To:
EGPPartyLeaders
From: EGPCommittee
Date: 14March2016
Strategygoalstowards2019
ThenewCommitteehasbeenelectedforaperiodof4years.InthefirstCommitteeretreat-meeting
inDecember2015theissueoftheshort/mid/longtermplanningwasaddressedinadiscussion.This
documenttriestosummarizethemainpointsthatwereaddressed.
Themaingoalistobeawareofwhatourcommongoalsareinordertobettershapewhatweare
goingtodoin2017and2018tobesuccessfulinthe2019Europeanelections.Atalaterstagewe
willpresentaroadmapandatimeline.
INTRODUCTION
Backin2004,whentheEGPwasfounded,theprevailingspiritintheEUwasmuchmoreoptimistic
thantoday.Muchmorepro-European.Andthetimeswere,simply,easier.
ThelastEuropeanElectionsof2014notonlysweptmanyanti-Europeanextremistsandpopulists
intotheEuropeanParliament,butalsosignalledclearlythattheveryprojectofEuropeanunification
isunderthreatoflosingthenecessarypublicsupport,ofbeingderailedbyrampantnationalisms,
ofbeingmisguidedbydisoriented,clue-lessBrussels’elites,ofbeingsoldouttospecialinterests.
TheEGP,however,willnotabandontheEuropeanproject,becauseweknow,thatallofuswillbe
weakerinthefightsforrealizingourgreengoalsandvisions,ifEuropefailsapart.Wefighttochange
EuropeandtorevivetheEuropeandream.
Nowwearefacinganewhistoricépoque.Todays’situationisverymessyinmanywaysduetothe
multiplecrisesthatareemerging,overlappingandpilingupandthatcreatesinsecurity.Confronted
withthissituationGreensshouldfocusonreassuringcitizens,defendinglibertiesandfreedomand
deliveringhope.
Sowewillhavetofightveryhardtocomeupwithacredibleimaginationofagoodfuture.Maybe,
in the past, we would have assumed that we could build an additional green story on top of an
alreadywell-developedEuropeanbuilding.Buttoday,theveryfundamentsofthatbuildingarequite
shaky.ThisincreasestheburdenforusGreens.Wemustfindawaytoinjectourgreenvaluesinto
thefundaments.
Overthelastyearswehavebeentalkingaboutaseriesofcrises.Butthemultiplicityofcrisesisnow
thenewnormal.Wemustaddressthesituationinaholisticway.AndwemustIdentifypolitical
answersthatallowprovidingremediesforthepolitical,economic,social,environmental,cultural,
ethicalproblems,fromwhichthecriseshavearisen.
Inordertofindthenewnarrativethatwillhelpusdeliveringtherightmessage,weneedadeep
levelofreflection.Wecannotdothatalone.Wehavetolearnfromothersalso,findfreshanalyses.
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Weareconvincedweneedtoprovidespacefordiscussionandreflection.Inthatcontextwecould
alsocreateaninformalspacewithsomeformerGreenleadersandpersonalitieswhowererelevant
intheGreenfamily.Theirexperienceandopinionscouldbeofgreatvalueforus.
Drafting the Common Manifesto for 2019 should contribute to the development of a shared
narrativelikethe2014Manifestodid.Nonethelessweareawarethatthenationalcampaignswill
beranaccordingtonationalprioritiesandconditions,astheywereinthepreviouselectionscycles.
Still,weshouldtrytocreateastrongercommonality,andmakethatcommonalitymorevisible.
Wewanttogiveourmemberpartiesthemotivationthattheyshouldshowtheyarepartofabigger
commonfamily.Forthat,wealsoneedtoworkonclosecooperationwithallthemembersofthe
GGEP.
After the experience of the 2004, 2009 and 2014 campaigns, our aim is again to have a unified
commoncampaign,butwewanttogetastepfurther,aswehavebeendoingeachtime.furtherin
thefeelingofacommoncampaignthatwassetinmotionmorethan10yearsago.Sothatpeople
get more the feeling there is a unified strong European family behind this green campaign. A
commoncampaignthatrespectseveryone’sidentitiesandisflexible.
TOWARDS2019
Weshouldclearlyidentifytheissuesthatwillallowustogointoacommoncampaignin2019.Those
projects, policy proposals, measures, key issues for the European project that we want to be
identified with us Greens. They should also define us Greens clearly as a political family on the
Europeanlevel.
