On March 4th, during Civil Society Week 2026, CSE announced its involvement in the Civil Society Platform, to be established by the end of the year. The initiative is a pillar of the Commission’s Civil Society Strategy, through which the EC aims to strengthen transparency and enhance the visibility and engagement of CSOs in EU policymaking processes.
The Platform intends to follow a bottom-up approach to give civil society actors a stronger voice in shaping policies that affect them. For that reason, active engagement from civil society organisations in the Platform will be essential to ensure proper representation and influence.
The session ended with a public discussion, during which CSE’s director stressed the need to mainstream fundamental rights across EU policies that affect civil society. A call was also made to recognise the diverse expertise that civil society organisations can bring to policymaking, stressing the relevance of lived expertise alongside academic expertise.