Citizens’ Panels: help shape the EU policies close to your heart

You never know when the call may come through... One man was sitting at his dining room table when he received a phone call inviting him to participate in an EU citizens’ panel on energy efficiency. “They said something about the EU and a Citizens’ Panel”. He accepted the invitation and found the debate at the Panel made him feel excited at “getting a sense of what it is to be a European citizen."

European Citizens’ Panels, which bring together 150 randomly selected people from all 27 EU countries to discuss face-to-face an EU policy theme, are based on a democratic practice from ancient Greece. Two thousand years ago, ordinary Greek citizens would meet in groups to discuss the matters that affected their daily lives. The EU Citizens’ Panels have re-worked the idea for the 21st century but the principle remains the same: citizens share and discuss their views at European level on matters that concern them.  

Last weekend, a new season of citizens’ panels kicked off with the first session of the Citizens’ Panel on Democratic Resilience in Brussels. After generating ideas on the theme and reviewing them, the Panel will develop a set of recommendations that will be submitted to the European Commission to feed directly into the Commission’s work to strengthen democracy. 

Citizens’ panels have been regularly taking place for the past five years. Already more than 1000 EU citizens have taken part, informing policymaking on topics such as crisis-preparedness, the EU budget, and tackling hatred. A third of participants are young people but the selection is entirely random. That way discussions reflect a wide variety of perspectives and opinions, and the resulting recommendations democratic. 

So next time the phone rings? You never know, it could be your chance. 

For more information 

European Citizens’ Panels 

Democratic resilience – European Citizens’ Panel