Wearenotstartingfromscratch,(GND,Economiccrisis,organisationcivicsocietyetc)Greensdo
havemanyanswers,already.Weshouldbuildontheworkdoneandagreedforcampaigning.
Withregardthestrategytobeapplied,weagreetobestrategicinourcountryfocusbutatthesame
timemakingsurenooneisbeingneglected.Thiscouldbeachievedinatwostepsapproach(tobe
elaboratedinaroadmap).Alltogetherwewillpursuea28-member-statesstrategy.
Weneedtoidentifywhereisitworthtofocuswhicheffortsandenergies.Whereiswhichpotential?
WherecanadditionalMEPsbeelected?WhichMEPsareatrisk?Wherecanwepossiblyachievein
alliances,whatwecannotachievealone?
Withthosequestionsinmindwelooktoallthememberpartieswehaveinallthe28memberstates;
andaskthemfortheirexpectations,ambitions,proposals.
Wewillensureabasiclevelofsupportandactivityforallmemberpartiesin2016-2019.Andwewill
enhancethatlevelforthecountrieswecangainmostin2018-2019.
Weshouldaimforatleast25moreMEPsin2019.
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GETTINGMOREEUROPEAN
TheimportanceoftheEGPasapoliticalpartycomesbecauseitisaninstrumentofraisingawareness
totheEuropeanpoliticallevel,asignofhowtheEuropeanlevelworks.Weaimtoshowthatalso
towardsthepublic.
SincetheEuropeanleveliscurrentlyshaky,thisisalsoathreat.Weneedtoworkonthefeelingof
belongingtoEurope,butthiscannotbedonewithoutintegratingittothefeelingofbelongingtoa
region/country/nation.
Thismanytimesmeanstakingintoaccountthedivisionbetweenlocal,nationalandEuropean.We
shouldstrivetotryprovidingopportunitiestogetacrossthe“Europeisus”feeling,and“Europeis
usefulforus”;thatEuropeisnotonlyadistantaffairinBrussels.
WewillhavetobringbackthereasonswhytheEuropeanUnionwascreated,becauseonlythiswill
givesensetotheEuropeanlevel.AndwehavetoaddthereasonswhatmakesEuropenecessary
todaysincesomeofthereasonsarequitedifferentnow.
NARRATIVE
WewillneverforgetthattherealityoftheEuropeanproject,asithasevolvedoverthedecades,is
a great historic achievement. We are proud that this Europe provides many liberties and
opportunitiestoitscitizens.WealsowanttostrenghtenEuropeasaresortforhopeformanypeople
beyondEuropeanborders.
Weneedtobuildupournarrativetakingintoaccountthe“crisisisthenewnormal”situationwe
havedescribed.Ofcoursethishastobecloselyevaluatedandfollowedup,sothatwedon’tfall
behindchangingdevelopmentsinourapproach.Weareinacrisis,inaEuropeancrisis,andalso,in
agreencrisis.AndaGlobalcrisis!Crisisisalsoanopportunityforpositivechange.Weliveinarapidly
changingworld.Itcreatespossibilities.
WhatshouldbethemessageoftheEGPinthiscontext?WearenotanNGO,weareaparty,we
havetogivesolutions.Weneedtobeseenasarealalternativethatcanbeappliedeveryday,inan
overarchingsense.
WeneedtofindouthowtheGreenscan–again–beseenasthechange,asthepoliticalfamilythat
canbringthegoodfutureforthecitizens.
Oneexample:
Bigmultinationalcorporationsandtheirlobbiesareoneofthebiggestthreatstodemocracyand
theEuropeanproject.Conservatives,LiberalsandSocialDemocratsputcorporateprofitsoversocial
welfareandclimateprotection,thefarrightignorestheissueandtheGUEaddressesitwith20th
century, pre-globalisation, fundamental anti-market rhetoric only. Democracy/the state and
marketsshouldsupplementeachother.Hereisawideandopenspaceforthegreens.Attackingthe
practicesofmultinationalcompanies-fromtaxavoidancetoenvironmentalissues-allowsusto
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connectmemberpartiesandprovideausefulservicetothem.In2019wewanttobeidentifiedas
theoncewhohavevalidideasandproposalsforraininginharmfullobbiesintheEU.
It should not be about being populist, but about being offensive; attacking something that is
harmful.
