The Shadow Report project is an initiative of civil society organisations from AT, DE, DK, HU, IT, PL, RO, SK and SI to prepare an implementation report on EU macro-regional policies from a citizens’ perspective.
Project title: An alternative positive voice – the citizens’ shadow report
AT – The World of NGOs
DE – Danube Connects
DK – European Movement Denmark
HU – European House (coordinator)
IT – European Movement Italy
PL – Baltic Institute for Regional Affairs (BISER)
RO – Pro Democracy Association (APD)
SI – Zavod NEFIKS
SK – Slovak Foreign Policy Association (SFPA)
THE INITIATIVE
“An alternative positive voice. The citizens’ shadow report” is an initiative building on the potential of the relatively new EU policy-making framework, the macro-regional strategies (MRS). Civil society organisations from the four macro regions – the Baltic Sea, the Danube, the Adriatic-Ionian and the Alpine – will join forces to compile a shadow report parallel to the European Commission’s biannual report on the implementation of EU macro-regional strategies.
THE BACKGROUND
The Commission regularly releases its biannual report on the situation and implementation of EU macro-regional strategies with a basically top-down orientation. The next report is due to be published at the beginning of 2021.
THE SHADOW REPORT
The core project idea is an innovation: prepare a shadow or alternative report by civil society organisations from the four macro-regions summarising their related experience and putting forward concrete proposals for increased citizens’ involvement in the future. This new experience brings together for the first time civil society organisations from the four macro-regions and the report is based on the findings of the four preparatory meetings in
Copenhagen, 14-15 May 2020 (Baltic Sea)
Szentendre/Budapest, July 2020 (Danube)
Palermo, September 2020 (Adriatic-Ionian)
Ljubljana, November 2020 (Alpine).
The results will be summarised in the shadow report with a positive and pro-European orientation complementing with its bottom-up approach the top-down attitude of the Commission document. A win-win situation!
THE FOLLOW-UP
Our initiative will not come to an end by presenting the shadow report in Brussels in January 2021 simultaneously with the Commission paper. An other novelty is a follow-up meeting in March 2021 in Vienna to have the first assessment of the progress made. The initiative clearly demonstrates the value added nature of citizens democratic and creative involvement in and contribution to EU-level policy shaping.
The project is co-funded by the Europe for Citizens Programme of the European Union.
