Plan International EU Office’s Post

Interesting to note that the proposed Intergroup on Democracy received the support of 108 MEPs - yet nearly half of the intergroups that were ultimately established secured fewer votes than that. Perhaps it’s time to revisit the rules for establishing intergroups? #democracy #transparency

We need to give back #agencytocitizens in democratic societies. There are up-to-date solutions for #deliberating on vast information and expertise together with everyday citizens - let's implement them!

📢 European Democracy Organisations call on the EU to prioritise Citizen Deliberation! Together with democratic innovators all over Europe, FIDE - Europe urges the EU to invest in deliberative democratic processes to strengthen European democracies. By embracing deliberative democratic methods, the EU can not only enhance the legitimacy and effectiveness of decision-making but also nurture a sense of ownership and solidarity among citizens. Our common ask: 🔦 A clear vision for Citizen Deliberation: Embed citizen deliberation objectives in the EU’s 2024-2029 Strategic Agenda, ensuring they meet high-quality standards and evaluation criteria to prevent ‘citizen washing’. 🔁 Structural Integration of Deliberative Citizens’ Assemblies: Incorporate Citizens’ Assemblies into EU political processes, including on contentious issues. Institutionalise deliberative processes and create a permanent Citizens’ Assembly with a clear mandate. Create a horizontal DG or unit tasked to coordinate the work on citizen participation and deliberation. 🤝 Create the conditions for robust processes in all Member States: Invest in building deliberative capacity across the EU. Dedicate financial resources to communities that don’t have the opportunity to organise deliberative processes. We believe the next few months are a critical period in which to champion democratic innovation and citizen participation as central pillars of the European project. You as well? Then share this post and join us in calling the EU and the Belgian Presidency for a firm commitment towards their citizens and our democracy! 📝 Read here the full letter here: https://bit.ly/49YED9L #DeliberativeDemocracy #EU2024BE #CitizensAssemblies Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2024 Initiators: G1000 - Bureau Burgerberaad - DemNet Hungary (Foundation for Development of Democratic Rights) - DemocracyNext - Mehr Demokratie e.V. - Shipyard Foundation

🇪🇺 Democratic innovation should be at the centre of European politics ! Particitiz is happy to join a broad range of democracy enthusiasts and advocates to support this call to prioritise Citizen Deliberation. By embracing deliberative democratic methods, the EU can not only enhance the legitimacy and effectiveness of decision-making but also nurture a sense of ownership and solidarity among citizens. Our common ask: 🔦 A clear vision for Citizen Deliberation: Embed citizen deliberation objectives in the EU’s 2024-2029 Strategic Agenda, ensuring they meet high quality standards and evaluation criteria to prevent 'citizen washing'. 🔁 Structural Integration of Deliberative Citizens’ Assemblies: Incorporate Citizens’ Assemblies into EU political processes, including on contentious issues. Institutionalise deliberative processes and create a permanent Citizens’ Assembly with a clear mandate. Create a horizontal DG or unit that is tasked to coordinate the work on citizen participation and deliberation. 🤝 Create the conditions for robust processes in all Member States: Invest in building deliberative capacity across the EU. Dedicate financial resources for communities that don’t have the opportunity to organise deliberative processes. We believe the next few months are a critical period in which to champion democratic innovation and citizen participation as central pillars of the European project. You as well? Then share this post and join us in calling the EU and the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2024 for a firm commitment towards their citizens and our democracy! 📝 Read here the full letter : https://bit.ly/49YED9L #DeliberativeDemocracy #EU2024BE #CitizensAssemblies Thanks to the initiators: G1000 - Bureau Burgerberaad - DemNet Hungary (Foundation for Development of Democratic Rights) - DemocracyNext - Mehr Demokratie e.V. - Shipyard Foundation

A recent Committee inquiry on Public Participation led to 17 recommendations on how Parliament could improve public participation being made by a Citizens' Panel, comprised of a diverse range of voices from across Scotland. 🗣️ The Committee's final report in September 2023 embraced these recommendations, aiming to integrate deliberative democracy into Parliament's work by 2026. 📅 Dr. Ruth Lightbody's report, produced in collaboration with SPICe and PACT, offers new insights on how we can evaluate and enhance deliberative practices. 📝 Key takeaways include establishing guidelines to ensure inclusivity, transparency, and robust evaluation. 💡 The recommendations stress the need for a strong evidence base, public scrutiny, and a practical toolkit for practitioners. 🛠️ With the Scottish Parliament soon to enter its 25th year, this blog sets out the roadmap for enhancing engagement and trust between Parliament and the public in the years ahead! 🤝 #JoinIn 🔗➡️ https://ow.ly/ZKPe50QU671

📢 European Democracy Organisations call EU to prioritise Citizen Deliberation   Together with democratic innovators all over Europe, Arantzazulab urges the EU to invest in deliberative democratic processes to strengthen European democracies. By embracing deliberative democratic methods, the EU can not only enhance the legitimacy and effectiveness of decision-making but also nurture a sense of ownership and solidarity among citizens. Our common ask: 🔦 A clear vision for Citizen Deliberation: Embed citizen deliberation objectives in the EU’s 2024-2029 Strategic Agenda, ensuring they meet high quality standards and evaluation criteria to prevent 'citizen washing'. 🔁 Structural Integration of Deliberative Citizens’ Assemblies: Incorporate Citizens’ Assemblies into EU political processes, including on contentious issues. Institutionalise deliberative processes and create a permanent Citizens’ Assembly with a clear mandate. Create a horizontal DG or unit that is tasked to coordinate the work on citizen participation and deliberation. 🤝 Create the conditions for robust processes in all Member States: Invest in building deliberative capacity across the EU. Dedicate financial resources for communitities that don’t have the opportunity to organise deliberative processes.   We believe the next few months are a critical period in which to champion democratic innovation and citizen participation as central pillars of the European project.   You as well? Then share this post and join us in calling the EU and the Belgian Presidency for a firm commitment towards their citizens and our democracy!   📝 Read the full letter here: https://bit.ly/49YED9L #DeliberativeDemocracy #EU2024BE #CitizensAssemblies Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2024 Shipyard Foundation Mehr Demokratie e.V. FIDE - Europe DemocracyNext DemNet Hungary (Foundation for Development of Democratic Rights) Bureau Burgerberaad G1000