Thisapproachcouldfitverywellwithourdivestmentcampaign.Itallowsaddressingandattacking
the culprits, focusing on some main targets. It could be an element of the development of the
divestmentcampaigntoalsolookattheactorsmorespecifically,narrowingthefocusofattackson
thebadapples.Thisapproachcanworkverywellin2016.Beyondthatwewillhavetore-evaluate.
Withregardtorightwingpopulistsandextremists,itisnotenoughattackingthem,standingthere
sayinghowbadtheyare.Weneedtoidentifythewaysthatwillallowustodestroytheircredibility
–theirclaimsarefalse.
Inourcommunicationnowadayswearecriticalandvocal,butalsoconstructiveandpositive,always
trying to provide solutions. We are not administrators not technocrats. We are change agents,
peoplewhoarewillingandabletofightforchange.NevermustweloseourprofileasGreens!
Wehavetoreallyaimforcreatingareliableexpectation.WhatisexpectedifyousayGreen?We
needtodefineaclearprofile.Wealsoneedtoqualifytheemotionsandmakesuretheyhavea
centralrolewhenbuildingupournarrativeandprofile.Ifwedon’ttalktothehearts,talkingtothe
mindswillnotbeeffectiveeither.Wehavealreadyagreedwewanttobethevoiceofhope,butthis
mustbeahopethatanswerstoexistingangerandcriticism,notanemptytalkthatlookspastthem
Wealsohavetointegrateadiscoursethatdealswiththecravingforsecurity.Ifweignorethis,we
arelostbecauseit’sastrongfeeling.Wehavetofindawaytocombinechangewithsecurityinall
aspects.
Traditionally–inasimplifiedway-wehavebeenbetteratspeakingtothosewhowantreformand
change.Butmanypeopleespeciallyduringthesedifficulttimeswantbasicsecurity:securityfrom
RussianandISISthreats,securityfromviolentcrimeonthestreet,securityfromunemployment.
Wehaveseentimeandtimeagaininvariouscountriesthatwhetherwelikeitornot,manypeople
aremoreinterestedintheirbasicsecuritythaninmoreanddeeperchange.
Another big area we should look into is the feeling of “belonging”. Use inclusive words, and
deepeningthecommunalityofvaluesthatoursocietiesshare.
Whenbuildingournarrative,wehavetotakeintoaccountthattheconceptofEuropeisnotthe
sameforpeoplebornin1960orforpeopleborninorafter2000.Forthefirstgroup,Europemeans
hopeandstability;butthatEuropehasnothingtodowiththecurrentEuropeincrisesasitstands
in the minds of young people. While the crisis is constructed mainly of national politicians and
multinationalcompanies,theEUwillhavetopassthetestofwhetheritcontributestosolutions.
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MOREEGP
European parties have a role to play in building up the European demos in building European
politicalconsciousness,andinexpressingthewillofEuropeanUnioncitizens.TheEGPisamore
then10yearsoldEuropeanpoliticalparty.Wehaveconsiderablestrengthsandaveryimportant
coherence.Butourpotentialcouldbemuchhigherifwewereabletoimprovethecooperationwith
theGGEPaswellaswiththenationalpartiesandpoliticalgroups.
WeshoulddesignastrategytomakeMemberPartiesmoreawareofEGP.Makethemfeelitby
involvingthemandmakethemparticipateinbuildingupacommonality.TheHUBroleofEGPshould
beemphasizedbymakingitstronger.
Weneedtodevelopouractivitieswiththepurposeofstrengtheningourcapacityofconnectingwith
ourmemberparties.Fosteringtherelationshipstobuildconnectionsbetweenthememberparties.
That will, definitely, create a buy-in. And will give them a reason to feel differently about the
relevanceofEGP.Ourcapacitytobuildontransnationalityshouldbeexploitedmuchmore,also.
Oneofourimportantrolesistosupportourmembersinordermakethemstronger;inthatsense,
wehavebeenfocusingonourweakermembers,butweneedtoimproveonsupportingalsoour
strongmembersgivingthemakeyandakick.
WecouldarrangeregionalEGPconferencesandinviteallmembersinthatregion!Sothattheyget
afeelingoftheEuropeanlevel.SothattheylearnabouttheEuropeanlevelandhowitworksand
gettomeetleadingEGPrepresentativesandeachothercross-boarders.Sofarwemainlyconnect
withourdelegatestoCouncils.TheHelsinkiconferencein2015wasagoodbeginning.
