October 2020 seems so distant, yet for me, these past 30 months of the EESC presidency have been an honour, a pleasure and an inspiring journey. Together we have been bold in further strengthening organised civil society in European policy-making. The EESC has undertaken the necessary reforms to regain trust and its reputation as the voice of organised civil society in Europe.
This mandate was first marked by COVID-19 and subsequently by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Social and economic consequences of both the pandemic and the war were, naturally, our main priorities. Our actions were focused on addressing the challenges of the times we live in.
We have been an example of European solidarity, helping Ukraine in our daily work through concrete actions such as sharing our premises with Ukrainian civil society, and through vocal support for Ukraine’s path towards EU membership.
In the priorities of my presidency, I focused on a Europe that is economically prosperous, socially inclusive and environmentally sustainable. I strongly believe that the future of Europe should be founded on these three pillars. This is the position for which we advocated during the Conference on the Future of Europe, where the EESC played an important role in representing organised civil society and standing for European values.
Christa Schweng
