About us
European Civic Forum (ECF) is a pan-European network of more than 100 associations and NGOs across 30 European countries. Founded in 2005 by our member organisations, we have spent nearly two decades working to protect civic space, enable civic participation and build civil dialogue for more equality, solidarity and democracy in Europe.
Our work
Policy & Advocacy
We advocate to ensure EU policies respect fundamental rights for all, for an enabling environment for civil society and for genuine civil dialogue.
Network & Capacity Building
We connect civil society actors transnationally and across sectors through conferences, forums and alliances.
Monitoring & Reporting
We monitor civic space across Europe and report on developments for Civic Space Watch and Civicus Monitor.
Our network
Our network is made up of diverse organisations, ranging from big federations and national platforms of NGOs uniting hundreds of thousands of organisations across different sectors, human rights and campaigning organisations, and smaller groups working at community level.
Reports
Working with our members and partners, our research and advocacy team produces reports on a wide variety of topics – notably our annual Civic Space Report.
ECF in the news
Highlights from our coverage in the international media.
EU Commission wants registry for foreign lobbyists
'The plan will be “deeply harmful to democracy and will fail in its stated intention of exposing covert foreign interference in EU policymaking,” said Alexandrina Najmowicz, secretary general of the European Civic Forum, an umbrella organization of NGOs and associations.'
We all lose if the Olympic surveillance state becomes the norm
'A gaggle of human rights groups – including Amnesty International, the European Civic Forum and Human Rights Watch – blasted the law, writing in Le Monde that it was “a worrying precedent,”'
Repression of pro-Palestine movements in Europe: the rule of law threatened, alerts European NGO
'The NGO estimates that at least 12 EU member states have taken disproportionate measures, including banning protests...'
20 international organisations call on the State to drop terrorism charges against Democratic Tsunami
'In a statement, they denounce that research limits fundamental rights and generates a "deterrent" effect on civil society. The text has been promoted by the European Civic Forum (ECF) and has the support of Amnesty International...'
The future of Europe: EU citizens take centre stage
'The EU is coming to the end of a major experiment in public debate: the Conference on the Future of Europe, ... What – if anything – has the conference achieved? Will true change come about? We discuss this with three guests who took part in the Conference itself.'
Pro-Palestine protests - between anti-Semitism and state repression
'Back in April, the NGO association European Civic Forum criticised in a report that numerous European countries had applied disproportionate repressive measures to pro-Palestinian protests.'
EU citizens’ panels likely to stay, but need to be adapted, experts say
'EU citizens' panels introduced after the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE) mean deliberative democracy experiments will continue at the EU level, but they need to better adapt to citizens’ expectations and become more inclusive, experts say.'
Civic Space Watch
Civic Space Watch collects findings and analyses from actors in Europe on the conditions for civil society to operate, capturing national and trans-European trends in civic space. Through ongoing monitoring of social media and regular contact and interviews with a strong network of members and partners on the ground, we strive to provide easy access to resources and improve information sharing within civil society across Europe with policy-makers and the media.