While France's far-right is hailing the lead in the parliamentary election, it’s time for us to reflect on what catalyzes the shift in its political scene. I am excited to share that the research paper I co-wrote with other researchers from ITSS Verona on the rise of far-right in Europe, which was presented to members of the U.S. Department of State, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and USAID previously, is now publicly available. The rise of the far-right has been an increasingly relevant and timely issue, as demonstrated by the gradual election shift towards radicalism. To examine the threats of the far-right to democracy, our team has performed netnography on online channels of relevant parties or politicians, as well as practised semi-structured interviews to gather expert insights. As the Contributor to the section on France, I have examined the growing potential of far-right parties dominating the Legislative election and the risk that strategic ties between France and its Western allies could be weakened, a growing concern underscored by the recent first-round election results. More importantly, given France's significant economic and military power, any major political upheaval in France could impact the entire European continent and its transnational partners. Read our report 'The Rise of the Far-Right in Europe - Mapping Groups, Narratives, and Trends in Europe’s Far-Right Landscape' here: https://lnkd.in/eaDacwM4 ITSS Verona #france #itssverona

📖 While far-right's threats to the EU's democracy dominate political debate in Europe, the situation is more subtle and complex: What is good for the EU integration might not be good for democracy, and vice versa. Is there a way out of this democracy catch-22? Read the latest article by Richard Youngs on Carnegie Europe 👇 https://lnkd.in/e4zPPz8h

📢 European Democracy Organisations call EU to prioritise Citizen Deliberation Together with democratic innovators all over Europe, G1000 urges the EU to invest in deliberative democratic processes to strengthen European democracies. By embracing deliberative democratic methods, the EU can not only enhance the legitimacy and effectiveness of decision- making but also nurture a sense of ownership and solidarity among citizens. Our common ask: 🔦 A clear vision for Citizen Deliberation: Embed citizen deliberation objectives in the EU’s 2024-2029 Strategic Agenda, ensuring they meet high quality standards and evaluation criteria to prevent 'citizen washing'. 🔁 Structural Integration of Deliberative Citizens’ Assemblies: Incorporate Citizens’ Assemblies into EU political processes, including on contentious issues. Institutionalise deliberative processes and create a permanent Citizens’ Assembly with a clear mandate. Create a horizontal DG or unit that is tasked to coordinate the work on citizen participation and deliberation. 🤝 Create the conditions for robust processes in all Member States: Invest in building deliberative capacity across the EU. Dedicate financial resources for communitities that don’t have the opportunity to organise deliberative processes. We believe the next few months are a critical period in which to champion democratic innovation and citizen participation as central pillars of the European project. You as well? Then share this post and join us in calling the EU and the Belgian Presidency for a firm commitment towards their citizens and our democracy! 📝 Read here the full letter here: https://bit.ly/49YED9L #DeliberativeDemocracy #EU2024BE #CitizensAssemblies Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2024 Initiators: G1000, Bureau Burgerberaad, DemNet Hungary (Foundation for Development of Democratic Rights), DemocracyNext, FIDE - Europe, Mehr Demokratie e.V., Shipyard Foundation

🔊 European Democracy Organisations call on the EU to prioritize Citizen Deliberation Together with democratic innovators all over Europe, DemNet urges the EU to invest in deliberative democratic processes to strengthen European democracies. Why? Because by embracing deliberative democratic methods, the EU can not only enhance the legitimacy and effectiveness of decision-making, but also nurture a sense of ownership and solidarity among citizens. What we are jointly asking for: 🔦 A clear vision for Citizen Deliberation: Embed citizen deliberation objectives in the EU’s 2024-2029 Strategic Agenda, ensuring they meet high quality standards and evaluation criteria to prevent 'citizen washing'. 🔁 Structural Integration of Deliberative Citizens’ Assemblies: ➡ Incorporate Citizens’ Assemblies into EU political processes, even in case of contentious issues. ➡ Institutionalize deliberative processes and create a permanent Citizens’ Assembly with a clear mandate. ➡ Create a horizontal DG or unit that is tasked with coordinating the work on citizen participation and deliberation. 🤝 Create the conditions for robust processes in all Member States: Invest in building deliberative capacity across the EU. Supply financial resources to  communities that don’t have the means to organize deliberative processes. We believe the next few months will be a critical period for establishing democratic innovation and citizen participation as central pillars of the European project. There is no time to waste. Share this post and join us in our call to the EU and the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2024 for a firm commitment towards their citizens and our democracy! 📩 Read the full letter here: https://bit.ly/49YED9L #DeliberativeDemocracy #EU2024BE #CitizensAssemblies Thank you to our co-initiators: G1000, Bureau Burgerberaad, DemocracyNext, FIDE - Europe, Mehr Demokratie e.V., Particitiz, Shipyard Foundation and to the more than 40 organisations who have decided to endorse our initiative.