Activities

This edition of the "State of the Union" programme featured Alessandra Silveira (CitDig coordinator) and Pedro Madeira Froufe (CitDig key staff member), who commented on the "State of the Union 2023 (SOTEU)" – speech delivered by Ursula von der Leyen on 13 September 2023 in Strasbourg – whose motto was "Answering the call of History". Speakers aimed at unraveling to what extent the EU has responded to the challenges of the return to the war on the European continent, as well as to what extent "the History calls" for a new phase of enlargement and deepening of EU integration. As for specific topics, the speakers focused on the challenges facing the labour market – from skills and labour shortages, to new challenges stemming from AI. Views were also exchanged on the lack of consistent solutions to the migratory pressure (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3wjlnsdkwk&t=3s).

This edition of the "State of the Union" programme featured Alessandra Silveira (CitDig coordinator) who commented on the 2023 Rule of Law Report (especially the chapter on Portugal), and highlighted the adoption of the European Parliament's position on the Nature Restoration Law, as well as the developments of the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, especially the EU-Latin America/Caribbean (EU-CELAC) Summit on 17-18 July in Brussels (https://youtu.be/4NKOxuJ4N6o)

This edition of the "State of the Union" programme featured Alessandra Silveira (CitDig coordinator) and Pedro Madeira Froufe (CitDig key staff member), who discussed the June Eurobarometer (published one year before the upcoming European elections), highlighting European citizens' satisfaction/dissatisfaction with EU policies, as well as their political priorities for the next term of the European Parliament (EP). Speakers also highlighted the adoption of the EP negotiating position on the future Artificial Intelligence Regulation, as well as the agreement on the New Pact on Migration and Asylum reached by the Member States represented in the Council of the Union (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWMY172-uqo).

This edition of the programme "The State of the Union" featured Alessandra Silveira (CitDig coordinator) and Pedro Madeira Froufe (CitDig key staff member), who reflected on the speech of the President of the Portuguese Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, at the European Parliament in Strasbourg on 10 May 2023, highlighting the reasons why the circumstances of integration have changed substantially in recent years, as well as the key issues to be addressed in the new political cycle that begins in 2024 with the European elections. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8vSOQXybB8).

This special commemorative edition of Europe Day was attended by Alessandra Silveira (CitDig coordinator), Pedro Madeira Froufe and Carlos Abreu Amorim (CitDig key staff members), as well as Sandra Cunha (Director of the IPCA School of Management), who reflected on the European Year of Skills (from 9th May 2023 to 8th May 2024), especially regarding the development of competences in higher education (how to develop students' competences, how to assess the acquired skills, etc.), as well as exploring the challenges of developing skills for the digital transition, the green transition, and the changing European labour market (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnPZm-GMdiA).

This edition of the "State of the Union" programme featured Alessandra Silveira (CitDig coordinator), Pedro Madeira Froufe and Carlos Abreu Amorim (CitDig key staff members), who focused on the overall theme of the impact of thirteen months of Ukraine's invasion on the integration process. As for specific topics, the speakers highlighted i) judicial independence in the Union of Law and the Agenda for Justice Reform in Portugal, ii) the agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom regarding Northern Ireland, as well as iii) the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) in Portugal (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6sO6G6Cz8E).

This year-end edition of the "State of the Union" programme brought together Alessandra Silveira (CitDig coordinator), Pedro Madeira Froufe and Carlos Abreu Amorim (CitDig key staff members), who addressed the prospects of integration under the theme of a milestone: the 30th anniversary of the Treaty on European Union (which was signed in 1992 and entered into force in 1993). The current EU was the result of the progressive unification of the three European communities created in the 1950s, but it was only 30 years ago that the horizon of integration shifted from the concept of the consumer to that of the citizen – an important point to remember as the barbarity of war once again rages across Europe (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhO7TvDIOmo).

This edition of the "State of the Union" programme gathered Alessandra Silveira (CitDig coordinator), Pedro Madeira Froufe and Carlos Abreu Amorim (CitDig key staff members), who focused on the overall theme of the impact of thirteen months of Ukraine's invasion on the integration process. As for specific topics, the speakers highlighted i) the regulation of corporate sustainability in the EU and the transition to a sustainable economy, ii) the lack of consistent migration policies and the vicissitudes of the Schengen area, as well as iii) the impacts of the COP27 outcome on the integration process. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwILSW0mZEY).

This edition of the programme "The State of the Union" was attended by Alessandra Silveira (CitDig coordinator), Pedro Madeira Froufe and Carlos Abreu Amorim (CitDig key staff members), who commented, as a general topic, on the relevance of the new "European Political Community", whose first meeting took place in Prague on 6-7 October. As for specific topics, the speakers analysed i) the European Commission's Communication on the enforcement of EU Law, ii) the impact of the political and economic crisis in the United Kingdom on the integration process, and iii) the measures adopted by the EU to overcome the energy crisis (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vj7_OxNQ-oc).