Comité Económico e Social Europeu
Conference on 'Civil society organisations: Key actors for the future of Europe', organised by the Diversity Europe Group in partnership with Civil Society Europe and with the support of the EESC's Liaison Group and Associational Life Category
Panel on 'Sustainable, Inclusive and Participatory Societies'
EESC plenary debate with Didier Reynders, European Commissioner for Justice
At its plenary session on 18 July, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) hosted a debate with Conny Reuter, co-chair of the EESC's Liaison Group with European civil society organisations and networks.
The EESC held a debate in plenary on the growing importance of organised civil society and cities in Europe's ability to face asymmetric shocks and unforeseen crises. This was linked to the adoption of two opinions, on Flexible Assistance to Territories (FAST-CARE) and on the Ljubljana Agreement on the Urban Agenda of the EU. The Committee welcomes both initiatives, but finds they miss the bar in terms of properly empowering and involving organised civil society.
The Workers' Group is organising a conference in Paris, at the Economic, Social and Environmental Council, focusing on the issues of persistent discrimination in Europe and how to tackle it and the challenges and opportunities of participatory democracy for the EESC.
While Europe and its societies are still in the grip of the COVID-19 pandemic and with the Conference on the Future of Europe in its closing stages, the EESC will be holding its annual Civil Society Days in March 2022.
The conference is being organised by the Diversity Europe Group, in partnership with Civil Society Europe and with the support of the EESC's Civil Society Liaison Group and the Associational Life Category.
Registrations for external participants are open on this page until 2 November 2021.
Both a sustainable economic and social recovery from the COVID-19 crisis and the need to address effectively the climate change will require a massive expansion of investments. To achieve this, reshaping the EU fiscal rules is indispensable. Against this background, the Section for Economic and Monetary Union and Economic and Social Cohesion (ECO) of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is currently working on an own-initiative opinion on Reshaping the EU Fiscal Framework for a Sustainable Recovery and a Just Transition.
Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 has proved to be an endurance test for human and social rights, democratic values, the rule of law and economic resilience in the EU. While navigating stormy waters, organised civil society is playing a key role in coping with the countless pandemic-related challenges at European, national, regional and local level.
