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Where do we stand? – Workshop on the young generations’ proposals for the future of Europe

Democracy & Deliberation: Part 2

In preparation of the "KAS Summer School on Values 2022" we want to discuss urgent questions regarding democracy and participation in the European Union with young adults from various countries.

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Beschluss zur Gründung der Konferenz zur Zukunft Europas Eric Vidal (CC BY 2.0 / No changes were made)
Following the agreement of the european institutions, the Conference on the Future of Europa was launched in April 2021.

Since its foundation, the European Union has been accompanied by debates on institutional reform proposals. These discussions cannot ignore the pressing debates of our time; climate change, the Corona crisis and the consequences of Brexit are major challenges that the union must urgently address in the coming years. In order to counter criticisms of a perceived lack of democratic legitimacy, European citizens must be explicitly involved in the management of these crises. In particular, the voice of the younger generation should be heard here - after all, their ideas are crucial in shaping the future of the European Union.

In order to compile citizens' positions, proposals and ideas, the Union has launched the "Conference on the Future of Europe" in 2021. Via a platform, all citizens can contribute their thoughts on the future of Europe and participate in various events. The results of the conference are to be implemented in concrete policies by the European institutions.

The concept of citizens' councils to increase social participation and the democratic legitimacy of politics is by no means new. As far back as ancient Greece, citizens were chosen by lot to make political decisions. And the model of "deliberative democracy" according to Jürgen Habermas or John Rawls also emphasizes the importance of public discourse for democratic systems.

So how useful is the "Conference on the Future of Europe" in terms of democratic theory? What role does representativeness play in these processes? Can citizens' councils, which were originally limited to small government systems such as cities, function at all on the international stage? How can the young European generation get involved? We would like to discuss these questions together with experts and in the process facilitate an exchange between young people throughout Europe. In this series of topics, political issues that are of central importance to the upcoming generation will be discussed and recommendations for action for the EU will be developed together. The positions and recommendations developed in the process will be passed on to the responsible members of the European Parliament at the "Conference on the Future of Europe".

When registering for participation you will have the chance to choose between the 9 different political topics which are a central part of the Conference on the Future of Europe. Out of those topics the one with the most votes by all participants will be chosen as subject in our workshop. The goal of the workshop is to formulate a concrete call to action for the EU which will be given to the politicians in the European Parliament.

 

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Venue

Online via Zoom

Speakers

  • Janis Fifka
    • European Youth Parliament
    • Member of the board
Contact

Christian Mumme