Stiftung Zukunft Berlin and the civil society initiatives A Soul for Europe, Wir sind Europa (We are Europe) and Cities for Europe are once again organising the Berlin Conference, titled “Co-Creating Europe from the Bottom Up!” at the Allianz Forum Berlin, next to the Brandenburg Gate.

On 8 and 9 November, the public discussions in Berlin will bring together representatives from civil society, the arts and culture, and politics to discuss the importance of the “bottom-up” approach for the future of Europe from different perspectives.

We will kick off the conference on 8 November with a discussion about the responsibility of cities and regions and their citizens for the success of the European project and its future. On 9 November, we will first discuss the role of cultural workers and artists for a more humane Europe. Afterwards we will focus on the “bottom-up” approach and the network platform “Europe Bottom-Up”. This digital action and cooperation platform brings together committed people who see themselves as actors “from below” for a communal Europe.

The speakers and discussants of the conference include Vasco Alves Cordeiro, President of the European Committee of the Regions, Anna Lührmann, Minister of State for Europe and Climate at the Federal Foreign Office, Gerry Woop, State Secretary for Europe of the State of Berlin, mayors such as Marko Filipović (Rijeka, European Capital of Culture 2020), Dominic Fritz (Timișoara, ECoC 2023), José Ribau Esteves (Aveiro, ECoC applicant 2027), and René Wilke (Frankfurt/Oder), scholars and cultural practitioners such as Alicja Gescinska (philosopher) and Volker Schlöndorff (film director), current and former Members of the European Parliament, and not least representatives of cities and regions as well as cultural and civil-society organisations.

As every year, a highlight of the conference will be “The State of Europe Speech”, given this year by Werner Hoyer, President of the European Investment Bank, on the evening of 9 November, and followed by a statement of the designated Ambassador of Ukraine in Germany, Oleksij Makejew. As admission to the event is limited, please contact Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung at pressestelle@kas.de if you wish to participate.

à Please find the full conference programme here.

Conference languages are English and German, a simultaneous translation will be provided. The public programme will be streamed live at europebottomup.eu.

You are cordially invited to attend the conference as a member of the press.

à Conference registration