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Dec 03 2024
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European Green Academy 2024: Inspiring a Collective Green Vision for Europe

By European Green Academy

About EGA

The European Green Academy (EGA) serves as an annual meeting point for Green actors and engaged citizens from across Europe to connect, debate and build capacities in an inspiring learning environment. With a strong focus on political education and tailored methodologies, EGA provides a space for learning and experimentation, and for participants to gain inspiration and insights to build common Green vision for Europe.  

This November, EGA reopened its doors for the third time, taking place in Brussels and gathering leading green actors, activists, civil society actors, and engaged citizens from across Europe. 

Key Takeaways

GEF welcomed over 300 participants, organisations, and platforms from 42 countries, with around two thirds of attendees under the age of 30. Joining them were 75 speakers from 25 countries, all coming together to connect, exchange ideas, and inspire action.

In the context of a post-EU election landscape, this years’ edition focussed on the future of Europe, delving into key thematic areas around Democracy, Social Europe and Green Deal. Offering over 20 programmatic sessions, the programme fostered forward-thinking discussions on critical topics, from democracy and the far right, housing, and environmental racism, to media freedom, peace and security, and a green and social pact. Spanning a diverse range of formats, from keynote and plenary moments, to workshops, training, cosy living room style conversations and networking activities, the agenda was complemented with a cultural programme bringing together artists, comedians and dancers, from Europe, Palestine and the Middle East.  

The Academy concluded with an Activist Training Day, facilitating a space for young activists to conclude their Academy journey with skills building and activation strategies to put their learning on European and Green topics into action. Participants benefited from expert-led training and peer-to-peer learning, as well as having the opportunity to meet inspiring leading Green actors.

The success of the Academy was driven by the active participation and contributions of attendees. Their enthusiasm and ideas sparked meaningful discussions, fostered valuable connections, and brought fresh perspectives to the forefront. Such dynamic exchanges and collaborative atmosphere truly underscored the importance of collective action in shaping a greener, more socially just and democratic future.

Check out our full photo album here!

Quotes from participants at EGA 2024

“The Academy taught me that our impact in society is not that small that we maybe thought, but every action and attitude that we take will have a profound impact.”

“I had new perspectives regarding how to make my organization more inclusive and able to promote the participation of these social groups which are underrepresented (women, racialized people, migrants). Also, I gained a new way to approach campaigns and speeches regarding the values which determine the recipient of the messages’ opinions.”

“It was very rewarding and helped foster a great sense of community over the days!”

“I go back home more reassured than ever that European Greens are, first of all, very useful for Green Activists since it provides incredibly useful knowledge, skills and connections. And, secondly, that European Greens are extremely important to produce a meaningful change in Europe thanks to the values we share.”

Recordings & relevant resources 

Did you miss #EGA2024? Watch our recorded livestreaming sessions of our keynotes and plenaries here!

View #EGA2024 in photos here!

This event was organised by the Green European Foundation with the financial support of the European Parliament to the Green European Foundation. 

Dec 19 2023
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European Green Academy 2023: Taking Stock

By European Green Academy

About EGA

The European Green Academy (EGA) is an annual event and key meeting point for Green actors and engaged citizens from across Europe to connect, debate and build capacities in an inspiring learning environment. With a strong focus on political education and tailored methodologies, EGA provides a space for learning and experimentation for green-minded people to gain inspiration and insights to build and experience a common Green vision for Europe.  

 

Key Takeaways

On 17-18 November 2023, the European Green Academy reopened its doors for the second time in Warsaw. GEF, together with Heinrich Böll Stiftung Warsaw, Fundacja Strefa Zieleni and Ostra Zielen, welcomed over 240 diverse green actors, activists, politicians, and academics from 28 countries across Europe to connect, discuss, explore salient green issues and build bridges between national and European-level debates.   

In a polycrisis context and looking ahead to 2024 as a pivotal year for Europe, the Academy focused on three key themes: Democratic Resilience, Peace & Security, and the Social Dimension of the Green Deal.   

