[FR] Europe: clarifying, deepening and imagining

In 2022, France has a date with Europe and with its own political future. The French Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the French presidential campaign are two moments when European issues will be at the forefront of the French debate. These are opportunities for the Jacques Delors Institute (IJD) to play its role in providing insight, education and raising European awareness. Our work programme therefore includes a first part entitled “Europe to be clarified”, which provides for the deployment of our various communication tools, the establishment of a monitoring unit and longer-term actions focusing on European values and the Green Deal in particular. The Notre Europe Academy is also participating in this vast effort to clarify European issues, which we hope to extend to the teaching world.

Next year will also be the year of post-Merkel Germany, where the new coalition has set out new ambitions for European integration. In this political context and within the framework of the Convention on the Future of Europe, our think tank will continue its research on several key issues grouped together in the ‘Europe to deepen’ section of this programme. This includes our work on the sustainability of the European recovery plan and other instruments created in response to the Covid-19 crisis, as well as further reflection on the changing geopolitical context in which Europe is evolving and on the governance of the Union, with a view to the 2024 European elections. We will also continue our research in several H2020 projects on differentiated integration and different dimensions of the energy transition, led by our Energy Centre (JDEC).

Europe is not just a subject of research but a constant topic of debate. In the section entitled ‘Europe to imagine’, we want to engage in this forward-looking debate with various stakeholders, such as those in the social and solidarity economy and other institutions, including those outside our continent. The Jacques Delors Conference, which we will be organising for the second time, will provide a framework for what we hope will be lively exchanges with young people from all walks of life, to whom the year 2022 is specially dedicated in Europe.

Our Institute will carry out this work programme in collaboration with its sister institutes in Berlin and Brussels, under the coordination of Pascal Lamy, and in keeping with the convictions of our founder, Jacques Delors.