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Citizens care about Europe18. May 2009 – 16:38 by pol-di.net e.V / politik-digital.de |
The „Bürgerforum Europa“, a web-based community launched on the initiative of the Bertelsmann Stiftung in cooperation with the Heinz Nixdorf Stiftung, assembles German citizens who care about Europe’s future. By publishing their resolution, the so-called „BürgerProgramm“, the community members direct their claims now to Brussels.
Sixteen claims, grouped in eight categories, are meant to revive the debate on prospective EU issues. The scope of questions ranges considerably. The community is bringing up issues like introducing common European history books as well as the call for concerted economic and financial policies among member states.
What makes “Bürgerforum Europa” so special is the fact, that the members were chosen randomly by the initiators. The Bamberger Centrum für Empirische Studien (BACES) contacted citizens based on a particular pattern that includes age, region and different levels of education. 361 of them were finally admitted to take part in the project.
The Bürgerforum worked both offline and online. Now that the citizens’ requests are put down to paper, a dialogue with German and European politicians is supposed to transport the ideas to Brussels.
Tags: inenglish
