European Forum for Democracy and Solidarity
The 2024 Annual Meeting
November 22, Brussels
On Friday November 22, the European Forum for Democracy and Solidarity (EFDS) held its Annual Meeting, where social democratic and progressive organisations from twenty-two different countries came together to discuss some of the most pressing issues that we currently face in Europe. The EFDS is a cooperation between political foundations, parties and movements from EU countries, Southeastern Europe and the Eastern Partnership. On a yearly basis, many of these organisations work together on capacity-building programs, such as publications and training. With this, we aim to build towards a strong, resilient, social and green Europe for the future. Find below the key results and thematical lines of action from this meeting towards 2025 and beyond. The EFDS looks forward to the cooperation and support with partners in the upcoming year.
- In many of our contexts, our left movements have lost ownership of key social-economic issues to the far-right. We must again become the main political force that is associated with social justice, combating economic inequalities, and workers’ rights. In 2025, the EFDS is encouraged to seek out closer collaborations with trade unions and exploring the possibility of a fact-finding mission on the alliance between trade unions and social democrats in a variety of political contexts.
- The increasing success of far-right and anti-democratic parties has resulted in several governments which includes these parties, moving political discussion further in the realm of far-right discourses. We must never make concessions on human rights and the rule of law in our countries, nor work together with parties who do not accept basic democratic values. The EFDS is encouraged to work towards sharing academic-based approaches on countering democratic backsliding to our partners in the form of trainings, online webinars, and publications.
- The fight against climate change and pollution is threatened by the fear that those with the least means will have to pay most of the green transition. This fear is being abused by populists across the political spectrum. We must strongly advocate for a green transition where those most responsible for climate change and pollution pay the bill, while those with little means will be least affected. In the EFDS network, many organisations work on building progressive narratives on a just green transition. The EFDS will make sure in 2025 that projects and knowledge on this topic will be well-distributed among our network.
- The topic of migration differs starkly per country. In our network these challenges become visible. For example, for Belarusian members, migration means exile, as they had to flee their country to escape political repression. In Southeast Europe, migration often means brain-drain, with many people leaving the region for other parts of Europe. In many EU countries, migration has become a dominant, often toxic, political discussion. We must acknowledge that in all these contexts immigration is a complex and multi-faceted issue for which there is no easy solution. Members acknowledge that for the EFDS this is a topic to pay attention to in 2025 – sharing progressive, academic-based approaches.
- All over the world, women’s and minority rights are increasingly under threat due to conservative politics. We must continue to stand firmly for gender equality, LGBTQ+ rights, and the emancipation of regional minorities. EFDS will continue our projects such as our LGBTQ+ inclusion in the Western Balkans Project and supporting the activities of the CEE Gender Network, as well as sharing best practices from our network.
- Russian aggression is a big threat to European security, visible in Ukraine, but also in other countries in Europe and especially the Eastern Partnership. Combating social inequality and strengthening democratisation in the Eastern Partnership is necessary for European security. We plan on starting an Eastern Partnership Program to support social democratic forces in the region and also explore the possibility of a fact-finding mission to support social democracy and progressivism in Armenia.
- Last, a key wish from the EFDS network in 2025 is to improve communication on programs and best practices, both within the network as towards constituencies. The EFDS will be updating our means of communication by investing more in social media, webinars and other means of interaction.