On this occasion, the European Green Academy held a larger range of formats, including workshops, training, plenary debates, and networking activities aiming to equip participants with knowledge and skills on key themes and make new connections to further their involvement in the green movement. Over two days, the Academy offered nearly 20 different sessions on pressing topics such as green visions on peace and security, migration policies and practice, doughnut economy, peacebuilding, digital mobilisation and the gender dimension of the energy transition.  

EGA was designed for participants to gain inspiration and insights to fight for a better and greener future, but beyond the political and social debates, the academy was a thought-provoking platform for collaboration, learning, and exchange.  

 

 

 

Quotes from participants at EGA 2022 

“I came back home with my heart full of hope. Seeing so many young people active to make a change was very inspiring”

“Lots of people from all around Europe together with similar values. Very important takes about peace, how to achieve it and how to maintain it”

“I enjoyed that the topic security and peace were center of attention even though I hadn’t thought much about this in forehand.”

“This was maybe the only conference I saw so many young women attended as speakers, you did a great job I think, thank you!”

 

 

 

 

 

Recordings & relevant resources 

Did you miss EGA 2022? Watch or relive some of the best moments of the event below:

 

 

 

This event was organised by the Green European Foundation with the support of the Fundacja Strefa Zieleni, Heinrich Böll Stiftung Warsaw and with the financial support of the European Parliament to the Green European Foundation. 

Jul 27 2023
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GEF in the Media

By Articles

GEF strives to mainstream discussions on European policies and politics both within and beyond the Green political family. It works to create a common Green vision for Europe and to communicate it to the wider public. 

Press

A credible future beyond growth has to be feminist THE BRUSSELS TIMES

The Covid-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine brought extraordinary suffering but also triggered unprecedented waves of solidarity in European societies. The selfless work of volunteers combined with political decisions that contravened the profit-maximising principles of the market have saved lives and helped avert many disaster scenarios. Still, the GDP numbers failed to reflect any of this.

Pensar más allá del crecimiento económico ELDIARIO.ES

(Thinking Beyond economic growth)

Hace no mucho, fila tras fila, las estanterías de los supermercados del Reino Unido –normalmente repletas de alimentos frescos– quedaron vacías. Fue  un recordatorio de las “cosas” de nuestra economía no caen del cielo. Exigen mano de obra (explotada), energía y recursos físicos, además de contaminar el planeta. Un cambio de paragima no significa un empeoramiento de nuestro nivel de vida, si exploramos cómo es realmente una vida sana y de calidad.

The geopolitics of a post-growth EU  EUOBSERVER 

A post-growth EU would gain in resilience. It is better to manage the end of growth through democratic deliberation than to have it imposed on us by ecological breakdown or resource conflicts. Will a post-growth EU be able to defend itself, its allies, democracy, human rights and a rules-based international order against attacks by the likes of Russia or China?

The future of Europe depends on cities THE BRUSSELS TIMES

Ambitious policies are only possible in healthy democracies that respect the rule of law and give public debate and civil society the necessary space. But in some countries, the erosion of the rule of law prevents cities from acting as frontrunners in the transition to a more sustainable society. The European Union and its European Green Deal should not therefore be seen merely as negotiation between nation-states but parts of a multilevel system that depends on a vibrant local level.

Radio

The future of Tourism in the Mediterranean – Vedran Horvat  

Vedran Horvat, managing director of Institute for Political Ecology and GEF´s Board Member, analyses the future of tourism in the Mediterranean in the podcast The Price of Paradise.  

May 19 2023
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Looking back: Beyond Growth Conference

By Uncategorized

As it stands, the unceasing pursuit of GDP growth very literally kills humanity and the planet. There can be no respect of the scientifically agreed-upon planetary boundaries in the pursuit of such growth. Likewise, GDP growth alone has not proven a great yardstick to measure–let alone to improve–happiness, wellbeing or security.

