March 2024 -Participants in the First Conclave “Europe 2040” (see Appendix 1) discussed the collective destiny of Europeans, which is at stake in a rapidly changing world. After having listened to leaders from the outside world with challenging views (see Appendix 2), they aimed to identify what might be the new European public goods of tomorrow and the ways and means to produce them. The aim was to design the European union we need in the short term and by 2040.

On this basis, they pledge for a much stronger promotion of European common interests, values, and unity by the Member States and the Eu institutions.
They propose a major focus on four fields which, for a long time, were not at the heart of European priorities but should now structure the strategic agenda: Geopolitics, Science and Technology, Development model, and Democracy. They draw the conclusion that these four domains, which are increasingly intertwined, need a radically new approach and much higher ambition at the earliest if the Eu and its Member States want to remain relevant to their citizens. In this respect, they identify seventeen fundamental issues that Europeans need to tackle as early as now to prepare a collective positive future. These issues are developed in the report.

Source: Conclave, operated by EuropaNova.