Council Programme
In collaboration with
Programme at-a-glance
Friday 8 November
Saturday 9 November
ALL DAY
09:00
Sunday 10 November
Reimbursements
PLENARY
09:00
COUNCIL PLENARY
2014 Budget & Activities Plan
FAB Report
Discussion on Resolutions
10:00
PLENARY
Greens/EFA
Presentation of the Green
European Foundation activities
Transatlantic Trade and
Investment Partnership: Trading
away the European project?
Presentation of Campaign Activities
Greens/EFA
FYEG
VOTING SESSION
13:00
Party Leaders’ Meeting
12:00
Lunch break
13:00
PLENARY A
Green New Deal
separate location:
Pullman Hotel, Place Victor Horta 1,
1060 Brussels
14:00
PLENARY C
Refugee Policy
Council venue: The EGG, Rue
Bara 175, 1070 Brussels
Registration opens
16:00
PLENARY B
Food Revolution
15:30
PLENARY E
Climate Change
Opening of the Council
Presentation of the Contenders
#GreenPrimary
19:00
19:30
PLENARY D
Financial Capital
PLENARY F
Youth Debate
Debate on the Green vision for
Europe with the Contenders
18:00
PLENARY
Voting Session (delegates only)
19:15
JOINT PLENARY
reporting back from A+B+C+D+E+F
Parallel Sessions
Dinner buffet (continuous)
20:00
Parallel Sessions
20:30
Dinner & Party at the Egg
12:00
13:00
13:00
LAUNCH
of the #GreenPrimary
(press event)
Council ends
Green Successes Walk
Welcome!
Welcome to the 19th Council meeting of the European Green Party!
You Decide Europe. It's the motto of our Green Primary. But, it's also the motto for the upcoming European Green
Party Council.
This Council meeting gives us an opportunity to discuss our common campaign for the European elections and our
political agenda for the next five years. The opening session will center around the debate on European democracy,
and on what we consider to be the changes that are needed to make Europe better. On Saturday, we will discuss on
our manifesto with civil society organisations, with entrepreneurs and with our European, national and local
politicians. We want to build on the successes of the Green Group in the European Parliament, on the work of our
national MP’s and all our Member Parties. The launch of the European Green Party Europe-wide open online Primary to choose the two Green Leading
candidates for the European elections will take place on Sunday. We are frontrunners by inviting people to
participate in such an important decision on European level. Our innovative e-democracy project gives Europe back
to the people. Greens don't just talk about more participation and democracy, we’re living it!
We are looking forward to present the Contenders to you, we wish the discussions at the Council to be inspiring, and
that you will take home ideas on how we can carry out a successful common campaign together next year.
Welcome to Brussels. We hope you will enjoy the Council.
The European Green Party Committee
Plenary sessions on Manifesto
For each session we have invited keynote speakers and external guests to give a short intervention from
the floor.
Network of the EGP
(representatives of parties with a specific topical or geographical background)
Compromise Amendment Session
Meeting on invitation only
Workshop
DEADLINES
Deadline for tabling Draft Emergency Resolutions: Thursday 7 November 12:00 CET
Deadline for tabling Amendments to Draft Emergency Resolutions: Saturday 9 November 13:00 CET
Friday 8 November
Party Leaders’ Meeting (ON INVITATION ONLY)
13:00 - 15:30
PULLMAN HOTEL
separate location: Pullman Hotel, Place Victor Horta 1, 1060 Brussels
Council venue: The EGG, Rue Bara 175, 1070 Brussels
14:00
COUNCIL REGISTRATION OPENS
16:00 - 19:00
Opening of the Council
AUDITORIUM
Welcome speeches:
Bruno De Lille, Secretary of State of the Brussels-Capital Region, responsible for Mobility, the Civil Service,
Equal Opportunities and Administrative Simplification, Groen (Belgium)
Christos Doulkeridis, Secretary of State of the Brussels-Capital Region, responsible for Housing, Firefighting
and Emergency Medical Assistance, Ecolo (Belgium)
Saraswati Matthieu, EGP Committee member Presentation of the contenders for the Green Primary by Rogier Elshout
Debate on the Green vision and the Green political agenda for Europe
Keynote speech by Reinhard Bütikofer MEP, EGP Co-Chair followed by a debate with the contenders.
Short Break
19:00 -20:00
AUDITORIUM
Plenary Session for Council Delegates
Discussion and vote on Green Primary and Campaign Plan
19:30 - 22:30
20:00 - 21:30
Dinner buffet (continuous)
RIVERSIDE
Parallel Sessions
• Compromise Amendment Session on resolutions
LOGE 2
• Green Local Councillors Network meeting: Report on Greens in Big Cities in Berlin and
Central European Round Table in Vienna
LOGE 1
• Workshop on developments of Multiannual Financial Framework: an update on the latest
state of play on the Multiannual Financial Framework by the Greens/EFA in the EP
BOARD ROOM
Saturday 9 November
09:00 - 10:00
Plenary Session: Discussion on Resolutions (only for delegates)
STUDIO
This session will involve all delegates to discuss the draft resolutions and emergency resolutions
10:00 - 12:00
Plenary Session:
AUDITORIUM
Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Trading away the European project?