Our work at the Green European Foundation is to provide a space for political education, debate and forward-looking ideas to the European citizens and for Europe as a whole. We wholeheartedly supported the organization of the Beyond Growth Conference this year as a foundation as it is one of the most significant ways to make a forward-looking debate enter the European institutions; and for citizens and actors engaged on these topics to get an insight into the institutional perspective. At the heart of our conception of democracy, the back-and-forth conversation between the time of politics and the changes in our societies is of utmost importance. As the Green European Foundation we supported this conference and will support others around the question of surpassing the old model of GDP-growth-only, and we will do so via our partners all around Europe and through the lenses of different thematic priorities we pursue.

Beyond growth is a matter of thinking and designing the future of the very fabric of our European societies. Some illegal, unethical or other destructive economic activities may bring GDP growth, but they also bring pollution, social unrest, and even conflict… and with them additional costs for taxpayers and our welfare states. At GEF, we think Post-Growth is an essential topic that cuts across priorities, all the way from the vivid and complex security and geopolitical discussion in Europe to the need to rethink our industrial and social model. The Beyond Growth Conference clearly put the topic on the political map. GEF will continue to support the debate for Europe and for its citizens.

Laurent Standaert, political director

 

(1,2,3) Beyond Growth 2023 Conference – Pathways towards Sustainable Prosperity in the EU – Plenary 4 – Understanding the biophysical limits to growth to build an economy that respects planetary boundaries. (3) Focus panel 9 – Building an energy sector compatible with ecological limits

 

About

From 15-17 May, over 4000 people participated in the sessions held in the context of the “Beyond Growth 2023” Conference, surpassing all expectations. The multistakeholder event took place in the European Parliament and was organised by Members of the European Parliament from different political groups, together with more than 60 partner organisations-including The Green European Foundation. This cross-party initiative followed the success of the Post-Growth 2018 conference, and offered an opportunity for discussion across institutional boundaries and with European citizens.

The three-day conference brought together top-level EU decision-makers and experts from different backgrounds to provide feasible options for a society based on resilience, meaning, fairness and sustainability. The event focused on the interlinkages between environmental, social and economic issues. With this conference, the organisers aimed to challenge conventional policy-making in the EU and redefine social objectives, moving away from the paradigm of economic growth as the sole basis of progress.

 

 

Our role

The Green European Foundation supports innovative approaches to economic sustainability in Europe and, together with its European and national partners, aspires to contribute to the transition towards societies that enable a good life for all within planetary boundaries.

Economic transformation has been a core area of work for GEF since its beginning. Today the foundation is active in fostering the reflection on the creation of a society and the functioning of an economy beyond GDP growth. GEF also  aims to be at the forefront of the critique of economic growth and the existing economic model by supporting the coming to light of alternative models and ideas. In this context, the foundation actively supported the organisation of the Beyond Growth Conference from the very beginning.

 

 

Towards a Post-Growth Europe

In the run-up to the Beyond Growth Conference, GEF wanted to bring an intersectional approach to the concept of Degrowth and asked some of its partner organizations to give an insight on and how it relates to their respective fields of work.  Here’s the result!

 

 

Degrowth Open Letter

There is no empirical basis indicating that it is possible to globally and sufficiently decouple economic growth from environmental pressures.

The Green European foundation co-signed alongside over 400 experts and organisations an open letter for a post-growth wellbeing economy. GEF was represented by co-president and coordinator of partner foundation Oikos Think Tank (Belgium) Dirk Holemans, board member and Head of the Institute for Political Ecology (Croatia) Vedran Horvat, and GEF’s political director Laurent Standaert.

Read here

 

 

GEF in the Media

In the context of the Beyond Growth conference, GEF published several op-eds across different European media outlets.

EU Observer

By Richard Wouters (Project Manager at GEF’s partner foundation Wetenschappelijk Bureau GroenLinks and leader of the Geopolitics of a Post-Growth Europe Project).

By Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield (GEF board member & MEP Greens/EFA)  and Evelyn Regner (MEP S&D).

