Category: EVENTS

INVITATION

Czech EU presidency: managing Rule of Law and following-up with the CoFoE
UEF and JEF Hungary’s panel debate at the Sziget Festival in Budapest

11 August 2022 | 5.00 p.m. (CET)
Hajógyári Sziget, Budapest, Hungary

Dear federalist friends,

At the occasion of the Sziget Festival in Budapest from 10 to 15 August 2022, the Union of European Federalists (UEF) Hungary, the Young European Federalists (JEF) Hungary, and the UEF are proud to organise a Panel debate on the Czech EU presidency, the CoFoE, and Rule of Law

Distinguished speakers include:

• H.E. Ambassador Tibor Bial, Czech Ambassador to Hungary,
• Daniel Freund MEP, President of the Spinelli Group,

The debate will be moderated by Eszter Nagy, President of the UEF Hungary.

The event will take place on Thursday 11 August 2022 at 5.00 p.m. at the Civil Island section of the Sziget Festival, in Budapest.

Only participants to the Sziget Festival will be able to attend physically at the Civil Island. You can view the event online via the UEF Hungary’s Facebook page.

The debate on UEF Hugary’s Facebook page

We look forward to seeing you.

Kind regards,

Anna Echterhoff
Secretary-General of the UEF

FEDERALISM IN EUROPE AND IN THE WORLD (The seminar will be held in English)From Monetary Union to the United States of Europe – (istitutospinelli.it)

Ventotene, Italy, 28 August – 02 September 2022

The “Altiero Spinelli” Institute of Federalist Studies has been organizing an international seminar on the island of Ventotene for 38 years. This island off the Italian coast is the place where Altiero Spinelli, author of the Federalist Manifesto of Ventotene, was imprisoned during the Second World War. Every year, young federalists gather here to discuss federalist ideas on European and global issues with the leading experts of the European and World Federalist Movement. The seminar is a unique and intense experience on federalist studies.

Main topics of the 2022 International Seminar

Human rights and peace
European Union and regional imbalances
European Union and global economy
Federalism and federalist organizations

30 participants, 60 hours of training and debates, 30 speakers.
Here we are building the future of Europe!

Call for Application 2022 and apply by June 20, 2022!

Brochure

To apply, fill in the procedure shown in the following link:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfIU6tphZ4o-qjPdyD-kr16xoW4XNOUFEswoOvcKjgWJbso1Q/viewform

REGISTER HERE

INVITATION

Dear federalist friends,

In the aftermath of the pandemic, Europe is facing unexpected and pressing challenges. With the Conference on the Future of Europe, close to the final stages of its work to address these challenges, the 2022 hybrid edition of Civil Society Days will explore how Europe can become more resilient through a just transition; one that will benefit people and the environment and, at the same time, increase European prosperity. If you have not registered yet, join online the discussions with different speakers and take part in our seven workshops to explore challenges of a fit-for-future economy, which creates shared prosperity and the key role of civil society in this endeavour. 

As you know already, this year the UEF will organize, together with Social Economy Europe (SEE), in cooperation with the EESC Section for Economic and Monetary, Economic and Social Cohesion (ECO), and the Consultative Committee on Industrial Change (CCMI), the workshop n.6 “A green social market economy for the Future of Europe“.

Your participation and input are welcome!

Please find the draft agenda here.

Register here by 10 March.

Take a minute to watch the teaser video here and feel free to share this invitation with your network!

Best regards,

Anna ECHTERHOFF
Secretary General UEF

REGISTER HERE

The Ventotene Manifesto: A New Take For a Federal Europe
Wednesday, 2 March 2022 19h – 21h

Dear federalists friends,

We are pleased to invite you to the event “The Ventotene Manifesto: A New Take For a Federal Europe”  that will take place on Wednesday 2 March 2022 at 19:00 – 21:00h in Brussels and remotely. Find the event programme below:

Please, register here if you are willing to participate. We kindly remind you to indicate whether you will join physically or online.  

Looking forward to the discussion!

With federalist regards,

Domènec RUIZ DEVESA
UEF Vice-President

REGISTER HERE

INVITATION

Dear federalist friends,

In the aftermath of the pandemic, Europe is facing unprecedented and pressing challenges. With the Conference on the Future of Europe close to the final stages of its work to address these challenges, the 2022 hybrid edition of Civil Society Days will explore how Europe can become more resilient through a just transition; one that will benefit people and the environment and, at the same time, increase European prosperity. Join online the discussions with distinguished speakers, who will be sharing their views on the challenges of a fit-for-future economy that creates shared prosperity, and take part in our seven workshops to explore the key role of civil society in this endeavour.

This year, UEF will organize together with Social Economy Europe (SEE) and in cooperation with the EESC section for Economic and Monetary Union and Economic and Social Cohesion (ECO) and the Consultative Committee on Industrial Change (CCMI) the workshop nº6 “A green social market economy for the Future of Europe“.

