Re-Start Democracy
Towards a Federal Citizens’ Europe
4th Eumans Congress
6 and 7 February 2026
The House of Europe in Paris, 77 Av. de Versailles, 75016 Paris, France
Democracy no longer works. It needs to be restarted across Europe.
To try doing this together, the Eumans Congress will take place in Paris on 5, 6 and 7 February, and we are pleased to invite you.
Representative democracy, built on national frameworks and the pursuit of immediate electoral consensus, can no longer address the major challenges of our time — wars, failure to act on climate change, technological revolution, social fractures — which instead require cross-border and long-term responses.
European political leaders raise their voices to exploit popular anger for electoral purposes, feeding nationalist illusions. This is weakening Europe, while strengthening authoritarian powers and transnational economic oligarchies.
This vicious circle must be broken by bringing citizens back to the heart of politics. Democracy is not just “elections”; it also means informed participation in public decision-making.
The goal of Eumans — a pan-European movement for popular initiative — is to restart democracy by directly involving people beyond national borders, both at European and local level. We aim to activate and technologically strengthen participatory tools such as referendums, citizens’ initiatives and randomly selected citizens’ assemblies.
After Warsaw, Gdańsk and Brussels, the fourth Eumans Congress is being held in Paris, in a country where the paralysis of representative democracy has led to an unprecedented institutional credibility crisis. At the same time, France is home to civic initiatives, including local ones, that could turn the country into a laboratory for democratic innovation and citizen participation.
For Eumans, restarting democracy in Europe is not an end in itself: it is essential to stop the continent’s decline and deliver effective answers to improve people’s quality of life and the health of our ecosystem.
During the Congress, we will build on the campaigns we have been working on in recent months: for European systems of civic artificial intelligence; for the defence of the International Criminal Court; for human rights and civil liberties; for safe abortion (with the European Citizens’ Initiative “My Voice My Choice”) and for legal euthanasia (currently under discussion in the French Parliament); for a global taxation system on emissions and resource consumption; for ending subsidies to factory farming and against polar bear hunting.
We therefore invite you on Friday 6 (from 10:00) and Saturday 7 February (until 16:00) at the Maison de l’Europe de Paris, 77 Av. de Versailles, 75016. Working languages will be English and French.
The Italian-language event “Dialogue on democracy and Europe” with Marco Cappato and Pier Virgilio Dastoli, is scheduled for Thursday 5 February from 19:00 at Maison d’Italie, 7 A Bd Jourdan 75014 Paris.
Below, you will find some logistical information on hotels and partial reimbursements offered to Eumans members.
Italophone Event 5 February
Dialogue on Democracy and Europe
Maison d'Italie
7 A Bd Jourdan 75014, Paris
All events are organized in collaboration with the Luca Coscioni Association – For the Freedom of Scientific Research
Italophone Event
Dialogue on Democracy and Europe
Organised by Eumans as part of the preparatory activities leading up to the Congress.
Venue: Maison d’Italie, 7 A Bd Jourdan, 75014, Paris
Discover the program 6 - 7 February
Restart Democracy
Towards a Federal and Citizens’ Europe
The House of Europe in Paris
77 Av. de Versailles, 75016 Paris, Francia
From Friday 6 February to Saturday 7 February 2026
All events are organized in collaboration with the Luca Coscioni Association – For the Freedom of Scientific Research
Morning - Digital Democracy
Opening remarks
- Ursula Serafin – Director of the “Maison de l’Europe de Paris”
- Marco Cappato - Eumans President
- Lorenzo Mineo - Eumans Treasurer
Keynote Speeches: The Role of Civil Society in Europe
- Christophe Lefèvre - Member of the European Economic and Social Committee, Civil Society
- Arnaud Magnier — Advisor to the President of the Economic, Social and Environmental Council (CESE) for Citizen Participation and European and International Affairs
- Erwan Laurent - Les Jeunes Européens, Vice President for Public Relations
Civic AI
Title: “For a European Civic Artificial Intelligence: what to do to ensure AI empowers citizens’ participation?”
Type: participatory session | Audience: experts and general public
- Setting the Scene - Augmented Democracy: Gianluca Sgueo, Professor, School of Public Affairs, SciencesPo
- Use-Cases - Panoramic AI: Alexis Prokopiev, Vice-President, Association Civic Tech Europe
- Democratic Digital Commons: Billie Dibb, Imagination Coordinator, European Alternatives
- Participatory Session - Living Lab (INNOVADE): Fatih Yilmaz, Xenia Klinge, Adrian Forsström Norén, Kevin Friesch
- Closing Remarks - What’s Next for Civic AI?: Francesco Vecchi, Eumans Civic AI Coordinator
Afternoon - Rights
Keynote Speech: Rights and the Rule of Law
Keynote Speech
Why We Need European Cross-Border Associations to face the major challenges of our time.