 

 

ElDiario.es

By Natalie Bennett (Green party member of the House of Lords and former leader of the Green party of England and Wales) and Dirk Holemans (GEF’s co-president and coordinator of partner foundation Oikos Think Tank).

 

 

Related reading

Beyond Growth focus page  (Green European Journal)

Beyond Growth

Beyond growth:  Pathways towards sustainable prosperity in the EU (European Parliament-EPRS) 

 

Sep 06 2022
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European Green Academy 2022: Taking Stock

By European Green Academy

About

The European Green Academy (EGA) is an annual event and key meeting point for Green actors and engaged citizens from across Europe to connect, debate and build capacities in an inspiring learning environment. With a strong focus on political education and tailored methodologies, EGA provides a space for learning and experimentation for green-minded people to gain inspiration and insights to build and experience a common Green vision for Europe.  

 

Key Takeaways

EGA opened its doors for the first time in Warsaw, in July 2022. GEF, together with Fundacja Strefa Zieleni and Heinrich Böll Stiftung Warsaw, welcomed over 200 diverse green actors, activists, politicians, and academics from over 26 countries to connect, debate and build capacities, delving into salient issues in Poland and connecting them to wider European-level debates. 

Central themes of EGA 2022 were Just Transition and Peace & Security, serving to frame plenaries and exchanges throughout the Academy, accompanied by important streams of work on energy and feminism and LGBTIQA+ rights. The EGA 2022 programme offered a plethora of workshops, skills training, seminars, and roundtable debates for participants to deepen their knowledge on key topics, including doughnut economy; right to housing; debunking nuclear myths; food security; reproductive rights; ecofeminism, amongst others.  

 

Quotes from participants at EGA 2022 

“I gained a lot of new knowledge about diverse topics (nuclear and peace & security especially) and above all I was very inspired by the impact that people with green and progressive agendas are pushing for, even in countries where they have little electoral representation.” 

“My biggest takeaways were meeting people, networking, and exchanging political or work ideas”. 

“I found it inspiring and enriching to speak to women in Poland who are standing up for their rights and the rights of others despite all the struggles they face. I take them as role models”

“EGA 2022 made me much more comfortable with discussing and engaging with topics that were new to me.”

 

 

Recordings & relevant resources 

Did you miss EGA 2022? Watch or relive some of the best moments of the event below:

 

This event was organised by the Green European Foundation with the support of the Fundacja Strefa Zieleni, Heinrich Böll Stiftung Warsaw and with the financial support of the European Parliament to the Green European Foundation. 

May 10 2022
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GEF Summer Schools 2022

By Uncategorized

As part of our Capacity Building programme, we aim to promote education and training and provide networking opportunities amongst Green actors across Europe.

Like every year, GEF is hosting a series of Summer Schools in partnership with different organisations to raise awareness among citizens about Green solutions to the challenges Europe faces and allow green-minded individuals to come together, take stock and shape the future of the movement.

More details to follow, watch this space!

 

Future of Eastern Europe Conference (Riga)

When: 6-7 June

Organised with the support of Cooperation and Development Network Eastern Europe.

Read more here.

 

We are the Future, but we are here NOW (Riga)

When: 8-12 June

Organised with the support of Cooperation and Development Network Eastern Europe

Read more here.

 

Ecotransformation Summer School (Litomyšl)

When: 14-17 July

Organised with the support of Institute for Active Citizenship

Read more here.

 

European Green Academy (Warsaw)

When: 15-16 July

Organised with Fundacja Strefa Zieleni and HBS Warsaw

Read more here.

 

This Oppressive System and Our Mental Health – summer school sessions (France)

When: 27 July

Organised with the support of FYEG

Read more here.

 

Green Academy: Archipelagos in Movement (Croatia)

When: 27-31 August

Organised with the Institute for Political Ecology

 

 

This events are organised by the Green European Foundation, with the support of the aforementioned organisations and the support of the European Parliament to the Green European Foundation.