We cordially invite you to an online event on June 11, 2025, from 2:00 to 4:00 PM (hosted in English). Join the advocacy and policy professionals from civil society to exchange lessons from Hungary, Slovakia and the EU level legislative framework and explore strategies for a meaningful participation in policymaking when the civic space across Europe is being narrowed.
The event is intended for leaders and program managers, policy officers and a range of experts such as advocacy coordinators, lobbyists, legal advisors, public interest and citizen rights advocates etc. from across civil society organisations and their networks in the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia.
Please note: The capacity is limited. Glopolis reserves the right to confirm registration for selected applicants to ensure diversity and proportionality of participants. Thank you for your understanding.
As civil society organisations (CSOs) we are indispensable to democratic governance, serving as expert voices and watchdogs for inclusive policy making. But in an era where civic space is narrowing our role is being challenged like never before. We start asking what happens when: Governments dismantle participatory mechanisms? Access to information is cut off? We are no longer invited to the table? Or even targeted for our work? What legislative framework, processes and commitments can we rely on from the EU level and benefit from our countries' EU membership to strive for civic participation in policy-making?
The event will offer a space to assess the rapidly arising challenges, exchange experience from different contexts, and identify alternative pathways to ensure democratic dialogue and participation in public decision-making. In a group of diverse policy actors, networks, and experts we will share concrete strategies and actionable steps for adapting and engaging in meaningful policy dialogue, even when traditional participatory channels are restricted or shut down.
Márta Pardavi is co-chair of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee in Budapest. A lawyer by training, she has recently been focusing on the threats to the rule of law and civil society space in Hungary and the EU. Ms. Pardavi also co-leads the Recharging Advocacy for Rights in Europe (RARE) programme, which equips human rights defenders to build stronger organisations and alliances for joint action on civic space and rule of law in the EU.
Peter Čuroš is a lawyer at VIA IURIS, which focuses on improving the rule of law and the environment in Slovakia and a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Oslo. As a lawyer as well as a researcher he has focused for example on legal ethics, professional responsibility, a relationship between law and morality, issues of unjust law. Apart from that, Mr. Čuroš is currently working on the Judges under Stress - the Breaking Point of Judicial Institutions project.
Ivana Rosenzweigova is a Senior Legal Advisor in ECNL where she has had an opportunity to work on a wide range of issues affecting civic space, including access to funding and financial services, philanthropy, tax regulation, public participation, and provision of support to human rights defenders in exile. Apart from that, Ms. Rosenzweigová is a member of the Czech Bar Association and has experience with privacy and technology law.
The event is organized by Glopolis as part of the Stronger Roots Program. The program is funded by the European Union and implemented by a consortium composed of Glopolis and the Open Society Fund Prague in Czechia, the Open Society Foundation Bratislava in Slovakia, and the NIOK Foundation in Hungary.
