The EESC flagship Civil Society Prize highlights the outstanding contribution of civil society to maintaining and strengthening European identity and citizenship. Each year, the prize takes a different theme of pressing societal importance related to the work of the EESC.

On 20 March, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) honoured three civil society organisations from Slovakia, Belgium and France, for their groundbreaking projects that tackle rising levels of harmful polarisation across the European Union.

The prize money of EUR 32 000 was shared among the three front-runners.

The EESC awarded the top prize of EUR 14 000 to the Slovak Debate Association for The Critical Thinking Olympiad, a pioneering initiative that builds resilience to misinformation among Slovak youth. The project runs a student competition across three age groups, in which students take on real-world media challenges and assess content for its trustworthiness.

The two runners-up each received EUR 9 000.

France's Reporters d'Espoirs placed second with their Prix Européen Jeunes Reporters d’Espoirs, a French-language training scheme for solutions journalism.

The third prize went to FEC Diversité asbl in Belgium for their project "ESCAPE GAME EXTREME DROITE pour se désintoxiquer", an immersive game that counters far-right ideologies.

About the 15th EESC Civil Society Prize

The 15th EESC Civil Society Prize highlighted non-profit projects led by individuals, private companies and civil society organisations that helped combat harmful polarisation across the European Union.

In recent years, Europe has been struck by multiple crises, from Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine, rising energy prices and costs of living, and the continued economic and social aftermath from the COVID-19 pandemic. Such crises can erode trust in public institutions, and breed harmful polarisation throughout society.

While polarisation can be part of an open, pluralistic society, rising populism and negative polarisation represent significant challenges for European democracies. Europe also faces a continued fracturing of the traditional media landscape, rising misinformation and attacks on media freedom, all of which pose further threats to democratic values.

This year’s winners were selected from a strong and diverse range of over 50 entries from 15 Member States. The winning projects were chosen for their extraordinary creativity, enthusiasm and dedication in combating harmful polarisation in European society.

'Organised civil society plays a fundamental role in safeguarding European democracy, as has been proven yet again by this year’s remarkable and wide-ranging projects' said EESC Vice-President for Communication Aurel Laurenţiu Plosceanu.