In 2009 we have to prove that launching the EGP was more than a show

Said EGP secretary general Juan Behrendt some 50 individual EGP-supporters of GroenLinks during the Europe Day Dinner in Utrecht in May. Apart from eating and exchanging views, Greens from Belgium, Germany, Poland and the Netherlands proposed new cross border Green actions, like city links, a Rapid Reaction Force for positive European News and development assistance to upcoming parties. More suggestions are most welcome in our comment box!

For the first time EGP secretary Behrendt revealed a little of how the EGP committee hopes to involve individual supporters in the common European project. ’The launching of the EGP in 2004 was partly a show’, he admitted. ‘It has been received in a positive way, but next time we’ll have to prove ourselves.’

Part of this proof might come from a cooperation between strong parties like GroenLinks helping weaker Greens from new EU-member states to win a seat in the European Parliament in 2009. The best opportunities, he said, are in Czechia, where the Greens participate in the government; in Malta where they just missed a seat in 2004; in Estonia where they recently made their entrance in Parliament; and in Slovakya where they might make their come-back. 

For individual supporters Behrend, ‘positively surprised’by the high amount of GroenLinks supporters (1000 of the 1050), saw a role as well: those who have a couple of months to spare, might consider to travel to an upcoming Green Party and give it advice.

A more radical form of support was suggested by Bartek Lech (Zieloni 04), spokesperson of the Federation of Young European Greens. Why don’t strong Green parties give a European seat to parties like ours, using the possibility of putting a foreigner on their European list?  A practical suggestion gave Anne de Boer (GroenLinks), a many years advisor to Green parties in former Eastern Europe: use existing town twinning structures and financiap means to set up green twinning projects – that might go from a simple donation of old computers to campaign assistance and advice in writing a local agenda.

Environmentalist Jan Juffermans proposed to further green concsciousness by putting the European Footprint on the agenda of the EU. And ex-MEP ALexander de Roo suggested to improve the image of the EU through a Rapid Reaction Force counterbalancing the negative news spread by national politicians using the EU as a scapegoat for all that goes wrong. Individual supporter Reinout van Schouwen in turn suggested little European banners to be sewn onto your backpack.

 

The complete list :

• Put the European Footprunt on the EU-agenda – see also WWF-report 2005 – to make visible how heavily European consumption weighs on the resources of the planet (Jan Juffermans, GroenLinks & Ecology centre De Kleine Aarde)
• Calculate, based on the Stern Report, the price of fossile fuels when all environment costs are taken into account. Once people have to pay that price, transport will become more expensive and local economy more competitive (Jan Juffermans)
• Green participation in the international conference ‘Beyond GDP’ in Brussels, 6-7 November http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/27/46/38433373.pdf and http://www.unep.org/greenroom/documents/WorldBank-WealthOfNationsPR.pdf (Jan Juffermans)
• A progressive Rapid reaction force for spreading positive European news, as a counter-weight to national politicians who blame Europe for all that goes wrong (Alexander de Roo)
• A little EU-banner to sew on your backpack (Reinout van Schouwen, GroenLinks
• Europe Myth Busters (Reinout van Schouwen, GroenLinks)
• Green town twinnings, especially between strong parties in old EU-member countries and weaker or starting parties in new member states, using existing town twinning structures. Assistance can go from sending old computers to campaign advice and help in setting up a local structure and writing a local agenda. In the past, local structures have been decisive for national success because at that level a breaktrough is easier (Anne de Boer, GroenLinks & chair East-West Dialogue)
• Party-links in which stronger parties from old member countries help weaker ones in new EU member states to build up forces and win a seat in the European Parliament in 2009. Role for Individual Supporters: who hase some months to spare, could help such a party with advice. (Juan Behrendt, EGP-secretary general)
• Stronger parties could put at least one candidate from a new member country on their European list in 2009, thus giving Greens from countries like Poland an opportunity to have a seat in the European Parliament. Nationally they often have difficulties because of the electoral system (Bartek Lech, Zieloni 2004 & FYEG)
• Create regional partnerships, as in Borderless Green and Social, in which a strong partner (Dutch Greens from the provinces Groningen and Drenthe in this case) helps a stronger one (Greens from rural districts in northern Lower Saxony) and address cross border problems together (Nikolaus Schütte zur Wick, Bündnis 90/Die Grünen Lower Saxony & co-president Borderless Green and Social)
• A bigger Individual Supporterd Dinner next year, with more and younger guests, by inviting more big names (Brenda Tiddens, GroenLinks)