How can citizen engagement help push back against democratic disenchantment, anger and the temptation to resort to ‘strong men’ around the world’? Why and how should Universities co-design democratic innovations with civil society and help connect publics across borders? And how can we inspire the EU to move further and faster down this path? The EUI’s project Democratic Odyssey addresses these questions and more.
This event will consist of two parts. The first will be a discussion of the vision and blueprint behind the Democratic Odyssey which strives to establish a crowd-sourced blueprint for a permanent Peoples’ Assembly for Europe. This proposal for a radical democratic innovation in the EU has been the subject of a recent EUI Global Citizenship forum and ebook, edited by Rainer Baubock and Kalypso Nicolaidis, and involving 24 authors. The speakers will present and debate some of the ideas behind the forum followed by Q&A.
The second part will bring the EUI community up to date on the process that serves as a proof of concept for our vision namely, the pilot transnational citizens’ assembly, that will take place in Florence - at EUI and Palazzo Vecchio - on 21, 22, 23 February 2025 - as it travels from Athens to Florence, through to Vienna. The Assembly is composed of both members randomly selected from around Europe as well as local residents (nationals and migrants), as described in our Athens report and in our Who’s Who. The Assembly deliberations will cover a wide-ranging and yet truly timely topic: how should Europe change to confront crises more democratically?
The event will be followed by drinks at Buontalenti.