Siena Conference on the Future of Europe

The last three years have witnessed a further acceleration of the crises which appear to be defining features of the 21st century. Such frequent and violent shocks are exposing the inadequacy of the institutions and the participation mechanisms which we have been using after WW2 for governing global/complex problems.

The European Union is not alien to such a crisis and still suffers from ambiguities and sub-optimal half-integrations, yet it can still turn a problem into an opportunity for leadership.

The Vision Conferences on the Future of Europe objectives are thus to act as a catalyst of new ideas which can offer “solutions” to specific problems identified by the concept paper and as a promoter of a different approach to the project.

Vision Think Tank in partnership with the University of Siena and the European University Institute (EUI), organised the fourth Vision Conference on the Future of Europe with the cooperation of the major think tanks and European political foundations: FEPS; European Liberal Forum ; New Direction and GEF.

The problem-solving aspect of the Conference was developed through seven plenary sessions and four problem-solving groups, focusing on topics such as European security, the energy transition, the reform of COP, the recovery fund and a more democratic Europe. The outputs of these sessions will create a general manifesto proposing a different method of integration with an action plan for each of the problems and priorities analysed by each working group.

This year’s chairs were Sandro Gozi (European MEP for Renew Europe, former Italy’s Secretary of State for European Affairs), Maria João Rodrigues (President of FEPS and former Portugal’s Minister of Employment), John Hooper (Italy and Vatican’s correspondent, The Economist), Kalypso Nicolaïdis (Professor at the St Antony’s College, University of Oxford and Professor at the School of Transnational Governance – EUI).

FEPS participated in the following panels:

What are the ideas to fill the half-full glass of EU integration?

8 June – 10.15 – 11.30

• Introduction by: Francesco Grillo, Director at Vision Think Tank and Visiting Fellow at the EUI

Discussants

• Maria João Rodrigues, FEPS President
• Romano Prodi, Former Italian Prime Minister and President of the EU Commission
• Barbara Kolm, Vice President of the Austrian Central Bank
• Sandro Gozi, MEP for Renew Europe and former Italian Secretary of State for EU Affairs
• Chair: Bill Emmott, Trustee of the Institute of Strategic Studies and former editor of The Economist

Recovery and Resilience Facility: can milestone-based investment and reforms work for a stronger Europe?

9 June – 15.45 – 16.45

• Introduction by: David Rinaldi, Director of Studies and Policy at FEPS

Discussants:

• Jonathan Zeitlin, Amsterdam Centre for European Studies, University of Amsterdam and fellow at the EUI
• Jerome Creel, Director of Studies OFCE Sciences Po
• Marco Buti, Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa Chair in European Economic and Monetary Integration, based at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, EUI
• Luca Mezzomo, Head of Macroeconomic Analysis, Intesa Sanpaolo
• Mario Nava, Director-General of the Directorate–General for Structural Reform Support
• Carlo Altomonte, SDA Professor of Macroeconomics and International Business Environment at Bocconi