The Conference on the Future of Europe, Explained

Source: European Commission

Eliza Wojcik, 5,5 minutes

The future of the EU is being widely discussed, in particular the directions in which it is going or possible candidate states to join it. There are different opinions on various EU actions and some states are more pro-EU while others are more Eurosceptic. In all these opinions, decisions, and questions regarding the future of the EU, is there a place for European citizens to voice their views? The answer is YES and it lies just in the Conference on the Future of Europe. Today we will uncover what stands behind the Conference, how it works and what impact it has. Keep reading if you want to get to know more about it and learn how you can make your opinion heard!

What is the Conference on the Future of Europe?

Source: Interreg Europe

The Conference is a series of debates and discussions led by citizens aiming to enable all Europeans to share their ideas and help in shaping a common European future, per the European Commission’s website. It is the first time in the history of the EU that an event like this is happening – it has been described by the Commission as a pan-European, democratic exercise. The Conference will allow an open, fully inclusive, and transparent debate.

On a more technical side, the proposal for the Conference was announced in 2019 by the Commission and European Parliament with a view of including European citizens in determining the EU’s long-term future. The Conference will last for 2 years. It is jointly organised by the European Parliament, the EU Council and the European Commission and jointly chaired by the presidents of these 3 institutions: David Sassoli, Antonio Costa and Ursula von der Leyen. The Conference has its own multilingual website which offers a chance to get involved. The procedure of involvement will be described in detail in the next section of this article, so make sure to keep reading!

How can I get involved?

The Conference has an online platform that can be reached under this address and viewed in multiple languages. On this website, you can learn how to attend an event near you, how to share your ideas or even how to organise your own event. The starting  page looks like this:

You can read more about particular topics of the Conference which are:

• Climate change and the environment

• Health

• A stronger economy, social justice and jobs

• EU in the world

• Values and rights, rule of law, security

• Digital transformation

• European democracy

• Migration

• Education, culture, youth and sport

• Other ideas

If you click on one of these categories, you can simply read other people’s opinions either in their original language or automatically translated to your own, but you can also use the button ‘new idea’ to pitch in your own view. To do that you need to sign up with your email, European ID or with your Facebook, Twitter or Google account.

For example, part of the page on ‘health’ looks like this:

Another option is to attend an event happening near you. The website provides an interactive map showing all the events happening in Europe and beyond connected to the Conference. By clicking on an event visible on the map you receive a short description, date, exact place and a link to this event (for example Facebook event). The map looks like this and is very easy to navigate through:

At the moment of writing this article, mid-July, the following numbers present themselves in connection with the Conference:

• 19 676 platform participants are engaged

• 5 523 ideas are shared

• 10 985 comments are published

• 1 516 events are organised

• 29 993 endorsements are voiced

With this big engagement, the Conference is likely to make a change and engage even more Europeans. It is best to explore the website yourself and discover what else the Conference has to offer you. The website is clear and easy to navigate within so everyone is encouraged to make use of it!

What impact does it have?

The Conference will have an enormous impact on the future of the European Union and Europe. Guy Verhofstadt, European Parliament’s chair for the Conference said that this event must ‘establish Union fit for purpose’ while acknowledging the world being driven by authoritarian attitudes. The Conference shall help in establishing a Union ready to tackle new challenges revolving not around the EU itself but around ‘giants’ like China, Russia, the US and India. The Conference will be an unprecedented big step in engaging the citizens and hearing their views – according to the Eurobarometer survey, 92% of Europeans want the voices of people to be taken into account more in decision making processes on the European level. The Conference focuses on making this a reality. It is important to notice once again that it is not only plain listening to people, instead, their voices and opinions are put on the online platform and forwarded for debates in the European Parliament, national parliaments, governments and other stakeholders. These debates in turn will be bases for legislation and policy proposals. Thus, one can notice that it is not merely citizens expressing their opinion in the ether, it is debating citizens’ ideas and opinions and considering them for creating new policies. Of course, the particular outcome remains to be seen as it depends on citizens’ voices, proposals and debates. The final report will be prepared based on proposals approved by the Plenary of the Conference by the executive board and further sent to European Parliament, the Commission and the Council for follow up.

Conclusion

To conclude, the Conference on the Future of Europe is a great, one of a kind initiative, which is worth taking part in. The official website of the Conference is accessible and can be read in multiple languages. The Conference itself is a way for European citizens to voice their opinions and ideas which will be taken into consideration while making new policy choices or debating legislation. It is therefore more than just ‘listening to the voice of people’, it is putting this voice into practice. Everyone is encouraged to take part in it, either by placing their opinion on the website, attending an event or just spreading the word about the Conference. This is our chance to influence shaping the future of Europe, let’s use it!