We must strengthen our ties with our local elected officials whether in the majority or the
opposition as well as environmentalists elected federations that exist in many of our member
parties.Weneedbettersupportforthemtofeelpartofabiggreenfamily.Wehavetoorganizethe
exchangeofexperiencesandfieldinitiatives,developlinksbetweengreenelectedfromdifferent
countries, put forward the "victories" and "achievements" of our local representatives. It is
importantthateveryelectedGreenofficeholderbeproudofbelongingtoaEuropeangreenparty
movingatalllevelsofpower.
Ourgoalistoincreaseour"greenandsustainablecities"insmalltownsasinlargecities"andcreate
arealbottom-upgreenmovement.
CONNECTIONWITHCITIZENS
Recently politics have made more evident the gap there has always been between green local
activistsandthepoliticalsphereinalllevels.TheEuropeanleveldoesnotescapefromthat.Since
civilmovementsandlocalactivismhasbeengainingmoreweightinourcurrentsocieties,inorder
tominimizethatgap,weshouldtrytomakealinkandconnectthelevels.Thosemovementsare
stronglypushedbyalotofyoungpeople;Greensshouldfindthewaytolinkmorewiththem.
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UptonowGreenshaveperformedprettygoodinelaboratingcontent,butweneedtoimproveon
going back to the streets, getting in touch with the people. We should start by reshaping our
communication,elaboratingmessagesandourwordsinordertomakeGreensmorehuman.(This
isverymucharesponsibilityofourmemberparties,EGPcanonlyprovideideas.)
Wehavesomehowlostourfreshnessintheeyesoflocalactivistandthus,greenpartieshavenot
managedenoughtobeapartofthesocialmovementthathavebecomekeyinthepoliticalscenario.
Weneedtoovercomeour“institutionalised”imagebylearningagainwhatthegreenswere,not
onlyapoliticalidea,butalsoasocialmovement.Akeychallengeisnotsomuchaboutbeinglessor
moreradicalorlessormorepositive,butratherifweareseenasbeingpartoftheoldestablishment
vs.newandfreshpoliticalforces.Thekeyquestionwouldbe:howcantheGreenscontinuetobe
relevantandfreshin2016-19?Howcanwekeepconstantlyrenewingourselvestothechanging
times?
Ourpoliticalactionshouldbeorientatedinbecomingareliableallyofthemaincivilorganisations
that deals with environmental questions, but also with groups in many other social and political
fields. The bridges are there; we just need to cross them. We should strive to try to provide
opportunitiesofallowingpeoplethatwanttobeanactivepartofEuropetousingEGPtodothat.
ADDRESSINGTHREATS
WearenowadaysexperiencingdramatictimesforEurope.Isseemsthat,unfortunately,conflictis
comingbacktoourcontinentinmanyways.Lookingbacktonotsofaraway,likein2009,todaythe
threatismuchmorereal.
Nationalism, anti-democratic attitudes are rising. Our political message should strongly address
thosethreatsbecausethataffectsourfreedomandharmsourcorevalues.Weneedtoaddressthe
rootcausesoftheseattitudesinsteadofsimplyrepeatingourradicaloppositiontoit.Weneedto
addressthefactthatthefar-rightrosebecauseofausteritypoliticsandthatsocialrightcannotbe
takenoutofthecontextofdemocraticrights.
INSIDETHEGREENFAMILY
Ifwewanttobetakenasaseriousplayer,weshouldseriouslyaddressthesituationwithinthegreen
family.Howcanweincreasetherelevancyofallourmemberparties?Howshouldwedealwitha
situationwhereforsomethatseemsimpossible?Whocanbringaddedvaluetothegreenfamily?
Whereissomeinterestingpoliticalcapacityandpotential?
Getting to know all the facts, being completely conscious, will take an effort from our side, we
shouldcarefullyanalyse.Identifyingtheissuesthatneedtobedealtwithinviewoffreeingforces
incertaincountries.Beingflexibleandopenisgoingtobekey.
Theruleofonecountry,onegreenpartyisnotwritteninstone.Ithasbeenprovenitisnotworking
inseveralcountries.Butweshouldnotdiscarditlightlyeither,itshouldcontinuetoguideourwork.
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