'Extraordinary Meeting of the Diversity Europe Group'., Brussels

Europees Economisch en Sociaal Comité (EESC)
© Kevin Bergenhenegouwen
date November 12, 2019 09:30 - 18:00
city Brussels, Belgium
location Delors building (JDE) i Show location
attending (David) Casa i et al.
organisation European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) i

DRAFT PROGRAMME - Extraordinary Meeting of the Diversity Europe Group

EN

European Economic and Social Committee

Group III - Diversity Europe Group

New Role Models for Societies in Europe

DRAFT PROGRAMME

 

12 November

9 a.m.

 

Meeting room JDE 62, Jacques Delors Building, European Economic and Social Committee

Registration and coffee

 

9.30 a.m.

 

Inaugural session

  • Mr Arno Metzler, President of the Diversity Europe Group of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC)
  • Mr Joost Korte, Director-General of DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (t.b.c.)
  • Representative of the Finnish Presidency of the Council of the EU
 

10.15 a.m.

Keynote speeches

Why equal opportunities between men and women in the workforce are still so elusive

  • Ms Virginija Langbakk, Director of the European Institute for Gender Equality (t.b.c.)
 
 

Sharing parenting and family life in the 21st Century: are we stuck in the Dark Ages?

  • Associate Professor Ms Livia Oláh, Department of Sociology, Stockholm University, project leader of the consortium research on Changing Families and Sustainable Societies: policy contexts and diversity over the life course and across generations (EU 7th Framework Programme FamiliesAndSocieties involving 25 research partners and three transnational civil society actor partners) (t.b.c.)
  • Q & A
 

11.15 a.m.

 

Have societal attitudes to parenting and family life kept up with reality?

  • Ms Annemie Drieskens, President of the Executive Bureau of COFACE Families Europe (t.b.c.)
  • Mr Antoine Renard, former President of the Federation of Catholic Family Associations in Europe (FAFCE) (t.b.c.)
  • H.E. Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, President of Eurochild (t.b.c.)
  • Mr Björn Sieverding, Vice President of the Network of European LGBTIQ Families Associations (NELFA) (t.b.c.)
  • Q & A
 

12.45 p.m.

 

Lunch hosted by the President of the Diversity Europe Group

 

2.15 p.m.

 

Break-out panel I: What challenges remain? The importance of civil and social dialogue (room JDE 62)

  • Ms Indré Vareikyté, EESC rapporteur for the Opinion 'Gender Equality Issues', Member of the Diversity Europe Group (t.b.c.)
  • Mr Markus Beyrer, Director General of BusinessEurope (t.b.c.)
  • Ms Esther Lynch, Deputy General Secretary of the European Trade Union Congress (ETUC) (t.b.c.) OR a Member of Group II
  • Dr Horst Heitz, Executive Director of SME Europe (t.b.c.) OR the Group I Spokesperson of the SME EESC Category
  • Ms Carina Autengruber, President of the European Youth Forum (t.b.c.)
  • Q & A
 

2.15 p.m.

Break-out panel II: Implementing grassroots solutions (room JDE63)

  • Ms Anne-Sophie Parent, Secretary General of 'Age Platform Europe' (t.b.c.)
  • Representative of the European Disability Forum (EDF)
  • Ms Karen Kiernan, Director of the Irish organization 'One Family' (t.b.c.)
  • Representative of the 'Réseaux d'Ecoute, d'Appui et d'Accompagnement des Parents' (REAAP) (network for disadvantaged families - ask Ms Basset for contact details) / Caisse d'allocations familiales FR
  • Lithuanian example of a social enterprise investing in services (day care centre for single parents to leave children) - waiting for info from Mindaugas
  • Q & A
 

4 p.m.

Equal opportunities for all: the way forward at the national and European levels

  • MEP Mr David Casa, rapporteur on the proposal for a 'Directive on Work-Life Balance for Parents and Carers' (Malta, EPP)
  • Ms Marie-Andrée Blanc, President of the French National Union of Family Associations (UNAF) (t.b.c.)
  • Ms Kinga Joó, Vice-President of the Hungarian National Association of Large Families (NOE), Member of the Board of the National Cooperation Fund (NEA) and Member of the Diversity Europe Group of the EESC
  • Ms Norma Bernad, Director of UNAF Spain (t.b.c.)
  • Ms Ulrika Hall, Member of the EU Social Protection Committee for Sweden (t.b.c.)
  • Q & A
 

5.30 p.m.

Concluding remarks

Mr Arno Metzler, President of the Diversity Europe Group of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC)

_____________

EESC-2019-03221-00-00-CONVPOJ-TRA (EN) 1/1


1.

European Economic and Social Committee (EESC)

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is an EU advisory body comprising representatives of workers' and employers' organisations and other interest groups. It issues opinions on EU issues to the European Commission, the Council of the EU and the European Parliament, thus acting as a bridge between the EU's decision-making institutions and EU citizens.

What does the EESC do?

It gives the interest groups a formal say on EU legislative proposals. Its 3 key tasks are to:

  • ensure that EU policy and law are geared to economic and social conditions, by seeking a consensus that serves the common good

2.

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