Civil Society at the Table for Decisions on the Future

The project Civil Society at the Table for Decisions on the Future is funded through Public call for implementing actions to defend European values IMPACT4VALUES under the EU programme Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values by Centre for non-governmental organisations in Slovenia – CNVOS.

The communication and advocacy campaign Civil Society at the Table for Decisions on the Future addresses the pressing problem of the lack of systemic inclusion of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in decision-making processes in Slovenia. While civil society has a formally guaranteed place in the dialogue with EU institutions at the EU level through the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), its role in Slovenia remains limited, and public debate is often a mere formality with no substantive influence.

At the beginning of the new five-year term of the EESC, in which Slovenian civil society will be represented for the first time by Ajda Pistotnik, Policy Lab, we want to draw attention to the importance of this institutional mechanism and strengthen the role of Slovenian NGOs in shaping policies for the future of the EU. With the help of data collected at the local, national, and European levels, we will:

With the help of data collected at local, national, and European level, we will:

• conduct a survey on the EESC’s previous term of office, powers, and procedures;

• establish contact with NGOs already involved in EU processes and those wishing to do so;

• design a questionnaire to identify the thematic priorities of the Slovenian representation in the EESC;

• hold an online conference to evaluate proposals and develop common guidelines;

• design and implement a targeted multi-channel communication campaign (radio ads, social media, website, press releases);

• establish a structured dialogue with decision-makers at the national and EU levels;

• drafted and publicly presented a policy call for the systemic inclusion of NGOs in decision-making processes at the national level (within the ESS and beyond).

Participation in the action will be open to both organizations and individuals who are not part of the traditional “NGO bubble.” The aim is to broaden understanding of the importance of civil society in democratic processes, strengthen its voice in the national and European arena, and encourage changes in domestic practices of inclusion so that civil society in Slovenia also has a seat at the table where decisions about the future are made.

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Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.