Your participation and input are welcome!

Please find the draft agenda here.

Register here by 10 March.

Take a minute to watch the teaser video here and feel free to share this invitation with your networks!

Best regards,

Anna ECHTERHOFF
UEF Secretary General

EINLADUNG 1. Föderalistisches Kolloquium | Mehr Europa durch transnationale Regionen

En coopération avec Forum EUROPA, fondation sans but lucratif, Luxembourg, l’Académie Européenne d’Otzenhausen et d’autres partenaires européens de la Grande Région et de la Région du Rhin Supérieur, l’Union des fédéralistes européens de la Sarre (Europa-Union Saar) invite les citoyens intéressés à un colloque le dimanche 6 mars 2022, de 9h30 à 13h30.

En collaboration avec des experts politiques et scientifiques, nous souhaitons réaliser une expérience de pensée : Comment faire pour que la Grande Région et la Région métropolitaine trinationale du Rhin Supérieur deviennent les germes de nouvelles collectivités territoriales européennes, au sein desquelles l’Union européenne de demain peut être construite ?

Veuillez consulter le programme ci-dessous pour toute information complémentaire. En cliquant ici, vous accédez au formulaire d’inscription. En cas de problèmes techniques, vous trouverez également toutes les informations sur le colloque sur notre site web : www.eu-saar.de. Cet événement est soutenu par Forum EUROPA a.s.b.l., fondation sans but lucratif (Luxembourg). Nous la remercions chaleureusement pour son soutien.

REGISTER HERE

The Spinelli Draft Treaty (14 February 1984 – 14 February 2022)

Monday, 14 February 2022 17h30-19h00

Dear federalist friends,

In 1984, the European Parliament adopted the draft of a European Constitution, which could still solve problems the EU faces today: nearly completely abolishing national vetoes, deciding the EU budget by Parliament and Council together, the EU court checking member states on questions of human rights and the rule of law, health and other societal policies to be a shared competence between EU and member states. 

This courageous move 38 years ago is a wake-up call to pro-Europeans while the Conference on the Future of Europe is entering into its decision-making phase. 

We invite you to hear some of the witnesses explain key features of the 1984 draft treaty. Current MEPs will comment how this can inspire today’s decisions. Join our hybrid event on 14 February 2022 17h30-19h00 either online or in 76 Allée de la Robertsau, 67000 Strasbourg, France.

Speakers at the event will include:

• Pier Virgilio Dastoli, President of European Movement Italy, former secretary to Altiero Spinelli, lead author of this draft treaty
• Heidi Marie Wieczorek Zeul, Social-Democrat MEP 1979-87, later German Federal minister for economic development
• Jean Paul Jacqué, Spinelli draft treaty jurist
• Monica Frassoni, former secretary general JEF
• Enrique Barón Crespo, former President of European Parliament and European Movement International 
• Jean Victor Louis, Professor Emeritus at the University of Brussels (ULB)
• Danuta Hübner, MEP (EPP/Poland) and Member of the COFE
• Katalin Cseh, MEP (Renew/Hungary) and Member of the COFE

UEF, together with the Spinelli Group, JEF and the Movimento Europeo Italia, suggest that pro-Europeans in Parliaments and the Conference on the Future of Europe open a debate about the method adopted by our EP in 1979-1984 and the gap between the main results of this parliamentarian common work and the situation of the European Union as it is now. The Spinelli Draft Treaty and its method and its content should inspire our work in the framework of the debate on the future of Europe. Find here the full statement.
 

Looking forward to the discussion!

With federalist regards,

Daniel FREUND, Pier VIRGILIO DASTOLI, Sandro GOZI,
Domènec RUIZ DEVESA and Antonio ARGENZIANO

REGISTER HERE

Reforming the European Electoral Law: Options for Establishing Transnational Lists

Online Workshop on Wednesday, 26 January 2022, 6.00 p.m.

Dear federalist friends,

We would like to remind you to join our next online event “Reforming the European Electoral Law: Options for Establishing Transnational Lists”. 

In the evening following the Constitutional Affairs Committee’s decision on its report on transnational lists, we invite you to an online workshop on the reform of the European electoral law. The event is organised by the “Political Commission 1” of the Union of European Federalists in cooperation with the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung EU-Office Brussels and the University of Passau. It will discuss the current state of negotiations in the European Parliament: How does its proposal for transnational lists look like? Does it have a chance of finding a majority within the Parliament and later on in the Council?

The workshop will also consider the impact of the current proposals. Expectations include that transnational lists will lead to truly European electoral campaigns, strengthen European political parties and a European public sphere. Does the current proposal have the potential to strengthen European democracy this way? Which changes would be useful to fully exploit the potential of transnational lists for European democracy? 

These and further questions from participants will be discussed with distinguished speakers.

