On 12 November, the European Commission presented and adopted the EU Civil Society Strategy. It’s a pleasure to announce that Michael McGrath, the European Commissioner responsible for Democracy, Justice, the Rule of Law and Consumer Protection, will join us to present some key aspects and concrete deliverables from this landmark document.  We invite you to follow, and exchange with, a panel of civil society leaders and high-level representatives of EU institutions to discuss how we can all work together to bring the EU Civil Society Strategy to life. The meeting will be opened by the Director of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, Sirpa Rautio.

Day 1 of this meeting will focus on the EU Civil Society Strategy that responds to the broad civil society call from 2024 for EU action to support, protect and empower civil society actors. The panel “From plan to action — how can we work together to support the implementation of the EU Civil Society Strategy?” will explore how we can work together to bring this Strategy to life.

• Ingrid Bellander Todino – is Head of Unit at the Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST). She leads the European Commission’s policy work to protect and promote fundamental rights.
• Veronika Móra – is Director of the Hungarian Environmental Partnership Foundation Ökotárs. As Co-President of European Civic Forum she led the civil society call for an EU Civil Society Strategy.
• Cinzia del Rio – is the President of the Section on Employment, Social Affairs and Citizenship (SOC) at the European Economic and Social Committee and a Rapporteur on the EU Civil Society Strategy.
• Dr Emmanuel Achiri – is Policy and Advocacy Advisor at ENAR, the pan-European anti-racism network; he holds a PhD degree in international migration law and is a co-founder of VOIS Cyprus.
• Andreas Accardo – is Head of Institutional Cooperation and EU Charter Unit at the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights. He leads the Agency’s work on building and developing partnerships, as well as the programmes on the EU Charter.

On Day 2, we will introduce the Agency’s Brussels Liaison Officer, Friso Roscam Abbing, and invite you to exchange on the Platform’s activities. We will also invite you to share your feedback on the thematic chapters of the Fundamental Rights Report 2026:

1. Digital age: balancing opportunities and threats in governance and accountability;
2. Housing crisis and people experiencing homelessness;
3. Employment challenges and exploitation of migrants, immigrants and displaced people;
4. EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.

This event is moderated by Jacki Davis, a journalist, editor and a Senior Adviser to the European Policy Centre.