On 26 May 2019, more than 400 Million EU citizens were invited to exercise their democratic right to vote in elections to the European Parliament. Politics as usual? Only partially: For the first time ever, voter turnout rose and was even the highest for 20 years. Moreover, albeit with some exceptions, the much anticipated eurosceptic wave in the future European Parliament was put to a stop. However, such recent positive developments do not hide the fact that European politics and EU decision-making are perceived as being (too) distant by EU citizens for some years already. An argument which is often brought forward not only by anti-European voices.

Europeans represent the third biggest population in the world after Chinese and Indians, so it is high time to reflect on and discuss about the political and cultural aspects of EU citizenship; paying special attention to the question of European democracy and the results of the European elections in May 2019. In the framework of the one-year project “EU citizenship – to be or not to be (bEU)?”, the aim of this event is to raise awareness for the European added value of Union citizenship and to promote a dialogue about citizens’ rights.

How to reconnect Europe to its citizens by using creative and innovative instruments?

How to create a sense of community among more than 500 million individuals ?

The European added value of Union citizenship – what, why and how?