The Conference on the Future of Europe was initially announced by Von der Leyen in advance of her appointment as Commission President as part of a ‘new push for European democracy’. However, in order to be effective, the Conference needs to involve citizens in the design of the Conference from the very beginning. The interinstitutional negotiations around the Conference are shrouded in secrecy, missing out on the expertise and experience of civil society practitioners in running participative processes, and not including citizens in setting the agenda or structure of the Conference. 

Including health competences in the agenda of the Conference is welcome, as the perspective of treaty change suggests, but the agenda must be broader and co-created with citizens from diverse backgrounds and experiences to reflect their priorities and build trust in a process which is about our common future. The transnational civil society coalition Citizens Take Over Europe has laid out 10 guiding principes for a citizens-centered Conference on the Future of Europe. 

Background:

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen addressed the European Union in her State of the Union speech on 16 September 2020. The Conference on the Future of Europe was originally announced to launch on Europe Day 2020, however differences between the Commission, Parliament, and Council stalled negotiations on the Conference's scope and format. Democracy International is one of the founding members of the Citizens Take Over Europe alliance, which calls for a transparent and citizen-led conference in the design of the Conference as well as in its implementation.

For questions, please contact:

Daniela Vancic

vancic@democracy-international.org

+49 221 66966531