Expert panel: More deliberation, more impact? Connecting the ECI and European Citizens' Panels

Webstreaming 05/62  .  Back to Agenda

Speakers

  • David van Reybrouck - Renowned Belgian writer and organiser of G1000
  • Prof. Graham Smith - University of Westminster
  • Prof. Paul Blokker - University of Bologna and Citizens Take Over Europe (CTOE)
  • Prof. Kalypso Nicolaidis, EUI Florence, Democratic Odyssey

  • Moderator: Angela Jain, Bertelsmann Stiftung

Concept Note

As the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE) has shown, European citizens are keen to engage more systematically, meaningfully, and effectively in EU policy-making and constitutional reform. The European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) stands as a crucial tool for citizens to express concerns and influence the EU political and policy agenda. Acknowledging this, the CoFoE has recommended expanding citizen participation further, proposing the use of randomly selected Citizens’ Assemblies (CA) as an additional instrument. This prompts the question: How can the potential and added value of both instruments be maximised? Is there a possibility for these instruments to complement each other, enhancing visibility and leading to a more robust institutional response when used in tandem? The session will explore the benefits of interconnecting these instruments, shedding light on practical approaches, preferred formats, and various institutional, legal, and organisational considerations in relation to connecting ECIs and CAs. It will also examine the potential roles for civil society players and digital technologies in making the link between the ECI and CAs work and giving new impetus to citizen participation in the EU.

Work organisation