MARIA BADIAThe world is changing, and so is Europe. Nowadays, the ancient certainties that nobody would discuss, because they were so deeply settled in our lives, they are no longer valid. The globalized world presents several questions, and sometimes it is worrying to see how fast the changes are taking place. Changes in the way we think, changes in the way we behave... it is easy to feel that coexistence among humans is getting hard. We are worried for our sons and daughters, because we don't know how the things will work out in the future. Not only the social behaviour has changed, but also the world frontiers, they are not what they used to, they have either vanished or they are diffuse. The foreign policy of the hegemonic powers affects directly our cities, our villages and us.On the other hand, most of the current problems acquire new dimensions that make them harder to solve. Environmental catastrophes; delocations, with its following social and economic consequences; civil and military conflicts, with the misery, the desolation and the population movements that they bring... All of them have repercussions on the environment, economy, society, culture and political stability. In this context, it is impossible to find solutions in a city level, or a region level or even in a country level. A good response to a catastrophe demands new strategies and the establishment of new relations in a greater structure, and from this need arises e-futur. Today, there are many organisations, associations and European political parties that promote and develop this discussion, but this website maintains the particularity of being a place of transversal meeting for individuals. People aware of the new reality, who have the same interests and worries towards the uncertain world, they will find a place to gather, because this globalized world can be concerning, but it also gives the opportunity to improve governance, solidarity and peace among us. This is an attempt to create a meeting point where people from anywhere in Europe can contact other people in order to share opinions, a place where to find answers to the upcoming questions that worry us. It is a place for people aware of the situation and committed to finding solutions, people who believe that answers will come from the values of liberty, solidarity and social justice, which are the values of the European left wing. Like Willy Brandt mentioned, the complexity of problems needs to be translated into appropriate policies in the new times. We are aware that such a meeting point will carry a setback. It is a multilingual discussion, which means more complexity, but it also means more diversity and richness in the discourses. We know that, but we would like to, progressively, get rid of the strictness and the barriers that the translations represent. That is why we ask you for an effort, it is worthwhile since it allows us to reach a good understanding of our social environment. We don't want to stand aside of the debate that is taking place within the political parties, we want to participate and do our contribution. We think that the initiative will provide a new point of view, because the European conscience cannot be created from above, not from the European elites, but from the basis. Discussing in different languages it is a step in this direction, it is a way to cohesion the young European society, it reinforces the feeling of being part of the same thing, sharing the same culture and having the same values. Our purpose is to debate, discuss, bring to light our ideas and get to know each other better. Every point of view brings us closer to the sense of being part of the European community, which is indispensable if we want to find a way to solve problems, a way to clear our future. Therefore, I encourage you to participate in this meeting point in the three languages in which we work now. The e-futur will surely fill your expectations! ANTONIO PANZERIA new phase of international politics is ahead of us, one that entails a number of question marks and contradictions, but also opportunities.Europe, and not just Europe, is facing tremendous challenges, both in the domestic and international arenas. Domestic challenges have to do with major demographic changes, which bring about transformation, new demands and new needs in the social and economic domain. International challenges arise from the globalisation process, pushing all sectors towards increased competition for world markets. The lack of a proper governance over such processes causes great problems and modern fears that must be dealt with. In such a context, citizens might observe their future as uncertain. More and more, people lack a solid basis for carrying out their daily activities and for the assurance of their destiny. Narrow-mindedness, nationalistic backlash, and the decay of a sense of citizenship emerge as risks. Politics, therefore, bears a great responsability, namely, to understand the workings of this new reality and to put new solutions to work. Among those solutions, we should include the real shaping of a European citizenship as one of our main goals and one of the best antidotes against such risks. Indeed, here also lies the meaning of our bottom-up initiative, of our willingness to gather European citizens. To bring together ways of thinking, points of view, ideas: such should be E-Futur’s task. The proposals arising from these encounters should above all contribute towards shaping a project for Europe. To sum up, our initiative is a call to be present and a call to be active. We are convinced that every effort in that direction will be worth making. |