AGENDA

Welcome 

• Sandro GOZI, President of UEF; Member of the European Parliament
• Julian PLOTTKA, Chair of PC 1, Union of European Federalists; University of Passau

Panelists 

• Sandro GOZI, President of UEF; Member of the European Parliament
• Domènec RUIZ DEVESA, Vice-President of UEF; Member of the European Parliament (tbc)
• Dr. Thu NGUYEN, Jacques Delors Centre/Hertie School
• Dr. Manuel MÜLLER, University of Duisburg-Essen 

Moderator 

• Prof. Dr. Giulia ROSSOLILLO, Rapporteur of PC 1, Union of European Federalists; Università di Pavia

If you like to read more about the topic of transnational lists and UEF’s position on strengthening European democracy, we recommend to you:

• Thu Nguyen: The holy trinity of EU elections: Transnational lists, Spitzenkandidaten procedure and a stronger European Parliament, Jacques Delors Centre: Policy Paper, December 2021, available here.
• Manuel Müller: Making the Most of Transnational Lists. Electoral Equality at EU Level Through Proportional Compensation, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, available here. 
• Union of European Federalists: Resolution of the UEF Federal Committee on a Declaration on the Conference on the Future Of Europe, November 2019, available here.
• The Procedure File on Reforming the European electoral law, including the draft committee report, is available here. 

Looking forward to the discussion!

With federalist regards,

Anna Echterhoff
UEF Secretary General

Brussels, 1 December 2021

Dear federalist friend,

We would like to remind you to join our Democracy is Europe Final Conference. The sessions will take place on 2nd and 3rd December 2021.

AGENDA

Thursday, 2 December, 2021 

 14.00 – 15.30 CET  The central role of European values in the revolutions of 1989-1991 and their state  of play today in Eastern and Central Europe: Presentation of the project outcomes 

• Sandro GOZI, MEP & President, UEF 
• Stefano BRAGHIROLI, University of Tartu, Estonia 
• Eszter NAGY, Secretary-General, UEF Hungary 
• Laura TATARELYTE, European Movement Lithuania 
• Christian MOOS, Secretary-General, Europa Union Deutschland e.V. 
• Jacek KOLTAN, Director’s representative, European Solidarity Centre, Poland

Moderates: Giulia STEFANO, Project Officer, UEF

Join here

16:00 – 17:30  Defending and strengthening democracy in the EU: Article 7 of TFEU and Conditionality  

• Juan Fernando LÓPEZ AGUILAR, Chair of the LIBE Committee in the European Parliament 
• Ania SKRZYPEK, Director for Research and Training, Foundations for European Progressive Studies (FEPS)  
• Nicolaas BEL, Deputy Head of Unit, Justice policy and rule of law Unit,  Directorate General for Justice and Consumers, European Commission 
• Edouard GAUDOT, External Relations Director, Europanova  

Moderates: Alejandra ALMARCHA, Director of the Secretariat, UEF 

Join here

17.30 CET – 19:00 CET Competition: #DemocracyIsEurope ideas for the future of Europe 

Join here

Friday, 3 December, 2021 

 9:30 – 11.00 CET European democracy in the Conference on the Future of Europe 

• Francisco ALDECOA, Professor of International Relations at the Complutense University of Madrid, President of the European Movement in Spain and  Director of the Civil Society Representation of the Conference on the Future of  Europe
• Leonie MARTIN, JEF President 2019-2021 
• Jorge PAZOS – CoFoE Democracy working group 
• Ingrid GODKIN, Policy & Administrative Coordination, Cabinet of Vice President Šuica for Democracy and Demography, European Commission

Moderates: Alejandra ALMARCHA, Director of the Secretariat, UEF 

Join here

11.30 – 13:00 CET How to combat disinformation & fake news: media freedom in Central Europe 

• Paul BUTCHER, Policy analyst on citizen participation, disinformation,  democracy, EU reform, Western Balkans, EU enlargement, European Policy  Centre (EPC) 
• Žiga FAKTOR, Head of Brussels Office, EUROPEUM 
• Natasza STYCZYŃSKA, Assistant professor, Institute of European Studies,  Jagiellonian University Kraków 
• Wojciech PRZYBYLSKI, Editor-in-Chief, Visegrad Insight 

Moderates: Federico TERRENI, Policy and Advocacy Manager, European Movement International 

Join here

14.00 – 15.30 CET  Training “Talking about the EU at the local level – How to organise events in the   framework of the Conference on the Future of Europe” 

• Alejandra ALMARCHA, Director of the Secretariat, UEF 
• Mariona ESPÍN, Communications Officer, UEF 
• Michal RYBACKI, Policy Officer, JEF Europe 
• Ilaria CARIA, Communication Team, Movimento Federalista Europeo (MFE)

 15.45 – 16.30 CET #DemocracyIsEurope Awards Ceremony 

Join here

The event is going to be a blended activity with an online and offline (in Brussels, Belgium) settings. You can still register here to attend online.

Best regards,
UEF Secretariat