Auf ein Neues? Erfolgsfaktoren für die Konferenz zur Zukunft Europas

Abstract

In this article, the author contrasts the experience of the Convention on the Future of Europe 2002-2003 with the mandate for the Conference on the Future of Europe which commenced on May 9, 2021. He criticises that the Conference is deprived of fundamental structural elements that were success factors for the Convention: a clear mandate, a tight leadership, and the right to self-organise. Nevertheless, the author is convinced that the Conference still has every chance of giving the European Union a forward-looking impetus for reform. He derives five recommendations for the future work of the Conference. In particular, it must be set up considering the desired outcome, by defining a product that is to be established, and directing the work toward its creation. If the Conference serves solely as a sounding board for diffuse citizen concerns, its potential cannot be fully exploited.