Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1396480
15 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 28 JULY 2021 EUROPE This article is part of a content series called Ewropej. This is a multi-newsroom initiative part-funded by the European Parliament to bring the work of the EP closer to the citizens of Malta and keep them informed about matters that affect their daily lives. These articles reflect only the authors' view. The European Parliament is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains. DAVID LINDSAY MALTESE are visiting the Conference on the Future of Europe's online portal in large numbers, and have been doing so - comparatively-speaking - more than oth- er EU citizens, according to Labour MEP Josianne Cutajar Cutajar was speaking at a discussion organised jointly by the European Par- liament Office in Malta and the VisMed- Net Association in Malta, coordinator of the Young Future Planners Erasmus project. It formed part of the local dis- cussions in the Conference on the Fu- ture of Europe - ongoing throughout Europe for people to have their say on what the future EU should be like. All in all, people-centred consulta- tions, more listening for more partici- patory democracy and the need of peo- ple to feel that their suggestions actually result in real action were the three key conclusions reached in the Engaging Citizens, Shaping Europe public discus- sion held at Valletta Design Cluster and online. Cutajar, however, expressed concern that to date the number of users of the digital platform has not reached the de- sired levels, in particular amongst wom- en who traditionally still feature less in consultative exercises. Cutajar outlined the rationale behind the Conference on the Future of Eu- rope, which she termed an experiment that could be the means to address the criticism thrown at the EU: "As with any experiment, information is key. So it must be clear to all what we are try- ing to achieve and what we are trying to demonstrate." The bottom-up approach is impor- tant, Cutajar explained, and equally important is for the EU institutions to make sure that what has been heard from citizens is then acted upon one way or another Future Planners – an Erasmus pro- ject that focuses on achieving a more human-centred urban development – showcased as an illustration of the dif- ference people can make. Future Planners' leader, Maud Gari, gave the project's back story, having originated from her consortium's expe- rience in dealing with the creative in- dustry and spotlighting the importance of empowerment, amongst other prior- ities. Atoine Gambin from VisMedNet, the Maltese partners in the project, focused on Future Planners' objectives in par- ticular in relation to the education of young architects and budding politi- cians, as well as the community at large, on how consultation should take place: "The reality of non-community consul- tation is what we need to break down into small steps, but many and rapid ones." This was supported by Rafael Pascual Leone, from VisMedNet and an archi- tect involved in the design of the Vallet- ta Design Cluster. The Cluster project, he said, is a dialogue with the commu- nity to find a way of restoring not just the built fabric but also the relevance of the place. For this to be achieved, it is necessary to engage communities, he stressed. The second part of the event focused on the Right2Water, a European Citi- zens' Initiative that successfully impact- ed the new EU Water Directive. Pablo Sanchez Centellas reflected on the ECI process and lessons learnt that could be applied in the Conference of the Fu- ture of Europe. The whole process for the Right to Water ECI had started in 2010 in the context of a global debate on the right to water, gathering over 1 million signatures and gaining a refer- ence in the new EU Directive. Howev- er, the real essence of what the ECI had campaigned for - essentially for the UN Resolution on the Right to Water to be transposed into EU law - was ignored, Mr Sanchez Centellas noted, warning that this is the kind of pitfall that the CFOE must seek to avoid. "When citizens get organised to have an impact, what they need is the cer- tainty that what they are doing will ac- tually have an impact," he emphasised. Discussants concluded that the lack of democracy and the top-down approach in general is still disheartening, but it was still easier to push for demands at the European level than the local. "What the EU looks like today and what the EU will look like tomorrow is the result of, and will be the result of, the extent to which citizens from all over Europe engage with it and give their input on shaping it," said Ms Elaine Cordina, from the European Par- liament Office in Malta, co-organiser of the event. Have your say on: https://futureu.europa. eu/?locale=en Future Planners: http://youngfutureplan- ners.internprize.eu/Summary Right2Water: https://www.right2water.eu/ Malta showing high interest in Conference on the Future of Europe platform – Josianne Cutajar Maltese are visiting the Conference on the Future of Europe's online portal, comparatively- speaking, more than other EU citizens, according to Labour MEP Josianne Cutajar Josianne Cutajar