning cohesion policy ECI

The Commission’s 2019 decision to partially register the ECI on Cohesion policy for the equality of the regions and sustainability of the regional cultures has been upheld following the dismissal of Romania’s appeal. For more information, see the judgement of the Court of Justice in case C-54/22 P, Romania v. Commission of 22 February.

Winners of the ImagineEU video competition

Congratulations to the three winning teams of the ImagineEU video competition! Wondering which ones those are? Watch the winning videos, coming from France, Italy and Romania, on the EC website and get inspired by their innovative ideas and enthusiasm!

New Have Your Say portal

Explore the ways you can contribute to EU policies in the new Have Your Say portal, a one-stop-shop for citizens’ engagement at EU level. In addition to the ECI, EU citizens can contribute to public consultations and the new citizens’ engagement platform.

European Commission: "Have Your Say"

As part of its "Better Regulation" agenda, the Commission is consulting a broad range of organisations, and the general public, with such outreach tools as "Have Your Say". In actively collecting and analysing online feedback, the Commission ensures that EU initiatives are responsive and proportional to current challenges – such as the consultation on Aid to the most deprived - evaluation of the 2014-2020 FEAD, the consultation on National Emission Reduction Commitments Directive – evaluation, the consultation on EU rules on medical devices and in vitro diagnostics – targeted evaluation, the consultation on Textile labelling rules (revision), the consultation on the Humanitarian aid from the European Commission 2017-2022 – evaluation, as well as the consultation on the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) for 2014-2020 – ex post evaluation. See all currently open consultations here.

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