Conference Conversations 10 – What’s the future of participatory democracy in the EU?

The Conference on the Future of Europe is at the finishing line. What will its legacy look like?

Can it be a turning point for a more democratic, more participatory European Union? This instalment of Conference Conversations assesses the Conference on the Future of Europe so far and discusses the future of citizen participation in the EU, on the basis of a report published by the Conference Observatory’s High-Level Advisory Group, co-chaired by Herman Van Rompuy and Brigid Laffan. What has worked in the Conference, what has not, and where do we go from here? Is there a readiness to introduce new institutionalised forms of citizen participation in the EU? In what ways could or should citizens be involved in EU policymaking in the future? Should their involvement be continuous or periodic, limited to key moments in the decision-making process? In addition, what effect does Putin’s war against Ukraine have on the overall significance and potential results of the Conference?

Conference Conversations (10) with Herman Van Rompuy, President Emeritus, European Council; President, European Policy Centre; Anna Lührmann, Minister of State, German Federal Foreign Office; Janis Emmanouilidis, Director of Studies, European Policy Centre; Dominik Hierlemann, Senior Expert, Bertelsmann Stiftung; Corina Stratulat, Senior Policy Analyst, European Policy Centre

Moderator: Jacki Davis, Meade Davis Communications