Support the International Criminal Court
Title: Why Europe Should Defend the International Criminal Court
- Nour Nassif - The Hague representative of the Coalition For The International Criminal Court (CICC)
- Niccolò Figà-Talamanca - Secretary General, No Peace Without Justice
- Penelope Faulkner - President, Quê Me - Vietnam Committee on Human Rights
Fundamental Rights
Title: “From France to Europe: reproduction and end of life rights”
- Setting the Scene - From the body of people to the heart of politics: Filomena Gallo - National Secretary Associazione Luca Coscioni
- Jean-Luc Romero - Deputy Mayor of Paris - End of Life Measures
- Marc-Olivier Strauss-Kahn - “Les 184”, association of Members of the Citizen Convention on the End of Life
- Sarah Durieux - Feminist activist and author
- Alice Coffin - Paris City Councillor and lesbian activist
- Sylvie Mennesson - President of Association C.L.A.R.A
- Francesca Re - Coordinating activities on surrogacy for Associazione Luca Coscioni
☕ Coffee Break
Evening - Environment
For a fair carbon pricing system and beyond
Speakers:
- Patrick Brown – Executive Director, Equal Right
- Isabel Felandro – Head of programmes at Cool Earth
Agriculture, Farming and Animal protection
Speakers:
- Tilly Metz – Member of the European Parliament, The Greens
- Aurora Rossodivita - Eumans Coordinator of the Saving Polar Bear Campaign
Open Debate & Closing Remarks
Morning - Democracy (9:30-13:00)
Opening Remarks & Institutional Greetings
- Djémila Boulasha - Eumans - Setting the Scene
- Arnaud Ngatcha - Vice-Mayor of Paris, in charge of European Affairs, International Relations and the Francophonie
Participation at a Local Level
Title: “Bridging the gap between citizens and politics”
- Fernand Karagiannis (former elected member of Saillans Municipalité 2014-2020)
- Michel Boudeliou, President of the Citizen Councils of Paris
- Marianella Sclavi - Sociologist and writer focused on active listening, creative conflict management and participatory planning, expert in the case study of the French Municipality of Nantes
☕ Break
Deliberation at a National Level
Title: “Empowering Citizens with Deliberative Tools”
- Bernard Reber, Guarantor of the Citizen Convention on End of Life
- Mario Staderini, main promoter of the Italian online platform for referendums
- Collectif démocratiser la politique (To be confirmed)
Pan-European Participation for a Federal Europe
Title: “How to engage at the pan-European level” | Type: Panel - Audience: citizens
- Aliénor Ballangé - Chaire Europe & Democracy, IEA /Sorbonne
- Paul Blokker - Professor at Università di Bologna, Coordinator of the European Project CITIDEM
- Ondrej Gavura - Member of several transnational citizens assemblies, including the Democratic Odyssey project
- Yves Mathieu, founder of Missions publiques Partner of Democratic Odyssey project
Discussants:
Pier Virgilio Dastoli, President, European Movement Italy
Afternoon - Eumans: the way ahead (14-16)
Eumans Strategy 2026
14.00 - 14.15 Overview of Eumans Objectives, Strategic Priorities and Funding Schemes
Concept: “In which political priorities should we invest for 2026, and how to fund it?”
14.15 - 15.45 Open Debate
Facilitated by Talisa Mazzoni (expert facilitator, Eumans)
15.45 - 16.00 Closing remarks and final voting
Refund Policy
The reimbursement policy for the fourth Eumans Congress is as follows:
- Members of Eumans and the Luca Coscioni Association: €60 travel reimbursement + €40 per night (up to a maximum of €80) for accommodation. Membership can be completed up until the reimbursement request, which will be processed after the Congress.
- Non-members: reimbursements up to €30 for travel and €20 per night (up to a maximum of €40) for accommodation.
Logistics
Support the Eumans Congress, Donate Now!
You can also donate by bank transfer:
EUMANS IBAN IT59Y0200803284000105947944
BIC/SWIFT code UNCRITM1RNP
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Launch Campaign
April 2026
Membership Drive
June 2026
Warsaw Meeting
October 2026