On 19 March 2024, we hosted the sixth edition of the State of the Union Citizens’ Rights Conference. The event deliverable report provides an overview of the agenda and key takeaways from this milestone event.
This year’s edition was particularly timely, coinciding with the upcoming European Parliament elections. As a result, the conference focused on improving voting rights and fostering political participation among all EU citizens—especially underrepresented groups and young Europeans.
The opening keynote was delivered by Dubravka Šuica, Vice President of the European Commission for Democracy and Demography, who shared valuable insights into the current state of democracy in the EU. This was followed by a presentation from our colleagues Elisa Lironi and Savannah Schuurbiers on citizen engagement through crowdsourcing. They spotlighted ECAS’s “European Elections Dystopia”, a unique initiative hosted on our online platform. While traditional public consultations often focus on citizens’ hopes and aspirations, this crowdsourcing took an alternative approach—inviting participants to envision their worst-case scenarios for Europe. The aim was to provoke critical thinking and spark meaningful dialogue around the future of European democracy.
The report then turns to the panel discussions, starting with a session on political engagement among marginalised communities. Speakers shared past and current initiatives and proposed strategies the EU could adopt to foster inclusive participation. Pannellists included Simona Barbu, Policy Officer at the European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless (FEANTSA), Gabriela Hrabanova, Executive Director of the European Roma Grassroots Organisation (ERGO), Cristian Leahu, Policy Officer at the Directorate General Justice and Consumers of the European Commission (DG JUST), and Ionel Zamfir, researcher at the European Parliamentary Research Service.
The second panel explored how to make the EU more youth-centred, featuring speakers from leading youth organisations. Panellists included Kristof Papp, senior Policy Officer at the European Youth Forum (YFJ), Rita Dias, President of the Erasmus Student Network (ESN), Christelle Savall, Vice-President of Young European Federalists (JEF), and Laurențiu Plosceanu, Vice-President in charge of Communication at the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC).
To conclude the event, we honoured the winner of the ECAS Awards 2023, presented by Jean Lambert, Chairperson of the ECAS Board of Directors. Now an annual tradition, the award celebrates initiatives that have made a significant impact in promoting political participation and civic awareness across Europe.
Read the event deliverable report:
