The president of the European Economic and Social Committee, Christa Schweng, kicked off the Committee's official activities relating to the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE) with a live Q&A session. #CoFoE - Bringing the European project back to citizens set out organised civil society's views and expectations regarding the Conference. It also highlighted the importance of engaging with people outside the Brussels bubble and brainstormed in preparation for the upcoming citizens' consultations.

EESC president Christa Schweng said that the Committee will conduct outreach initiatives in all Member States so as to guarantee fair representativeness: ''We will involve employers, workers and the whole of organised civil society and convey their points of view to the Conference on the Future of Europe''.  She also referred to the recently adopted EESC resolution proposing a new narrative for Europe.

Commission vice-president Dubravka Šuica said that ''Politics has changed in the European Union. For the first time ever, the Conference brings citizens into the heart of policy-making in the European Union. Through the Conference, citizens and civil society can together claim ownership of their future European Union''.

MEP Eva Maydell stressed that ''our job is to make the Conference on the Future of Europe meaningful for citizens''

The EESC's work on a new narrative for Europe was led by the presidents of the three groups that make up the Committee: Stefano Mallia (Employers), Oliver Röpke (Workers) and Séamus Boland (Diversity Europe).

Cillian Lohan, EESC vice-president responsible for communication, rounded off the discussion by saying that the EESC consultations on the Conference on the Future of Europe will reach every corner of Europe and be as wide-ranging as possible.

The Conference plans to have its conclusions ready by the spring of 2022 and the EU institutions will then reflect on what Europeans have been saying.

Watch the #CoFoE - Bringing the European project back to citizens kick-off event on the EESC's Twitter account @EU_EESC  or on Facebook.  (ks)