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The Future of Eastern Europe Conference (Riga)
2022
2022
Join students, academics, NGOs, and environmental activists in June 2022 to discuss the future of the Green wave in Eastern Europe!
About the event
We are pleased to announce the Conference on the Future of Eastern Europe organized on 6-7 June in Riga, Latvia. The conference will be organised by GEF with the support of Cooperation Development Networks Eastern Europe (CDNEE), Green Thought Association (Turkey), Sustainable Development Forum Green Window (Croatia), Green Institute (Greece) and Ecopolis Foundation (Hungary). The Conference aims to unite the voices of young green activists from Eastern Europe to talk about the future of the region, and the challenges and opportunities for an ecological and progressive turnaround.
Context
This is the first event as part of our 2022 Transnational Project The Future of Eastern Europe and Ecodemocracy. Democracy in Eastern Europe is hanging by a thread. Authoritarianism is growing and nationalist narratives are reopening old conflicts. The Pandemic has exposed governments’ inefficiencies to react to any sort of crisis and contributed to heighten polarisation in an already polarised society. On the other side, hope is on the horizon as progressive movements are taking over power at the local level, as well as at the rapidly growing mobilisation of public around environmental issues. How could we leverage these small steps and use them to strengthen the Green movement in the region?
Programme
DAY 1 – (6th June) Monday
Manana Kochladze, Bankwatch Strategic Area Leader – Democratization and Human Rights
DAY 2 – (7th June) Tuesday
How can we make democracy more ecological? What kind of changes do we need to apply to our thinking about participation, institutions and decision-making to put ecology and the environment at the forefront of our political systems?
Description: For the last decades, if you checked the electoral map of Europe intending to see how Green parties have been performing, you would see a clear pattern: Greens in the west and north do well – they get elected in national and regional parliaments, city councils, win mayorships and even participate in governing coalitions; while in the east – you would see a grey colour representing either absence of Green parties from the political landscape or lack of support and therefore relevance. However, in recent years the pattern is dissolving and becoming a blur, the Green wave spreading to the East.
Justine Pantelejeva, Progresīvie, Latvia
Predrag Momčilović, Ne davimo Beograd, Serbia
Sopo Shubitidze, Mtsvaneebi, Georgia
Mozemo Croatia TBC
Stefan Vukmanovic, Ura Montenegro
Vesna TBC
Koray Doğan Urbarlı, Green Party Turkey
Practicalities
Date: 6-7th June
Time Zone: Eastern European Summer Time (EEST) / Coordinated Universal
Time (UTC) + 3
Location: Rija VEF Hotel, Brīvības 199c, Riga, Latvija, LV-1039
Format: Hybrid format (some sessions will be Livestreamed)
Language: The main language of this activity will be English. But not being comfortable with interacting in English should not prevent you from applying. GEF & CDN strives to create an inclusive atmosphere at the events, where participants are encouraged to express themselves and ask for clarifications or translations from peers that speak the same language.
Costs: Anyone is welcome to take part in the conference with their own expenses. There is no participation fee.
In addition, CDN can cover the participation of a limited number of applications of young greens and activists from Eastern Europe (with a maximum age of 30). Meaning the cost of travel, and lodging (accommodation in multi-bed rooms, vegetarian/vegan food and refreshments).
In any case, take into consideration choosing the most economic and environmentally friendly means of travel (lowest price + travel time + CO2 emissions) and in case the trip would take less than 15 hours only travelling by land (train+bus) is reimbursed (IRPs §9.1).
Deadline: 20th of May (if applying for CDN to cover your participation.)
You will be informed by e-mail approximately 1 week after the deadline. Please add office@cdnee.org to your contacts, so that you do not receive our reply in the spam folder.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to write us at office@cdnee.org
Registration: Registrations are now open!
Additional Reading
Bulgaria’s Greens: From Street Protests to Government
How Green Independents Broke Through in North Macedonia
Extraction and Energy Transition in Serbia
Can Protests Steer Serbia Back Towards Democracy?
The War in Ukraine is Part of the Soviet Empire’s Unravelling
The Unfinished Business of Building Bosnia-Herzegovina
The Romanian Protest Wave: A Path to a New Political Era?
Belarus’s Struggle for Democracy
This event is organised by the Green European Foundation with the support of CDNEE and with the financial support of the European Parliament to the Green European Foundation. The European Parliament is not responsible for the content of this event