Last week, we had the privilege of attending the 4th ECI Network Gathering as ECI Ambassadors! This was a moment to connect and reflect on one of the most powerful democratic tools available to EU citizens: the European Citizens’ Initiative.
What is the ECI & why does it matter?
The European Citizens’ Initiative is a unique participatory mechanism that allows EU citizens to directly propose legislation to the European Commission. It’s democracy in its most tangible form: if one million citizens from at least seven EU Member States sign an initiative within one year, the Commission is obliged to consider it.
To launch an Initiative, a group of at least seven organisers from at least seven different Member States must first register the initiative. Once approved, the clock starts and the community-building begins.
Since the ECI was introduced in 2012, 14 initiatives have successfully crossed the one-million-signature threshold, gathering a combined total of over 17.7 million signatures. Between 2020 and 2026 alone, six successful ECIs collected more than 13.3 million signatures: a sign that citizen engagement is not fading, but growing!
What we heard at the gathering
The 4th Network Gathering brought together ECI Ambassadors from across Europe to take stock of the past year and look ahead. The numbers tell a story of momentum:
- 10 new ECIs were registered since the last gathering
- 3 ECIs were submitted for the Commission’s reply, with 1 reply already received
- ECI Ambassadors collectively reported close to 250 activities, reaching over 1 million people through local events and digital outreach
- 11 new Ambassadors joined the network, and 8 online meet-ups were held
- A community was created organically, bottom-up, just as the ECI spirit intends
These figures represent thousands of conversations, volunteers, local events, and citizens who took the time to engage with the democratic process.
Our role as ECI Ambassadors
As ECI Ambassadors, Future Demo’s job is to help you understand this tool and make it accessible in our community. That means explaining what the ECI is, sharing active initiatives worth supporting, and encouraging people to believe that their signature genuinely counts.
If you’ve never heard of the ECI before – now you have. And if you want to know which initiatives are currently open for signatures, we’re here to help you navigate that.
Democracy works best when we show up for it. The ECI is one way to do exactly that.
Comments are closed