TTIP stands for Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, the biggest pet project of the European
Commission. For the t-tippies Barroso and his trade commissioner De Gucht, it will solve half of Europe's
problems. It will bring stability to the economy and wealth to each family. It will create new global trade
rules which the world is waiting for and which are good for European companies. It will show China that we
stand up to its might and put everything back into the economic order we so happily enjoyed in the last half
of the last century. It will help our US friends to realise that their future is on this side of the Atlantic, and not
in the Pacific. It will boost our pride that by now we are better than the Americans and can out-compete
them.
For the Greens, TTIP is at best a promise creating frivolous hopes. At worst, it is a backdoor avenue for big
industry to neutralize social and environmental achievements in the EU and make sure that new European
legislation will not stand in the way of corporate interests.
Sure is already that TTIP will strain the transatlantic relations. The real stuff in the TTIP negotiations comes
along under the innocent term of "regulatory cooperation". Both sides will need to compromise about the
way they organize their societies, protect their citizen, and project liveable futures for their political
communities. TTIP will add to the many transatlantic conflicts already existing, such as the treatment of
GMOs, hormone beef and chemicals, or the role of public services, data protection and agriculture. What is
sure already is that TTIP stands less for Transatlantic Partnership and more for Transatlantic Toxic Interestconflicts promoted.
When TTIP negotiations started in July 2013, the NSA scandal revealed by Snowden underlined dramatically
the rifts in the political cultures on both sides of the Atlantic. The Greens appealed to the Commission to not
open the negotiations as long as the NSA scandal was not cleared. More than 2000 citizen supported our
pledge online in a matter of hours.
But Greens were and remain alone. All the other big political groups enthusiastically support the TTIP
project, with the Socialists & Democrats in the first line. The TTIP will depend on this support of a grand
coalition in the European Parliament. The negotiations will be so difficult that they need constant political
input. And in the end, the European Parliament will need to approve the result. So it is all the more
important that a strong Green Group in the European Parliament calls the shots.
The Roundtable will present the challenges of TTIP in some key areas important for the Greens and discuss
the perspectives for a Green campaign across Europe.
Introduction, moderation and conclusion: Yannick Jadot, MEP
Interventions: Rebecca Harms MEP, Co-President of Greens/EFA in the European Parliament; José Bové
MEP; Other speakers to be confirmed
12:00 - 13:00
Lunch break
13:00 CET
Deadline for tabling Amendments to Draft Emergency Resolutions
RIVERSIDE
Saturday 9 November
13:00 - 15:00
Parallel Plenary Debates A-B-C
Plenary A: What the Green New Deal does for Jobs, Justice and Innovation
AUDITORIUM
This session is dedicated to discussing the green renaissance of industry. The Green New Deal envisions an
environmentally sustainable production cycle, achieved by traditional and alternative business models.
How do we create a modern industrial base to produce durable, environmentally-friendly products while
reducing waste and emissions? And how do we keep Europe competitive while doing so? Moderator: Reinhard Bütikofer, EGP Co-Chair, MEP, Manifesto Rapporteur
Speakers: Rudi Anschober, Upper Austrian Environmental Minister; Conny Reuter, Secretary General
SOLIDAR; Klaus Stähle, Board member German Federation of the Green Industry
Plenary B: Join the food revolution
STUDIO
Our current way of food production and consumption pollutes the planet, poisons our bodies, and empties
our oceans. This session aims to find an alternative to how we currently produce and consume food. Issues
like a diversified agricultural production, the protection of farmers and nature, and the affordability and
accessibility of healthy food will be at the center of the debate. The upcoming SEEDS regulation will serve as
an entrance point to the discussion
Moderator: Bart Staes, MEP
Speakers: Steve Emmott, EGP Committee member, Manifesto Rapporteur; Benedikt Härlin, Foundation on
Future Farming (Germany); Jean Paul Judson, Manager Public Affairs, European Seeds Association
Plenary C: It is time to act on another refugee policy
AQUARIUM
Close to 20000 people have died on Europe's borders over the past decades. The recent tragedy in
Lampedusa has brought the issue back into the public conscience. This panel will scrutinize EU refugee and
immigration policy, both its shortcomings and possible ways forward. How can we ensure that our external
borders are protected without resorting to inhumane measures? How can we improve transnational
cooperation to ensure that refugees are being treated fairly?
