Overview
Lobbyists and policy professionals aim to play a large role in influencing European policy in Brussels. Alongside policy work though, a number of mechanisms also exist to enable civil society and citizen voices to be heard at the European level, from consultations to European Citizen Initiatives.
A number of networks have been developed to amplify the voices of civil society, and a number of European Citizen Initiatives have already taken place, but there is much scope for a strengthened activist and civil society voice on the European level.
This session focuses on effective advocacy towards European institutions, citizen lobbying, and using European level tools to influence policy for rights protection. It also looks forward to how civil society can develop better communication channels with the EU, particularly in light of Article 11 TEU.