European Citizens’ Panels

Citizens' Panels are becoming a regular feature of democratic life in the European Union (EU). They bring together randomly-selected citizens from all 27 member states to discuss – at European level – key, upcoming proposals that affect us all. European Citizens’ Panels see participants working together in small groups (each of around 12 people) and all together (in plenaries). A facilitation team provides support. Based on the discussions, citizens make recommendations for the European Commission to consider when defining policies and initiatives.

In March 2024, our organization was selected in Cyprus’ first European Citizen’s Panels via the Sortition Foundation. Our Recruiter went door-to-door knocking and tried to recruit as many  people as possible to represent themselves  on ‘Why do we have more hate in our society and what can we do about it?. All citizens selected via a random lottery will have the chance to go to Brussels and develop concrete recommendations for the EU Commission.