Europe Talks: Europe's biggest dialogue event
Every Saturday in April and May, thousands of Europeans will meet for an unmoderated, one-on-one conversation. Follow the discussions in our weekly event reports.
In just two months, EU citizens will elect a new European Parliament. With climate change, rising extremism, and multiple global crises, it is more important than ever to create spaces for Europeans to talk across borders. That’s the goal of Europe Talks, the biggest pan-European dialogue program in 2024.
Each Saturday in April and May, hundreds of Europeans will meet for a 1:1 conversation. The weekly dialogue events give participants an open platform to exchange ideas and widen their perspectives by meeting someone with a totally different point of view. There’s never been an easier way to meet another European and talk about the biggest challenges facing our shared future.
Follow the dialogue events here, we'll update with new stories each week. Ready to try it yourself? Sign up for Europe Talks now!
Dialogue day #3: April 20, 2024
This past Saturday, April 20th 2024, our Europe Talks participants met for the third dialogue day. The majority of them opted to speak through video platforms.
Once again, the most polarizing question was “Should Europe accept more refugees”, with 56% of the participants answering yes. The other concern that polarizes most of the Europeans was the potential membership of Ukraine in the EU. This week, 60% of the respondents voted in favor, while 40% opposed.
Over the weekend, the conversations among Europe Talks participants have proven that differences in countries of origin, political ideology, or age are not barriers to holding respectful, insightful and productive discussion about the future of Europe.
Giorgos (56) from Greece,and Lilli (26) from Germany talked for over an hour about the six out of seven questions on which they differ, including the most polarizing questions of this week. They also went beyond in their discussion and brought to the table the 2008 financial crisis, public education and NATO.
It was surprising for them to discover that they held common opinions on the topics they initially disagreed on. Lilli explained that clicking "yes/no" in the questionnaire led them to "choose different sides," but their online conversation helped them find "a middle ground."
Despite the 30 year gap, Giorgos (left) said that they both have “a strong European identity”
Markus from Austria (63) and Rosario from Italy (28)also spoke for over an hour despite their age gap, discussing questions in which they disagreed, such as whether abortion should be a constitutional right in all EU countries. They also talked about topics they shared similar thoughts, such as the future of the EU. For Markus, the common currency is “a differentiating point” between the Gen Z and his generation, as “they did not experience Europe before the Euro”.
Rosario (left) and Markus (right) spent over an hour discussing the role and the future of Europe
Katharina from Germany and Serenella from Italy disagreed on all questions except one, therefore they had a lot to discuss in their hour and a half chat. They discovered that they shared opinions on certain questions, but for different reasons. Katharina thinks that their countries' historical and cultural backgrounds might be influencing their perspectives. She was surprised to learn that Serenella believed the EU has not improved life in Italy.
Katharina and Serenella having a joyful conversation on April 23rd.
Max (Austria) spoke with Carlota (Portugal) for over an hour. They put together their different approaches to certain political topics, such as whether domestic flights should be banned within all EU countries or if the EU should have a joint European army, and try to find ways how they can contribute to these issues. In Max words: “This was one of the most rewarding conversation in the last 10 years.”
The next dialogue day takes place on April 27. You can sign to join Europe Talks here!
Dialogue day #2: April 13, 2024
The second dialogue day of Europe Talks took place on Saturday, 13th April, 2024. The 148 matches met mainly via online video platforms.
Once again, the most polarizing question was: “Should Europe accept more refugees” with 56% responding “yes" and 44% answering “no”. Followed closely by “Should Ukraine become a member of the EU?”, with 59% responding positively and 41% opposing.
Enrico from Italy and Sebastian from Germany disagreed on six of the seven questions. The acceptance of more refugees and the possibility of Ukraine becoming part of the EU were among those.
During their two hour conversation, they discussed all the questions but focused particularly on the refugee issue. Both went beyond the polarizing yes/no dichotomy to try to understand the phenomena that generated these questions in the first place. They had a deep conversation which resulted in a “veeeery interesting” discussion in Federico’s words.
Enrico from Italy (left) and Sebastian from Germany (right). They talked for 2 hours, especially on the topic they disagree with the most: the acceptance of refugees.
Another couple, Martina (Germany) and Christian (Austria), also searched for deeper answers than the yes/no responses. Despite disagreeing on five questions, including in the idea of a common EU army and in the ban of domestic flights, they spoke for three hours. As Martina puts it: “Both of us were more reflecting characters and not black and white thinkers”.
Anne from Germany and Carlo from Italy did not share the same opinion on the two most polarizing questions this week, as well as four others. In addition, they have a language barrier. None of this was an impediment to talk for an hour about these questions, their personal lives, professions and their similarities, with the help of a translator.
“There was a language barrier but at the same time a heartful attempt to understand each other”, said Anne.
Dialogue day #1: April 6, 2024
The first event in the Europe Talks 2024 program took place on April 6. There were 179 matches who confirmed to meet for the first event, either on the dialogue day or when it was possible for both partners to have their conversation. Most participants spoke via video call, while others talked on the phone, on an encrypted messaging app, or simply spent the afternoon exchanging voice messages.
Daniel and Annette talked for 2 hours about climate change, a European army, and abortion rights. They had many similar views, even though they answered six questions differently.
For the first dialogue day, discussion pairs had an average of 4 different answers to the registrations questions. The most polarizing question in the first round of matching was "Should Europe accept more refugees", with 55% of participants saying "yes", and 45% saying "no".
One pair who disagreed on this question of refugees was Isabella from Italy, and Nick from Greece. Both are 30 years old, and found they had a lot in common despite their different views - talking about politics but also sharing their daily life and even talking about music. They spent their conversation brainstorming ways that the EU could be better organized.
"I liked how we talked fluidly without judgment and we reached so many topics." - Isabella from Italy
"The problem is 'not to talk' not 'having different opinions' " says Teresa from Italy. She and her partner, Alex from Slovakia, have an age difference of 47 years, but still spoke for more than 90 minutes about their opinions and views.
The next dialogue day takes place on April 13. You can sign up to join Europe Talks here!
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