The DEMAS Association would like to invite you to the panel discussion “The Role of Civil Society in the EU External Relations”, which is an official side event of the the Forum 2000 Conference “Media and Democracy”.
Date: October 23, 2012, 16:00 – 17:30
Venue: European House, Jungmannova 24, 110 00 Prague 1
Non-governmental organizations play an important role in shaping the external relations of the European Union, in particular in the fields of human rights and democracy assistance. The panel should bring together the NGO advocacy practitioners who work on the Brussels level, together with Czech NGOs, the European Commission and the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, exchanging experience and expertise.
- What are the main approaches and instruments in influencing the decision making on the EU level?
- What should be the main focus of the civil society vis-a-vis the EU external action in the near future?
- How to make the civil society advocacy more relevant?
- How to link up advocacy activities on the national and EU level?
- Does a single organization have any chance to influence the EU mechanisms or is it necessary to be a part of a network?
- The EU supports both the EaP CSF and the EU-Russia CSF; are they efficient tools for advocacy?
Panelists:
- Karina Chircu: DG DEVCO, unit D2 Civil Society, Local authorities
- Susi Dennison: European Council on Foreign Relations
- Yuri Dzhibladze: EU – Russia Civil Society Forum
- Jeff Lovitt: PASOS / Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum
- Jan Marian: Northern and Eastern Europe Dpt., Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic
- David Nichols: Amnesty International / Human Rights and Democracy Network