Moderator: Alejandro Sánchez Pérez, Director EQUO Foundation (Spain)
Speakers: Marta Bobichon Neves, Manifesto Rapporteur; Maria Ferm, MP Miljöpartiet de Gröna (Sweden);
Tineke Strik, Senator GroenLinks (Netherlands)
15:00
Break
15:30 - 17:30
Parallel Plenary Debates D-E-F
Plenary D: Putting finance on a leash
AUDITORIUM
This plenary will take stock of the progress made in re-regulating the financial industry, both in terms of
rules and of supervision and enforcement of those rules. More importantly, it will also attempt at assessing
what remains to be done in order to bring finance back to its role of serving the real economy and curtail
systemic risk. The Banking Union will be addressed as a key part of EU's response in that field.
Moderator: Ulrike Lunacek, MEP
Speakers: Nadia Calviño, Deputy Director General DG Internal Market & Services, European Commission;
Sven Giegold, MEP; Philippe Lamberts, MEP, Manifesto Rapporteur
Saturday 9 November
15:30 - 17:30
Parallel Plenary Debates
Plenary E: Greens stand up for Climate Change; the IPCC report under scrutiny
STUDIO
This session will discuss ways to regain Europe's leading role in the International Climate Change
negotiations and to revive the EU's Emissions Trading System. A closer look at the fifth IPCC report will serve
as an introduction to the debate. In addition, we discuss alternatives to reduce emissions on a local,
national, and European level.
Moderator: Bas Eickhout, MEP
Speakers: Peter Eriksson, MP Miljöpartiet de gröna (Sweden), Manifesto Rapporteur; Pieter De Pous, Policy
Director, European Environmental Bureau; Wendel Trio, Director, Climate Action Network Europe
Plenary F: Youth: Reclaim the Future NOW
AQUARIUM
The economic crisis has hit the European youth the hardest: youth unemployment is at an all time high,
especially in the southern states. At the same time, global protests for more participation, democracy, and
accountability show how much young people are a driver for change and innovation. This panel aims to
discuss ways to improve the economic prospects for young people in Europe and improve youth participation
by democratic means.
Moderator: Saraswati Matthieu, EGP Committee member
Speakers: Monica Bota, Policy Advisor, FNV Trade Union Federation (Netherlands); Inés López-Dóriga
González, Red EQUO Joven (Spain); Giuseppe Porcaro, Secretary General, European Youth Forum
17:30
Break
18:00 - 19:00
Joint Plenary Session A+B+C+D+E+F
AUDITORIUM
Reporting back from the parallel plenary debates
19:00
Break
19:15 - 21:00
Parallel Sessions
• Compromise Amendment Session on Resolutions
BOARD ROOM
• Treasurer’s Network meeting
S2
• European Network of Green Seniors (ENGS): Senior Green Voters: the ENGS network session
will discuss topics in the context of the 2014 elections, such as age discrimination, inclusion,
accessibility, and a green pension model for Europe.
• Individual Supporters Network (ISN): input from the network to a pan-European
campaign for the coming EU elections in May 2014, lessons learned, planning of the
future activities, discussing perspectives and challenges.
20:30
Dinner at the
RIVERSIDE
22:30
Party in the
STUDIO
LOGE 1
LOGE 2
y 10 November
Sunda
Friday 8 November
09:00 - 10:00
Plenary Session
RIVERSIDE
• 2014 Budget and Activities Plan
• FAB Report
• Presentation of the main Green European Foundation activities 2013/2014
• Presentation of campaign activities of our partners: FYEG & Greens/EFA in the EP
10:00 - 11:45
Voting Session
RIVERSIDE
• Adoption of the minutes Madrid Council May 2013
• 2014 Budget and Activities Plan
• Election of the Financial Advisory Board
• Resolutions:
1. Measures for a more open European Union - no more deaths in the
Mediterranean Sea (draft compromise resolution)
2. Chevron-Texaco and environmental disaster in the Amazon
3. TTIP – Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership
4. Revisit the EU Budget for Research and Innovation
• Emergency Resolutions
12:00 - 13:00
Launch of the Green Primary
RIVERSIDE
(public and press event)
13:00
14:00
Closing of the 19th European Green Party Council
Green Successes Walk organised by Ecolo and Groen
The Green successes tour will start at 14:00 at the Pullman Hotel (Gare Midi). It will be by tram and on foot
(tram tickets are provided). We will walk approximately 2 kilometers through Molenbeek, where we will see
examples of Green successes. Assistants of Brussels Green MP Evelyne Huytebroeck (Ecolo) and Brussels
minister Bruno De Lille (Groen) will tell us more about the achievements of both Green parties here in
Brussels. We will end our tour around 16:30.
We will have space for 25 people on this tour, so be fast, and register at the registration desk.
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